Testimonials

We have big challenges across these markets which we cannot confront on our own, so this combination of the operators, the policy makers, the governments and civil society, we have to work together to solve the challenges and what the ITU does is bring everyone together at the same time, which I think is hugely powerful. Rob Shuter, Group President & CEO, MTN

This event is eye-opening to all of us. Our SMEs and all our colleagues will take the good ideas here and see how they can implement them at home, see what is happening elsewhere in the continent and beyond. Prof. Américo F. Muchanga, Director General, INCM, Mozambique

This is the best place to meet the regulatory agencies, the mobile network operators, the telecoms ministers. Pascal Prot, Chief Technical Officer, Legos

It’s very green! We have only had to travel hundreds of metres up and down the hall to meet regulators, ministers, important people – it has saved me so much time and effort, very, very worthwhile. Jack Buechler, Chief Operating Officer, Quika

The value comes for me and for the young people who attend, who share what they have here and what they learn. Many young people come here with innovations, they exchange ideas and see how to create SMEs. There are many things we are here to learn, and we go back to our countries we try to implement these ideas. Abdoulkarim Soumaila, Secretary General, African Telecommunication Union

Through attending these kinds of events we are able to make a contribution, hear the view of governments and our peers on what challenges our industry is facing and this provides further opportunities for us to align on synergies and opportunities for smart partnerships. Ravi Suchak, VP, Public Affairs, EMEA, American Tower Corporation

It focuses on the technology but also on the social side of telecommunications, it brings together both industry and regulators - this is the only place we want to be. Jean-Paul Chaib, Managing Director, LS telcom France

Attending an event like this is a great platform for us to connect with many of the partners that we work with today that we don’t get to see on a regular basis. We get to connect with our global peers who are playing important roles in digitizing not just the continent but the globe. Reshaad Sha, CEO, Liquid Telecom

It is a great honour for me, as small company with lots of potential. I saw a lot of companies like us here, we would like to come here every year if we have the chance, all the ICT system is here to cooperate with, and there are many ceremonies and festivals to have fun together, it is very good Sujeong Park, Manager, iKoob

If we prepare the world through digital education and digital development, we will have a much better world - and for the first time in mankind’s history it is possible to do this in one generation. César Alierta Izuel, Chairman, Foundatión Telefónica

The innovations and companies exhibiting have been great, and the networking amongst the different organisations has been phenomenal. Ashraf Patel, Digital Economy Associate, IGD, University of South Africa

It is a fantastic gathering bringing together professionals from the industry, the public, the UN organizations, the officials to talk to each other, to have heated discussions…this is how you get new ideas, this is how you identify opportunities and challenges. Dr. Amani Abou - Zeid, Commissioner, African Union Commission

It is truly remarkable, the cultural interaction learning from different nations, different cultures, different regions. Ashraf Patel, Digital Economy Associate, IGD, University of South Africa

Unlike most other shows where I just see big brand companies, all the developing countries are here, and it is really for the benefit of all ITU’s member states. David Wen, Chair, ITU Focus Group on Digital Fiat Currency

This is an exceptional opportunity to interact with my peers, with governments and policy makers and all stakeholders in one place, and actually hear their perspectives. Elizabeth Migwalla, Senior Director, Gov. Affairs, Middle East, Qualcomm

ITU Telecom World gives me inspiration and insights each year. We get to see what other developed and innovative countries are applying in emerging technologies, and it is also a platform for all parties and stakeholders to discuss future development. Yang Hua, Secretary General, TDIA

It is very valuable. We have to learn what the advanced countries do, how they develop their digital economy, how they can maximise digital technology to the economic or social benefit of the people - that is our main objective at this conference. H.E. Rudiantara, Minister of ICT, Indonesia

It is great to have this type of event and meet people from all different sectors, I have met some fantastic people here from totally different backgrounds, but we are all passionate and interested in the same things so hopefully we can make a difference. Beate Degen, Partner, Ernst & Young

It is important that even as a small nation we can showcase what we are doing and be able to learn from developed countries so we can bridge the digital gap. Ben Chitsonga, Finanical Director, MACRA, Malawi

This is a very good platform for all stakeholders to talk to each other and exchange ideas. This is now an ecosystem world, many partners together, and this is a very good platform for us to exchange ideas. Jianjun Zhou, Vice President, Carrier Business Group, Huawei

It is a great opportunity for us to take our ideas and innovations to a global market. This is a unique event for bringing together such a wide selection of countries to one site. Tomomi Takagi, CFO, Melody International

The sessions are interesting as they are more international, with people from different parts of the world with different attitudes to telecoms, to policy and governance, and sometimes it throws up some of the tensions as well as some of the agreements, which is important to understand for network developers and also for analysts and consultants such as myself. Dean Bubley, Founder & Director, Disruptive Analysis

This is a very good opportunity to know the global situation and what kind of concerns people have, and to introduce our technology and how it helps other people. Satoshi Amagai, President & CEO, Morfiria

Bringing together conference sessions, networking and exhibition and associated with the very relevant themes brings a lot for industry like us, as well as the fact that we are capitalising on the insights of last year, building upon what we learnt last year and exchanging further best practices, it brings a lot of value. Marc Vancoppenolle, Global Head of Government Relations, Nokia

