Home

Download English version here

Télécharger la version Française ici

Descargar la versión Español aquí

Здесь вы можете сказать Pусскую версию

在这里下载中文版

The Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development was established in 2010 by ITU and UNESCO with the aim of boosting the importance of broadband on the international policy agenda, and expanding broadband access in every country as key to accelerating progress towards national and international development targets. Led by President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Carlos Slim Helù of Mexico, it is co-chaired by ITU's Secretary-General Houlin Zhao and UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. It comprises over 50 Commissioners who represent a cross-cutting group of top CEO and industry leaders, senior policy-makers and government representatives, and experts from international agencies, academia and organizations concerned with development.

We, the Members of the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, reaffirm our commitment to help achieve universal connectivity as a fundamental element of an inclusive and sustainable world. We call on world leaders and heads of industry to put universal connectivity at the very forefront of sustainable development efforts and recognize its central role in 2030 Agenda.

The COVID-19 crisis has dramatically illustrated the vital importance of broadband networks and services in driving robust, resilient and wellfunctioning societies and economies. Yet today, 3.6 billion people remain offline. Lack of affordability, constrained access to infrastructure and devices, poor digital skills and/or the absence of relevant content mean they, and billions of other marginalized people struggling with poor connectivity, are unable to leverage the power of digital transformation in a way that could catalyze seismic shifts in development outcomes.

The Commission is convinced that achieving affordable universal connectivity is essential for achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and making good on our pledge to Leave No-one Behind.

This goal of universal connectivity will require collective, collaborative efforts by all stakeholders.

The pandemic and its socio-economic impacts have underscored the urgency of concrete, coordinated actions across all sectors and geographies. With less than ten years remaining until 2030, now is the time to establish digital connectivity as the foundational pillar for our shared Global Goals.

'Building Back Better with Broadband' will help us accelerate progress towards the SDGs and re-energize the commitment of world leaders in this crucial Decade of Action. The time is now. This Broadband Commission's Manifesto is a rallying cry, calling for collaboration in:

Establishing a baseline for universal digital connectivity
Identifying and supporting public-private financing of universal broadband, pioneering innovative hybrid and/or complementary, replicable and sustainable financing and investment models for all types of networks, and catalyzing impactful partnerships
Advocating for enabling ICT regulatory environments, ICT capacity building and online safety and security, especially for children, as integral to efforts to achieve the Global Broadband Targets 2025 and the SDGs.

The work and accomplishments of the Broadband Commission over the past decade establish an important precedent for these actions, and serve as a solid foundation for bringing the UN Secretary-General's Roadmap for Digital Cooperation to life around its three fundamental pillars.

Within the context of the UN75th Anniversary, and as the Commission celebrates ten years of achievement, we are committed to mobilizing efforts to achieve the 'Global Goal of Universal Connectivity' in support of the Roadmap and other connectivity initiatives. We call on the global community to recognize digital connectivity as the foundational element of the Sustainable Development Agenda. As we define the 'new normal' for our post-COVID world, leaving no one behind means leaving no one offline.

Chairs and Vice-Chairs of the Commission

H.E.President Paul Kagame President of Rwanda, Co-Chair of the Commission	Mr Carlos Slim Helú President of Carlos Slim Foundation, Co-Chair of the Commission
Mr Houlin Zhao ITU Secretary-General, Co-Vice Chair of the Commission	Ms Audrey Azoulay UNESCO Director-General, Co-Vice Chair of the Commission

Commissioners

H.E. Dr Amani Abou-Zeid

Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy at the African UnionCommission (AUC)

H.E. Ms Aurélie Adam-Soulé Zoumarou

Minister of Digital Economy and Communication, Republic of Benin

Dr Ann Aerts

Head of The Novartis Foundation

Dr Mohammed Al Tamimi

CITC Governor, Saudi Arabia

Mr Bocar Ba

CEO, Samena Telecommunications Council

Mr Amir Dossal

Founder and Chairman, Global Partnerships Forum

H.E. Dr Pichet Durongkaveroj

Minister of Digital Economy and Society, Thailand

Mr Erik Ekudden

Senior Vice President, CTO and Head of Group Function Technology, Ericsson

Mr Scott Gegenheimer

Chief Executive Officer Operations, Zain Group

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Director General, WHO

Mr Filippo Grandi

High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR

Mr Mats Granryd

Director General, GSMA

H.E. Mr Ramin Guluzade

Minister of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Mr Pekka Lundmark

President and CEO, Nokia

H.E. Mr Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori

Director General; Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), UAE

Mr Kevin Martin

Vice President, Mobile and Global Access Policy, Facebook

Mr Patrick Masambu

Director General, International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO)

Mr Paul Mitchell

Senior Director, Technology Policy, Microsoft

Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal

Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises

Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka

United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women

H.E. Ms Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams

Minister of Communications, South

Africa

Prof. Jeffrey Sachs

Special Advisor to UN Secretary-General and Director of the Earth Institute, Columbia University

Mr Rob Shuter

Group CEO, MTN Group

Mr Stephen Spengler

Chief Executive Officer, Intelsat

Mr Achim Steiner

Administrator, UNDP

Mr Andrew Sullivan

President and CEO, ISOC

Ms Fekitamoela Katoa’Utoikamanu

Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, UN-OHRLLS

Mr Hans Vestberg

CEO, Verizon Communications Inc.

Ms Doreen Bogdan-Martin

Executive Director of the Broadband Commission, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau

Mr Dato’ Ir. Lee Yee Cheong

Malaysian Chairman, Governing Council, International Science Technology and Innovation Centre for South-South Cooperation

Mr Makhtar Diop

Vice President for Infrastructure, The World Bank

Mr Piotr Dmochowski-Lipski

Executive Secretary, EUTELSAT IGO

Ms Henrietta H Fore

Executive Director, UNICEF

Dr Hessa Al Jaber

Chairperson, Eshailsat

Dr Carlos M Jarque

Executive Director, International Relations, Corporate and Government Affairs, América Móvil

Baroness Beeban Kidron

Filmmaker and Founder of 5Rights

Mr Robert Kirkpatrick

Director, UN Global Pulse

Dr Mukhisa Kituyi

Secretary-General, UNCTAD

Mr Lacina Koné

Director-General, Smart Africa

Dr Hyeon-Mo Ku

Chief Executive Officer, KT Corporation

Mr Keng Thai Leong

Deputy Chief Executive of the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore

Mr Adrian Lovett

President & CEO, World Wide Web Foundation

Prof. Nicholas Negroponte

Emeritus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab

Mr Patrick Nyirishema

Director General, Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority, Focal Point to the Co-Chair of Commission

Mr Denis O’Brien

Chairman, Digicel Group

H.E. Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful

Minister of Communications, Ghana

Mr Rupert Pearce

Chief Executive Officer, Inmarsat Plc

Mr Dongyu Qu

Director-General, FAO

Mr Stéphane Richard

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Orange SA; Chairman of GSMA

Mr Chuck Robbins

Chief Executive Officer, Cisco Systems Inc.

Dr Joanna Rubinstein

President and CEO of World Childhood

Foundation, USA

Ms Sun Yafang

Member of Core Elite, Huawei

H.E. Ms Makiko Yamada

Advisor to Minister of MIC, Japan