What is ITU?

What is ITU? International Telecommunication Union Telephone
International Telecommunication Union

     Founded in Paris in 1865 as the International Telegraph Union, the International Telecommunication Union took its present name in 1934 and became a specialized agency of the United Nations in 1947.
     The ITU is an intergovernmental organization, within which the public and private sectors cooperate for the development of telecommunications. The ITU adopts international regulations and treaties governing all terrestrial and space uses of the frequency spectrum as well as the use of the geostationary-satellite orbit, within which countries adopt their national legislation. It also develops standards to facilitate the interconnection of telecommunication systems on a worldwide scale regardless of the type of technology used. Spearheading telecommunications development on a world scale, the ITU fosters the development of tele-communications in developing countries, by establishing medium-term development policies and strategies in consultation with other partners in the sector and by providing specialized technical assistance in the areas of telecommunication policies, the choice and transfer of technologies, management, financing of investment projects and mobilization of resources, the installation and maintenance of networks, the management of human resources as well as research and development.

In essence, the Union's mission covers the following domains:
  • a technical domain: to promote the development and efficient operation of telecommunication facilities, in order to improve the efficiency of telecommunication services, their usefulness, and their general availability to the public;
  • a development domain: to promote and offer technical assistance to developing countries in the field of telecommunications, to promote the mobilization of the human and financial resources needed to develop tele-communications, and to promote the extension of the benefits of new telecommunications technologies to people everywhere;
  • a policy domain: to promote, at the international level, the adoption of a broader approach to the issues of telecommunications in the global information economy and society.

     As of 1st September 1999, the ITU comprised 189 Member States and 576 Sector Members (scientific and industrial companies, public and private operators, broadcasters, regional/international organizations) to the three sectors.

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What is ITU? International Telecommunication Union Telephone