Ghana to head African group on telecom

Ghana has been selected to preside over the meeting of the African group in the World Telecommunication Standardisation Assembly to be held in Johannesburg in South Africa in October.

The country's nomination was unanimously agreed on by delegates, who attended the International Telecommunication Union's Africa Standardisation Development Forum and Preparatory Meeting that ended in Accra on Friday.

The Accra meeting deliberated on world standardisation issues of common concern to the continent and adopt common proposals for presentation to the WTSA At the meeting participants agreed to form a special committee to deal with the standardization gap in order to ensure that standards on the continent meet the specific requirements of the region. There was also consensus on the inclusion and involvement of the academia in all ITU activities, the need for decisive action on climate change and cyber security.

In his closing remarks, Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communication said, in view of the threat posed by climate change to the economies of African countries, it was important that the continent made its views held through making a specific proposal instead of adopting what others have made.
He said similar action should be taken in the area of cyber security since the continent was a fertile ground for cyber crime. It is therefore important to engage in discussions of cyber security. Mr Ntim urged the delegates to ensure that Africa did not renege on the positions it had adopted at the conference. Mr. Malcom Johnson, Director, ITU Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau, reiterated the call for specific proposals in climate change accessibility, among others.
The five-day meeting was held on the theme: "Bridging the ICT standardization gap in developing countries for the Africa Region." It was attended by 27 countries.