ITU, the UN Agency for Digital Technologies, announced USD 4.8 billion dollars in investment commitments toward global connectivity. The announcement brings the total pledges aimed at closing the digital divide through ITU’s Partner2Connect Digital Coalition (P2C) to USD 50.96 billion, over half the USD 100 billion goal set for 2026.
The pledges to Partner2Connect, ITU’s platform to advance universal meaningful connectivity, were announced during the opening day of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)+20 Forum High-Level Event in Geneva, Switzerland.
Among the new commitments announced at the WSIS Forum event are pledges that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance digital access, adoption and inclusion.
As part of the commitments, AT&T has pledged to help 25 million people in the hardest-to-connect areas in the United States to get and stay connected by 2030 through a commitment of USD 3 billion. The Government of Canada will invest in computing infrastructure to support AI businesses and researchers in Canada through the CAD 2 billion (USD 1.46 billion) AI Compute Access Fund. Elle International has made three pledges worth USD 106 million to improve the quality of life of 20 million women and girls in South Africa through the provision of digital platforms, smart solutions, data, and AI models that drive connectivity, digital transformation, and open science in women’s health. Microsoft has also pledged to support projects and prioritize partnerships to rapidly accelerate how people with disabilities are included in and represented by the systems, designs and features of technology, including AI.
Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General, ITU
Closing the digital divide requires a team effort, and today we scored a huge win for global connectivity. I am thrilled to see these amazing new commitments and that we have united P2C and WSIS to break through the halfway point in our goal to help bring the benefits of digital connectivity to everyone, everywhere. Because of the leadership, vision and ambition of P2C’s pledgers, millions of people will be given the opportunity to have more accessible, more affordable digital technologies for socio-economic growth, improved health and everything that makes connectivity meaningful. It’s extremely exciting to see new pledges begin to leverage the power of artificial intelligence to transform the inclusive digital societies we all aspire to build.
