Dear Secretary General, dear Chair of the Forum, esteemed delegates, guests,

It is a great pleasure for me to attend this Forum. I would like to thank all the organizers for kindly inviting me to this important event.

First of all, taking this opportunity, I would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the Secretary-General for their hard work.

As you all know, covid-19 pandemic accelerated the pace of digitalization worldwide. In the midst of the covid-19 pandemic, the strategic importance of emerging technologies for governments around the world is more evident than ever before.

Therefore, Opinion 2 mentioned on the Report, which covers Affordable and secure connectivity in mobilizing new and emerging telecommunications/ICTs for sustainable development, is considered as an enabler of development of the sector.

We believe that affordability can accelerate digital transformation.

For instance, in Azerbaijan, almost 85% of the country’s population use Internet. Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants is 20. However, on the downside, roughly 70% of the connected households access internet via an outdated DSL technology, which brings the connection quality down.

We continue to invest in broadband infrastructure of our country and implement national broadband projects applying GPON and LTE technologies.

Our aim is to increase the percentage of fixed broadband subscriptions using the Fiber to the Home networks and achieve full home broadband internet coverage by 2024, with a minimum speed of 25Mb/s.

Another option for affordability is mobile internet. In Azerbaijan, the entire population is covered by a mobile-cellular network. Mobile broadband internet is widespread, so far active mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants is 73.

Regarding Opinion 3, which covers Digital literacy and skills for inclusive access, I agree that the lack of digital skills is a strong barrier to the effective use of the ICTs.

In order to address the digital gap and to foster digital empowerment, The Training Center of the Ministry organizes training in digital skills, actively involving marginalized groups including girls and women, children and youth in order to expand the application of ICT in daily life and business.

In the meantime, specific digital programs on data analytics, internet of things, Web, Python and Java programming, cyber security, Microsoft Office courses are organized by the Training Center. I have to mention that, the Training Center has more than 18 branches in the regions.

As for opinion 4, New and emerging technologies and services to facilitate the use of telecommunications/ICTs for sustainable development, I would like to join your call on emerging technologies such as 5G, AI, IoT, Big data can foster sustainable development.

I would like to inform you of several strategies and plans on the application of innovative technologies. For instance, Azerbaijan 2030: National Strategy, Smart City and Smart Village Concept, Digital Transformation concept etc.

The application of 5G technologies is one of the most important targets set by the afore-mentioned strategies.

One of the main factors influencing the application of 5G is the allocation of radio frequencies. Although the ITU has allocated radio frequencies for the application of 5G technologies, regional harmonization of these frequencies is currently an important issue. Thus, the current application of various technologies in the frequency bands for 5G technologies by a number of countries brings challenges in our region.

Therefore, we invite the countries of the region to cooperate in this matter and the ITU to be closely involved in resolving issues within its competence.

Thank you for your kind attention.