Testimonials

Seek to participate in these discussions and gain insight into some of the opportunities that have been opened in a number of countries by certain companies - both the private sector and the ITU have very interesting discussions going on. John Omo, Secretary General, African Telecommunications Union (ATU)

To be in the ITU family means to put the world like a small village. We can solve problems, speak with ITU leaders, receive some acknowledgement and share some information to all the people in the world on what Angola is doing. Mario Oliveira, Secretary of State for Telecommunications, Angola

This event is the platform to be able to talk to other leaders across the board. This is the platform where you meet the people who make the decisions that affect people that matter. Here is the place to be to speak to the right people to make connectivity happen. Joel de Messan, Founder & Chairman, Equanet

The value of attending is immeasurable. The most crucial thing is being exposed to the different perspectives, bringing together people from very diversified backgrounds, different countries, different organizations. Petros Galides, Deputy Commissioner Electronic Communications, Cyprus

I had absolutely no idea about the scale of the event - the real value for me is that we are already beginning to meet people in the ITU who actually do have a significant impact on countries, and I see real value in that. Kyle Whitehill, CEO, Avanti Communications Group

Every year we come with a new crop of startups that gets a new lease of life through the engagement that they have at events such as this, and so we thank ITU for this opportunity to engage and to innovate together. Ursula G. Owusu Ekuful, Minister of Communications, Ghana

For us it’s an important event because we can have a dialogue of what’s needed to achieve the goals of 5G. It is important to have the dialogue we have with the governments, with the regulators, with the other stakeholders, because if we are to make 5G a success we all need to be a part of that game. Lise Fuhr, Director General, ETNO

It has been invaluable, the contacts that you meet, really interesting networks of people, big global networks.To be able to share our project has been really important to us, and we have been able to share it amongst people who are leaders in our area. Coral Manton, Co-Founder, Women Reclaiming AI

Events such as this are very, very educative. Here is an international platform where we have government, international organizations, regulators, the private sector, all of us in the ecosystem, to come and think through how we can accelerate the agenda of using ICTs to improve lives. Kofi Asante, CEO, Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communication

ITU Telecom World is a global platform, it is a great opportunity for all stakeholders to get together to discuss connectivity, policies, how these contribute to our digital transformation. That is the value of ITU Telecom World. Chaesub Lee, Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU

We know that in ITU decision makers are coming from the government sector, the private sector and also minister level. So it will help us to understand what they are going to decide for the future so we can align ourselves and our companies with those rules and regulations they are introducing to the world. Mohsen Abouei Mehrizi, Chairman of the ESM Telecommunication, IR

It’s fun. I thought coming to a conference or exhibition would be very tense, but going around you see people having fun, networking. It is a very great platform, not just for business to business or government to government, but actually people and startups like me get so much opportunity from this event. Allana Abdullah, CEO, Bahaso

I am very excited to know a lot of people are recognizing the work we are doing. Here you get to network with people you wouldn’t have back home, some of whom want to work with us when we go back, so we are going to convert all this into business. Mercy Njue, Botlab, Finalist, ITU Telecom World SME Award Greatest Social Impact

This is extremely good because it allows us now to take our message to a bigger audience, which is the reason we came here in the first place. We have so many discussions, the opportunities we see, taking that message to governments – it is exceptional. Joel de Messan, CEO, Equanet

Telecom World is one of the most important events wherever it is held - so we have to make the most out of these four days. Ákos Bóna, Director for International Affairs, Digital Future Foundation

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

It was really great chance to be here and introduce some services and content to other countries. We met many partners here from Africa and we`d like to come again to expand our business again. Helen Lee, Director, Marvus

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

These events are very important as we talk about everything, you see the points of view of other people which are interesting, share your points of view and you have the framework to collaborate in a better way. César Alierta Izuel, Chairman, Foundatión Telefónica

You see people you would otherwise never see and the value of exchange is great; and I learnt a lot about how quickly Africa is using technologies and leapfrogging to create new market – it is illuminating. Jacques Bughin, Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company

Regulators are theoretical and we need to have more practice to know how things work and in different conditions in practical cases, so this excellent event is a great opportunity to present and share experience. Mindaugas Žilinskas, Deputy Director, CRA, Republic of Lithuania

The benefits are enormous, meeting partners who are suppliers of equipment and service but also future investors, and being able to share experiences Elie Ntihagowumwe, Directeur général, BBS, Burundi

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

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

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

The value of this conference is the ability to take advantage, to make partnerships with different participants, to exchange experiences and be able to invite investors in the ICT sector to Burundi as there is much to be done. Hon. Butoyi Evelyne, Ministre de la Jeunesse, des Postes et des TIC, Burundi

You can talk for a long time about transformation, but you need to get into the area, as ITU Telecom World does, to see exactly what people are doing. That’s coupled that with a lot of good topics - and collaboration, talking about different things with different people at the same time, cultivating collaboration amongst the ecosystem suppliers, that is a great thing to do. Dr. Mohamed Madkour, Vice President, GWNM, Huawei Technologies

We are very happy to be part of this experience, I think it is of great value for us considering the partnerships we have built here, the people we have met and the deals we have actually finalised. It is always a pleasure to see the whole world in one place and get to know each other, and we would love to be part of this experience for as long as it takes. Bazara Imam Ali Barry, Director, Business Development, NCTR, Sudan

We will not be connected as a country or a village but we will be connected as a globe; so it is more than sharing best practices, it is really collaborating and coordinating - and this is an excellent venue for that. André Borges, Secretary of Telecommunications, Brazil

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

ITU Telecom is the very best platform for the stakeholders for future smart cities from different backgrounds to hold common visions and communicate freely. Idonae Lovetrue, CEO, Demiurge Technologies

