ITU Telecom World 2011 throws spotlight on global ICT challenges

Taking place at Geneva Palexpo from October 24-27, ITU Telecom World 2011 will play host to some 250 global leaders spanning Heads of State and Government, Ministers, city mayors, industry CEOs and technology gurus, who will come together to share their vision and knowledge, build consensus and find solutions to real world challenges.

Key industry players represented at the event include Alcatel-Lucent, AT&T, China Mobile, China Potevio, Cisco, Datang, Ericsson, Fiberhome, Fujitsu, Huawei, Intel, NTT, NTT DoCoMo, Qtel, RIM, Samsung, Satorys, Swisscom, Telkom SA, Turk Telecom, TDIA, ZTE and more.

The event, which celebrates 40 years of ITU Telecom's serving the ICT industry, has been overhauled for 2011, expanding its focus to high-level networking, knowledge sharing and consensus building, away from the more exhibition-centred format of previous years. Highlights include:

-A Broadband Leadership Summit for Heads of State and Government, CEOs of major companies, heads of UN agencies and members of the ITU/UNESCO Broadband Commission for Digital Development.

-A Digital Cities Conference looking at how technology can help meet the challenges of a rapidly urbanizing environment.

-Forum debates and knowledge sharing sessions spanning hot topics from the future Internet, spectrum management and systems for smarter living, to frameworks for innovation, cloud computing, social networks and privacy, and more.

-A Technical Symposium for technology specialists featuring unique in-depth insights into topics and trends shaping tomorrow’s ICT industry.

-An opportunity to watch innovation in the making: hear pitched ideas from the finalists of two dynamic competitions, as they vie for the chance to help realize their digital dreams and win funding froma pool totalling CHF 50,000.

The event will also feature over 25 National Pavilions showcasing the ICT industry of countries and regions including Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burundi, China, Czech Republic, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Malawi, Malaysia, Namibia, Nigeria, Poland, Rwanda, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

Complementing these, innovative Thematic Pavilions will showcase how cutting-edge services, devices and applications are improving lives across markets and regions worldwide.