Geneva hosted last 6-15 May a meeting of the ITU Council, the body responsible for managing the organisation between plenipotentiary conferences (PP).
This Council session was chaired by Aboubakar Zourmba of Cameroon and dominated by matters associated to preparations for the upcoming plenipotentiary conference (PP-14), the ITU's top body, which will be held in October and November of this year in Busan, South Korea.
Key discussions therefore focused on the ITU's finances and matters associated to the internet and its governance, specifically:
- report from the ITU working group on Producing the Union's Strategy and Finance Plan for 2016-2019;
- preliminary review of ITU Decision 5 on the Union's revenue and spending for the 2016-2019 period. This preliminary version will be subject to final discussion at PP-14;
- report from the Council working group on Financial and Human Resources of the ITU;
- report from the Independent Management Advisory Committee (IMAC);
- operational financial report for financial year 2013;
- project to replace the Varembé building;
- ITU activities in the internet area;
- Current status of the process deriving from the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).
The current status of activities envisaged for commemorations of the ITU's 150th anniversary in 2015 were likewise reviewed.
As usual in a PP year, the 2014 Council session will include an additional meeting on the eve of PP-14 to finalise some pending issues, mainly financial.
The next ordinary session of the ITU Council will be held on 12-22 May 2015, during which the organisation's 150th anniversary will be celebrated on 17 May.
