The
16th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS) took place
in Geneva, Switzerland, from
10 to 12 December 2018. WTIS-18 is organized by the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The ITU World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Symposium (WTIS) is the main global forum for telecommunication and information society measurements. Since 1996, the WTIS convenes government ministers, business leaders, regulators, national statisticians, top academics, and ICT data producers and analysts, from all parts of the globe, to discuss issues related to information society trends and their measurement. The adopted outcomes of discussions at the WTIS provide strategic guidance to the international community, including ITU, on future work priorities related to international harmonization of information society measurements. It is during the WTIS that ITU's latest ''
Measuring the Information Society Report'' is launched. This report contains the latest ICT statistics and highlights ICT trends and developments. The report also features the ICT price baskets and includes separate chapters on ICT skills, and revenue and investments.
WTIS is open to all ITU members as well as to experts in the subject of information society measurement. The Symposium is usually attended by around 500 participants from more than 100 countries working on ICT statistics in relevant Ministries, regulatory agencies, telecommunication operators, technology companies, and national statistical offices.
WTIS-18 featured high-level debates on the impact of telecommunications/ICTs and emerging technologies on social and economic development. Other sessions of WTIS-18 focused on measurement in an environment of artificial intelligence, big data, robotics and the Internet of Things. The work of the Expert Group on Telecommunication/ICT Indicators (EGTI) and the Expert Group on Household Indicators (EGH) was presented for adoption by WTIS-18. The Symposium also looked at how to measure ICT skills and how progress can be measured on implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
WTIS-18 on
Flickr