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

The biggest take away for me is that we could see the evidence that the digital transformation of our lives is accelerating. The event is an opportunity for us to share our experience and learn from others’ experience, to network with companies in the private sector and with other organisations that share the goal of applying digital technologies to improve the lives of people. Dinh-Huy Banh, Chief of Enterprise Application Centre, United Nations

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 very exciting. We have learnt a whole lot, even in connectivity itself, we have interacted with companies, we have networked a lot with investors, we have invited them to our country and we can transform our society through them. Hon. Sidie Tunis, Minority Chief Whip, Sierra Leone

Being at the ITU conference has been extremely mind blowing for me, I have learnt so much in terms of SME programmes, technology and awareness of what other countries are doing, it has been a really great platform. Temitope Awosika, MEDSAF, Global SME Award Greatest Social Impact Winner, Nigeria

Every time we come here, we come out with a new mindset. It’s a win-win situation, we come out with new partners, government agencies see our product and are excited and we are able to go there and maximise their revenue or implement our systems over there. These are kind of relationships we have got through ITU, so we think we can learn something and give something to the society. Birendra Sasmal, Chief Executive Officer, Subah

It is a common platform bringing people in government, people in business, and also people in the different industry areas - all of us on one platform. It is an international platform where we are trying to coordinate and with this kind of coordination we will be able to make the world better, sooner rather than later. Abraham Kofi Asante, CEO, GIFEC

We have benefited a lot in terms of networking, and in terms of business expansion. This is the right place for us, it provides exposure and it provides experience, we will take it back to Sudan and implement what we can do and make a difference. Bazara Imam Ali Barry, Business Development Dpt. Director, NCTR, Sudan

It is very important to attend events like ITU Telecom World. We attach great importance to attendance at this event to be able to learn from global best practices in a way and a manner that we can bring this to bear in our country to solve contentious problems. We can also learn from what policies other countries have in place which we think we can either implement in our country or modify to adopt to our country. We bring our SMEs, whose innovative ideas have attracted a lot of attention and generated a lot of interest. So the benefits are immense. Professor Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission

There are a number of benefits. The networking opportunity, making sure we are in line with the new technologies being discussed and are connected to the right organizations, the right people, and making sure our SMEs can engage with other potential businesses. It is an opportunity to learn from other countries, to ask the right questions and set up the right meetings. And it is a great visibility opportunity to show what we capable of doing and what we are doing in the country. Nenyi George Andah, Deputy Minister for ICT, Ghana

ITU Telecom is very important because it provides a platform for us to share ideas, to learn, to even share some solutions to some of the challenges that the fast movers have had to deal with so that we can leapfrog or implement in a better or most cost-effective way. François Régis Gatarayiha, Permanent Secretary, MiTEC Rwanda

It is so exciting to be here, it is a great, great, great conference and exhibition! All these different experts from around the world come together to share ideas, collaborate and evolve the discussion, all these stakeholders come together to further science and innovation. No other entity can do that in the same fashion worldwide. Stephen Ibaraki, Founding Chair, Global Industry Council, Founder of AI for Good Global Summit

We learn many things in terms of applications and innovation, in terms of changing and learning, it is always a platform for us to come and exchange with the world. Abdoulkarim Soumaila, Secretary General, African Telecommunications Union

It is very important to be here and meet people I have met before and build confidence and trust in terms of what we have learnt from each other. Also networking with new people I have never met before, they have talent and experience to share, and bringing Vanuatu to other places, to get the exposure for Vanuatu.   Dalsie Baniala, Telecommunications and Radiocommunications Regulator, Vanuatu

It’s extremely valuable, this is the place to meet the right people, have the right discussions, bring attention to important issues and have very valuable bilateral meeting with industry colleagues and regulators, to address new challenges in this co-creative way.   Tomas Lamanauskas, Group Director Public Policy, Vimpelcom

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

This event is very helpful for us to understand ICT trends all over the world and to keep and enhance better relationships with partners all over the world in networking with ICT.   Manabu Kahara, President, NTT Communications (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

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

This is a very, very collaborative facilitation where we can learn from global best practices and continue to make the telecoms sector more vibrant, more resilient. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission

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

I want to introduce our solution to telecom companies or IOT platform companies so this event is a special time for me.   Park Eunmin, , AMADAS Co., Ltd

The takeaways are seeing what are the best practices in other parts of the world, what innovations those countries are focused on, what new policies are coming into place as technology evolves, and ensuring that we are adopting those in our country as well. Funke Opeke, Chief Executive Officer, MainOne Cable

This is my first time at ITU Telecom World and I was extremely fascinated that at the lunch table I had the government officials from Hungary, Tuvalu, someone from Tonga came over, one person from London representing the commonwealth telecom industry, there was tremendous diversity and viewpoints.   Astrid Tuminez, Regional Director, Corporate, External and Legal Affairs, South East Asia, Microsoft

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

We are facing the same challenges, looking for broadband connectivity and to avoid the digital divide, just the scale of the problem is so different, comparing for example what I am facing in Portugal to what the Indian regulator is facing. But our concerns are the same and we can learn from each other and this is amazing. Fatima Barros, Chair, ANACOM Board of Directors

Collaboration is not an option, it is a must for our industry – we compete and collaborate to make sure the benefits of our technology are reaped by humanity as a whole. Our industry is a shining example of how much good can come from collaboration. Hossein Moin, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Nokia Mobile Networks

It is key to be in these forums and talk about what we can do together, organize that ecosystem, bring everyone to the same table, integrating the different worlds, because today everything is converging. Carlos Cornejo, Senior Vice President / Group Head New Consumers, Public Sector & Humanitarian Products, MasterCard Worldwide

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