This event is an opportunity to meet all the actors in the international ecosystem. It was superb, really different visions from Asia and Africa, we met old partners and new, shard good practice, seen the enormous opportunities with SMEs in Iran and in South Africa – it was a really rich experience. Sabrina Mendes, International Market Intelligene, Softex, Brazil

I am proud to be here to see the exciting innovations not only in the telecoms sector but also in other areas like fintech, ecommerce and 5G - the new era of technology here inspires me to do more and want to achieve more for society. Iwan Kurniawan, CEO & Co-founder, Modalku, Global SME Excellence Award Winner, Indonesia

We are targeting global markets here. RJ Choi, CFO, Moneybrain

ITU is where the top opinion leaders in the field of ITU work to contribute to a better world. Chung Young Hwan, President, Korea

The benefits are immense, and we will continue to put a premium on attendance at this event as it is an important way of showcasing our achievements in this sector as well as getting ideas on how best we can move telecoms forward in our country. Professor Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission

We have to be talking about sustainable development through transformational smart solutions, and this is the way to go - we have to learn from each other and we have to implement fast. François Régis Gatarayiha, Permanent Secretary, MiTEC Rwanda

It’s exciting to meet all the different stakeholders from different sectors - digital is impacting in so many different industries and fields that is good to bring us all together to look at the possible solutions. Lawrence Yanovitch, President, GSMA Foundation

We show our latest equipment and introduce it to people we don’t know; we generate business, and we give technology, know-how, to people attending the seminars. It’s a win-win. Dietmar Vahldiek, Executive Vice President of Radiomonitoring und Radiolocating, Rohde & Schwarz

We in the UN community must reach out to diverse audiences, to understand and define collectively what the opportunities are, if we are going to deliver on our mandate of having impact where it is most needed, and that is what brings us to this type of forum. Mukhisa Kituyi, Secretary-General, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

Receiving an award helped a lot for our business. We are a small venture company and receiving an award from ITU triggered a final decision from the top management of Nippon Express logistics company, so that after more than one year of discussion, they finally decided to use our technology for their business. So receiving the ITU Telecom World award gave us reputation, credibility and reliability for our company and our technology, so we really appreciate it. Hiroshi Tominaga, General Manager, Japan Battery Regeneration, Inc.

You can make a tour of the world in a small space, visit stands from neighbours and the rest of the world to see and exchange experiences, in a way which would not otherwise be possible.   Alain Claude Bilie-Bi-Nze, Ministre d'État, Ministre de l'Economie numérique, de la Communication, de la Culture et des Arts, Gabon

This is very impressive, this is so well organized, this is a great, great, great conference, a great exhibition, a good chance to see how the service providers are making some of these decisions, what the regulators are doing in different regions - it’s fantastic . Peter Macaulay, President, FTTH Council Asia-Pacific

This is a big opportunity and a way to measure how our own strategy is being put in and how effective it can be in bringing development in our country, it is a big occasion and opportunity to talk about our own ICT strategy. Armand Ndjodom, Secretary General, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, Cameroon

We are able to share the Kenyan experience, to showcase our innovations and compare what is happening globally, and have the opportunity to identify key collaborators that can work with the government to help develop the ICT agenda in Kenya. Sammy Itemere, Principal Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications, Kenya

It is very important for us as we get to do two things: we present what we can contribute to other organizations but we can also to see what member states as well as private and public sector can give to us, how we can find areas of collaboration, and creating innovation centres. Erzen Ilijazi, Director, Global Operations Div., Office of ICT, U.N.

I always find it a good place to connect with old friends but also to meet new people and get a sense of where governments are leaning in terms of ICT and policy and regulation. It is a great place to measure the pulse of the industry from the perspective of government, regulators and industry participants, to pressure test new ideas and really bring people into discussions. Peter Lyons, Community Lead, Telecommunications, WEF

It is extremely important to come to this event, to see what actually happens in the rest of the world, to have a vision, to make contacts and re-establish relationships. Allyson Maynard Gibson, Minister of Legal Affairs, The Bahamas

We learn about many things from different markets, where we don’t have the chance to meet the people or learn about these markets every day. We are learning from each other and sharing our best practices and this is the best thing of putting all these people together. Fatima Barros, Chair, ANACOM Board of Directors

Japan have been supporting and collaborating with the ITU event and exhibition for a long time, we are very much pleased to work with ITU and to find potential partners for collaboration: especially towards giving social benefit.   Hiroshi Kumagai, Former Vice President, Director General of Resilient ICT Research Center, NICT

I see a lot of value in attending this event, meeting and networking with the regulators, the telcos, with all the industry players here and the potential partnerships and collaboration that we can look forward to. Yvette Oh, Group Executive, Market Development, APMEA, International Markets (IMK), MasterCard Worldwide

There is a huge benefit of being here, this is a great place to meet both telecom operators and regulators from around the world, a great opportunity to meet with government officials in developing countries, to be enthused by our efforts to bridge the digital divide; and it’s a very relaxed environment in which to do it.   Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO, Datawind