Geneva hosted last 12-21 May a meeting of the ITU Council, the body responsible for managing the organisation between Plenipotentiary Conferences (PPs).
This Council session was chaired by Honki Min of South Korea and counted the participation of 48 member states with seats on the Council, 38 member states as observers (Portugal among them), seven sector members and three regional telecommunications organisations.
Main results of the 2015 Council session include the following:
- approval of the budget for the 2016/2017 two-year period;
- approval of operational plans for the General Secretariat and for the three sectors;
- revision of the Council Resolutions on the ITU’s role in the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) process;
- approval of the theme of 2016 World Telecommunications and Information Society Day: ‘Telecommunication/ICT entrepreneurship for social impact’;
- decision on modes for stakeholder participation in online and physical consultations in the context of issues involving the internet;
- decision on management of the ITU Council’s working groups.
Note that on 17 May a ceremony to mark the ITU’s 150th anniversary was held, during which Portugal was distinguished as being a founding member of the Union.
