Huawei and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) hosted the first Asia Pacific Exchange on Broadband Regulation and Policy. The speakers at the ITU Telecom World 2016 called for more comprehensive broadband policies for improving the speed and development of the broadband networks.
At the exchange, Houlin Zhao, secretary-general of the ITU pointed out that the ICT technologies and broadband infrastructure have become core economic competencies, critical for national competitiveness. “Hence, the Government should make broadband an imperative policy and persistently work on it,” Zhao said.
The Asia-Pacific region depicts a highly imbalanced development. Japan, Republic of Korea, and Singapore are world leaders, showcasing a broadband penetration of 95%. There are also countries such as Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Cambodia in the region with less than 5% broadband penetration.
“Broadband should be part of national strategy. Governments should encourage telecom investment and infrastructure development like submarine and land cables, data centers and other network development,” said Jin Yuzhi, Vice President of Huawei Southern-East Asia Region.
White Paper Release - Broadband Regulation and Policy in Asia-Pacific Region: Facilitating Faster Broadband Deployment
During the exchange, Huawei and the ITU launched their white paper on ‘Broadband Regulation and Policy in Asia-Pacific Region: Facilitating Faster Broadband Deployment’. The white paper offers guidance to the Governments of the various countries on topics such as broadband infrastructure development, building alliances incorporating different government departments and private industry, and to develop broadband-friendly industrial policy.
The speakers from many countries in the region agreed on the need to accelerate national broadband rollout to enable the digital economy. They discussed the broadband development in their countries and talked about the challenges and solutions faced.
About 200 government officials, industry leaders, and technology experts around the region attended the exchange. ITU Telecom World is one of the largest telecommunications expos in the world.
