Egypt, represented by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), is participating in the 23rd Session of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) Administrative Council, held on May 10-12 in Tunisia.
The session will discuss several topics, including the preparations for the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), as well as the African common proposals and initiatives. In addition, the meeting will agree on the African countries that will run for the 13 seats allocated to Africa in the ITU Council. The elections will take place during the Plenipotentiary Conference 2022 (PP-22), which will be held in Bucharest, Romania, from September 26 to October 14.
During the session, candidates from African countries, who will run for positions at the ITU, including for the Radio Regulations Board (RRB), will be agreed upon, and the four-year strategic work plan (2022-2026) of the ATU Secretariat will be adopted. Last year’s activities and achievements of ATU will be reviewed and its future work plan will be discussed and approved as well.
It is worth noting that ATU Executive Council convenes once a year in one of its 21 Member States—which are part of ATU 48 Member States. The Council is responsible for reviewing ATU activities and the implementation status of the work plan adopted the year before. The Council, also, approves the work plan and budget for the next year.
ATU is the key African player mandated with unifying visions and coordinating African stances on the preparation of ITU international conferences, where the African candidates who will run for international positions at ITU are selected and agreed upon.
The sessions of the Council represent an opportunity to mobilize African voices to increase the chances of Egyptian candidates of winning at the elections to international positions, as well as the ITU Council elections where only 13 seats are allocated to Africa.
Being one of the founding countries of ATU, Egypt has retained its membership in the Executive Council since the Union was established in 1977. The country enjoys a good standing within ATU; it plays a pivotal role in leading the African ranks in international forums in matters related to ICT. Furthermore, ATU Secretariat is keen to learn and benefit from Egypt’s expertise and best practices to help develop the ICT sector in African countries.
Egypt is a political heavyweight within ATU and among its Member States. This prominent role greatly contributes to achieving the objectives of the Egyptian foreign policy, which deals with strengthening bilateral and regional ties with African countries as a top priority.
The significance of Egypt’s participation in the Session lies in mobilizing African voices to back Egypt’s candidacy for one of the 13 African seats at the ITU Council, and enhancing the Egyptian engagement in ATU activities, especially when it comes to African common proposals and initiatives, which will be submitted to WTDC as a unified African position.
