ITU names India co-chair of Digital Innovation Board

The meeting of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) was held in Geneva. India was represented in this by Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary of the Indian Department of Telecommunications. It was organized from March 18-20, 2024. In this meeting, ITU has elected India co-chairman of the Digital Innovation Board.

• Dr. Mittal's visit focused on promoting cooperation and exploring innovative initiatives in the telecommunications and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sectors. 

India will lead the Digital Innovation Board:

• India has the opportunity to lead the Digital Innovation Board under the co-chairmanship of Dr. Neeraj Mittal.
• Dr. Mittal was unanimously elected Co-Chair of ITU's Digital Innovation Board, formed under the auspices of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Alliance for Digital Development.
• The Digital Innovation Board consists of telecommunications/ICT ministers from ITU's 23 member states in Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America.
• ITU has launched the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Alliance for Digital Development to meet the needs of the ITU membership in the area of innovation. This was expressed in the Kigali Action Plan adopted at the World Telecommunication Development Conference 2022 and the outcomes of the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2022.

Main means of alliance:

• The following are the three main mediums of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Alliance –
  • Digital Transformation Lab
  • Network Acceleration Center
  • Digital Innovation Board
• This alliance has established the Digital Innovation Board. This will help build local supporters to create a more inclusive and equitable digital future for all.

Selection of 17 global organizations:

• ITU has selected 17 global organizations to coordinate the efforts of Network Acceleration Centers around the world at the ITU Area Office and Innovation Centre, New Delhi.

India's participation in ITU activities:

• Dr. Mittal also chaired a review meeting at the Permanent Mission of India (PMI) in Geneva. The meeting was attended by PMI Permanent Representative Arindam Bagchi and other senior officials.
• Progress on important achievements and greater participation of India's academicians and industry people were discussed in the meeting. Also, efforts to increase India's participation in ITU activities were reviewed.

Mittal's bilateral meeting with representatives of various countries:

• India held a bilateral meeting with representatives of various countries on the sidelines of the Digital Innovation Board meeting at ITU Headquarters. which is like this:

A bilateral meeting between India and Japan:

• A bilateral meeting was held between India and Japan. The meeting was co-chaired by Dr. Neeraj Mittal and Hiroshi Yoshida, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications of Japan. In this, the partnership of India and Japan in telecommunication and ICT sectors was reviewed. The two leaders proposed active cooperation between the two countries on AI, 5G usage and quantum product certification.
• Both leaders stressed the need for cooperation to develop a framework for reliable products.
• Expressed their agreement on 5G use under the India-Japan Joint Working Group on ICT.

Invitation to Japan to participate in WTSA and IMC 2024:

• Dr. Mittal invited the Japanese Government to participate in the World Telecommunications Standardization Assembly (WTSA) 2024 and India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2024.

A bilateral meeting between India and Bahrain:

• Dr. Mittal held a bilateral meeting with Mohammed bin Thamir, Minister of Transport and Telecommunications of Bahrain, on the sidelines of the Digital Innovation Board meeting.
• India and Bahrain decided to actively cooperate in the ICT sector. These include areas like Artificial Intelligence, use of 5G, cyber security and development of data embassy.
• The two leaders agreed to revisit the Memorandum of Understanding on ICT between the two countries, which expired in 2015.
• India proposed to share with Bahrain the TEC standard on impartial assessment and rating of AI methodology, position note on regulatory sandbox.