The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Plenipotentiary Conference 2022 (PP-22) was held on September 26- October 14. The Conference is attended by ICT Ministers, senior officials, and representatives from ITU Member States. The Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat has paid a two-day visit to Bucharest, Romania, heading a high-level delegation, to participate in the PP-22.
 
The Plenipotentiary Conference is the highest policy-making body of the ITU. Held every four years, ITU PP is the key event at which ITU Member States decide on the future role of the organization, thereby determining the organization’s ability to influence and affect the development of ICTs worldwide. The Conference sets the Union’s general policies; adopts four-year strategic and financial plans; and elects the senior management team of the organization (the Secretary-General, the Deputy Secretary-General, and the directors of ITU sectors’ offices), the Member States of the Council, and the members of the Radio Regulations Board (RRB).
 
The ICT Minister participated in PP-22 opening ceremony and delivered a speech at the Policy Statements session. He presented the most significant ICT developments and the plans and programs implemented in Egypt, in line with the ITU Guidelines.
 
Furthermore, Egypt held a reception, organized by the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA), to support Egypt’s candidates in the ITU elections. During the reception, Talaat delivered a speech where he pointed to Egypt’s nomination for the ITU Council Membership, Region D (Africa), for the next four years and the nomination of NTRA candidate El-Sayed Azzouz as a member of the Radio Regulations Board (RRB).
 
On the sidelines of the Conference, Talaat held several meetings with ministers and senior government and international officials participating in the Conference, in the presence of the Egyptian Ambassador to Romania Moayad Eldalie. The meetings discussed the most significant international communication developments and means to enhance cooperation in ICTs.

The ICT Minister met with the South Korean Minister of Science and ICT Lee Jong-ho. They discussed enhancing areas of common interest and opening new horizons of cooperation between the two countries in ICTs related to the electronics industry and capacity building.
 
Talaat also held a meeting with the Tunisian Minister of Communication Technologies Nizar Ben Neji. They discussed various relevant topics and means to enhance cooperation in ICTs.
 
In addition, the ICT Minister met with Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Agnė Vaiciukevičiūtė and Lithuanian Vice-Minister of Economy and Innovation Eglė Markevičiūtė. They discussed enhancing cooperation between Egypt Post and Lietuvos Paštas, exchanging experiences in the digital services provided through post offices, including digital financial services, and cooperation in express mail and parcel services.
 
In a similar vein, Talaat met with the Pakistani Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Syed Amin UI Haque. They discussed cooperation between the two countries in ICTs and coordination in international issues in relevant areas.
 
Moreover, the ICT Minister met with the Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah bin Amer Alswaha. They discussed the joint projects between the two countries in ICT and enhancing cooperation. The two sides also stressed the significance of coordinating stances in related fields, in light of the two countries’ regional and international significant role.
 
Talaat also held a meeting with the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Envoy on Technology Amandeep Singh Gill to discuss strengthening ties with the UN and all its agencies, in light of Egypt’s vision to develop the ICT sector.
 
In a similar vein, the ICT Minister met with the Sudanese Minister of Communications and Digital Transformation Adel Hussein. They discussed the plans of the two countries to achieve digital transformation as well as the means of enhancing cooperation in training so that the Sudanese side would leverage the programs of the Egyptian African Telecom Regulatory Training Center (EG-ATRC). They also agreed on developing an implementation plan for the bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Sudan and Egypt in June 2021.
 
Talaat also met with the Indian Minister of State for Communications Shri Devusinh Chauhan. They discussed strengthening ties between Egypt and India in ICT, especially in capacity building and the global telecommunication infrastructure.
 
Furthermore, the ICT Minister met with the Malaysian Minister of Communications and Multimedia Annuar Musa. They agreed on framing the proposed areas of cooperation in an MoU covering electronics manufacturing and design.
 
The meetings were attended by NTRA CEO Hossam El-Gamal, Assistant ICT Minister for Strategy and Implementation Sherine El-Guindy, Assistant ICT Minister for Global Information Infrastructure (GII) Mohamed Nasr Eldin, and officials from MCIT.