Transcript Why International Organizations?

Why International
Organizations?
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Standard setting
International uniformity
Accumulation of capital for large projects
Allocation of scarce world resources
Themes to look for . . .
• Tension between national autonomy and the push
for consensus and uniformity
• Temptation to politicize the body
• Tension between the haves and have nots and the
growing emphasis on development issues
• Changes in structure and approach to
accommodate technological and political changes
Operational Issues . . .
• Voting methods:
– ITU—one nation/one vote
– EU—proportional
• Funding methods:
– ITU—sliding scale based on GNP
ITU Purpose
• . . . To maintain and extend international cooperation
between all Members of the Union for the improvement
and rational use of telecommunications of all kinds, as well
as to promote and to offer technical assistance to
developing nations in the field of telecommunications; to
promote the use of technical facilities and their most
efficient operation with a view to improving the efficiency
of telecommunications services, increasing their usefulness
and making them, so far as possible, generally available to
the public, to harmonize the actions of nations in the
attainment of those ends.
Themes in ITU History
• Embrace of new technologies
• Steps to increase and expand membership
• Modification of organizational structure to
accommodate change
• Increasing involvement of the private sector
ITU Functions
• Standard setting
– De jure versus de facto standards
• Allocation of frequencies and orbital slots
– A priori or first-come-first-served
• Assistance to lesser developed nations
Steps toward ITU creation
• 1865 Paris: formation of International Telegraph Union;
draft of convention and regulations
• 1868 Vienna: formation of Berne Bureau
• 1925 Paris: addition of telephony through International
Telephone Consultative Committee (CCITT); creation of
Consultative Committee for Telegraph (CCIF)
• 1932 Madrid: merger of telegraph and telephony with
radio at joint meeting with Radiotelegraph Conference
(CCIR created); formed new organization called
International Telecommunications Union
• 1947 Atlantic City: Became agency of UN
Significant Developments since
1947
• 1965 Montreux: LDC suggested creation of special
development assistance fund and new committee for
development work (not done); IFRB reduced to 5
• 1973 Malaga-Torremolinos: development fund established;
regulations moved from convention to recommendations so US
could sign convention
• 1982 Nairobi: Maitland Commission formed: CCITT and CCI
directors to be chosen by entire ITU membership
• 1988 Melbourne: rights of members to pursue competition;
accelerated standard setting procedures adopted for CCITT
• 1989 Nice: Telecommunications Development Bureau formed;
HLC formed to study restructuring
• 1992 Geneva: special meeting regarding reform
Reform of the ITU
• Improve efficiency and effectiveness
• Enhance the role of non-governmental
entities and organizations
• Establish the ITU as a forum for dealing
with matters of telecommunications policy
and regulation
Reform Efforts
• 1994 Kyoto: resolution to create the ITU
World Telecommunication Policy Forum
– 1996: Global Mobile Personal Communications
by Satellite
– 1998: Trade in Services
– 2001: IP Telephony
• 1998 Minneapolis: implemented reforms
proposed by the ITU-2000 working group
Minneapolis meeting . . .
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Sector members bill of rights
Associate category added
Liaison representatives invited to participate
Adoption of recommendations by study
group
• Created Working Group on Reform
– Reform Advisory Panel
Strategic Plan for the Union
• Improve Radiocommunication sector
functions; continue to develop WTPF
• Promote global connectivity
• Coordinate action to manage scarce telecom
resources
• Assist developing nations
• Improve efficiency and effectiveness of the
ITU
Currently
• 191 member nations
– Full blown membership—at the country level—treaty
status
• 564 sector members
– Recognized Operating Agencies (ROA), Scientific or
Industrial Organizations (SIO), regional organizations,
financial or development institutions, UN agencies, etc.
– Able to participate in a specific sector
• 133 associates
– Work in a specific study group
Organizational structure
Plenipotentiary
Conference
Administrative
Council
General Secretariat
Radio-communication
Bureau
Telecom
Standardization
Bureau
Telecom
Development
Bureau
Current Structure
• Plenipotentiary Conference—all members every 4
years—latest one in Turkey in 2006, next one in
2010 in Mexico
• Administrative Council—46 ITU members elected
by the Plenipotentiary
– Considers broad issues, controls financial operations,
oversees efficient work coordination
• General Secretariat
• Three major sectors
Council
• Region A (Americas): 8 seats
– Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, US,
Venezuela
• Region B (Western Europe): 8 seats
– France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey
• Region C (Eastern Europe): 5 seats
– Bulgaria, Czech Rep, Romania, Russian Federation, Ukraine
• Region D (Africa): 13 seats
– Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Morocco,
Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia
• Region E (Asia & Australasia): 12 seats
– Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea (Republic of), Malaysia,
Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates
Current Elected Officials
• General Secretariat (both newly elected 2007-10)
– Secretary-General (Hamadoun Toure of Mali)
• Former director of Telecom Development
– Deputy (Houlin Zhao of China)
• Former director of Telecom Standardization
• Three Bureaus
– Director, Radiocommunication (Valery Timofeev, Russian
Federation) --re-elected
– Director, Telecom Standardization (Malcolm Johnson of UK) –
newly elected
– Director, Telecom Development (Sami Al-Basheer of Saudi
Arabia) -- newly elected
Each Sector has . . .
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A bureau
A director
An advisory group
Study groups
ITU Sectors
• Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R): combines
work of old IFRB and some of CCIR; 12 member
regulation board, World Radio Conferences every
2-3 years; regional conferences;
Radiocommunication assembly and study groups
• Telecommunications Standardization Sector
(ITU-T): work of former CCITT and some of
CCIR; World Telecommunication Standardization
Assemblies every 4 years
• Development Sector (ITU-D): work of Bureau for
Telecom Development
Operating procedures
• One nation, one vote
– Bloc voting possible
– Explanation for emphasis on LDC issues
• Funding based on unit classes of payment
– From 40 full units to 1/16th unit (based on
financial situation of the country)
Staffing
• 822 ITU staff members
• 80 nationalities
• Geneva Headquarters and 11 field offices
Budget
• 2008-2009 budget is CHF 322,603,000
($277,456,734)
– Full unit for member states is CHF 318,000 ($273,633)
– Full Unit for Sector members is CHF 63,600 ($54,727)
– Associate unit is CHF 10,600 ($9,121) for ITU-R and
ITU-T); CHF 3,975 ($3,419) for ITU-D or CHF
1,987.50 ($1,710) for associate from LDC
Challenges to the ITU
• Coordination with other standards bodies
• Balancing of national sovereignty with
international standards and recommendations
• Adjustment to new players
• Adjustment to new emphasis on trade rather than
public utility approach
• Balancing interests of developed and lesser
developed nations
New Initiatives Program
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Licensing 3G
Broadband
Fixed-Mobile Interconnection
ENUM (Internet Engineering Task Force’s
Telephone Number Mapping Working
Group (map telephone number to Unique
Resource Identifier)
Assistance to LDCs
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Infrastructure development
Human resources development
Policies and strategies
Partnership with industry
Gender Issues
• Gender Equality through
Telecommunications Initiative