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ITU Secretary-General
Doreen

Bogdan-

Martin

You have served as Secretary-General of the It’s incredibly rewarding to see tangible results.
International Telecommunication Union But there is so much more to be done in areas like
for several years during a period of rapid digital skills, especially as artificial intelligence
transformation in the digital sector. What do changes everything from how we access health
you consider your most significant achievement care to what our jobs will look like tomorrow.
so far?
One of my proudest achievements has been As our societies become increasingly digital, do
driving progress toward expanding universal you believe there will always be space for human
meaningful connectivity. When I was elected agency and values? How do we ensure that
Secretary-General in 2022, 5.3 billion people technology remains human-centered?
were connected to the Internet. Today, that Technology is created by humans and should
number has reached 6 billion – and behind always serve humanity – empowering individuals,
those numbers are millions of students accessing protecting rights, and enhancing lives.
online learning, entrepreneurs scaling their
businesses globally, families staying connected, To ensure technology serves human values,
and communities unlocking new opportunities we need to embed fairness, accountability,
through technology. and safety into its design. ITU’s work on AI
standards is one example of how we achieve
I am a strong believer in the power of this on a technical level, setting guidelines that
partnerships to make meaningful digital encourage innovation while protecting against
progress. ITU’s Partner2Connect initiative, for harm. The key issue is practical translation—
example, has mobilized over USD 82 billion in turning broad human values into concrete
commitments from countries, companies, and engineering requirements that can guide
organizations worldwide, helping to expand standards development. I firmly believe that
digital infrastructure and improve affordability values-based digital transformation strengthens
throughout the world. delivery and innovation: it is the primary driver
of sustainable and impactful results.
Similarly, our Giga initiative with UNICEF
has made remarkable strides to connect every Some experts argue that artificial intelligence
classroom in the world. To date, Giga has mapped will soon be followed by large-scale deployment
over 2.2 million schools and is now working with of robotics. How do you envision the societal
49 countries and territories to improve Internet impact of these technologies in the coming
access and give millions of children access to years?
education and opportunity. The integration of artificial intelligence with

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