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We encounter worldwide requirements day-after-day with out understanding it. A hidden a part of the knowledge and communication expertise (ICT) networks and gadgets all of us use day-after-day, requirements are hardly ever perceived by customers however are important in enabling the interconnection and interoperability of ICT tools and gadgets manufactured by a whole lot of 1000’s of various corporations world wide.
For instance, 95% of worldwide site visitors is on fibre, constructed on requirements from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the UN specialised company for ICT. ITU performs a number one position in managing the radio spectrum and creating globally relevant requirements for IMT-2020 (5G). Video now accounts for greater than 80% of web site visitors, enabled by Primetime Emmy-winning video-compression algorithms standardised by ITU along with the Worldwide Electrotechnical Fee (IEC) and the Worldwide Group for Standardization (ISO).
However whereas it’s clear that technical requirements have at all times been indispensable for enterprise and society to work in our industrialised world, additionally it is clear that technical requirements will play a key position in accelerating progress in direction of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations for 2030.
The main focus of the latest ITU Global Standards Symposium was how requirements can play a job in addressing a few of the most urgent wants of the planet, corresponding to eradicating poverty or starvation and mitigating local weather change. The symposium introduced greater than 700 trade leaders and policymakers collectively in February to take a look at how standardisation might assist digital transformation in areas spanning good cities and communities, sustainability, well being, street security and monetary inclusion.
However how will efficient ICT standardisation speed up addressing the SDGs?
Addressing just a few SDGs, however particularly numbers 1 and a pair of targeted on ending poverty and starvation, an ITU Focus Group on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) for Digital Agriculture is working in direction of new ITU requirements to assist world enhancements within the precision and sustainability of farming strategies.
Addressing SDG 3 on good well being, an ITU Focus Group on AI for Health is creating a benchmarking framework for AI options, supporting world efforts to step up AI’s contribution to well being. An open-code proof of idea for the benchmarking platform highlights the kind of metrics that would assist builders and well being regulators certify future AI options, in the identical approach as is completed for medical tools.
As well as, ITU requirements for medical-grade digital well being gadgets – corresponding to linked blood stress cuffs, glucose displays, weight scales and a variety of exercise – are serving to forestall and handle persistent circumstances corresponding to diabetes, hypertension and coronary heart illness.
Addressing SDG 9 on trade, innovation and infrastructure, ITU requirements are serving to to convey broadband to rural communities with light-weight optical cable that may be deployed on the bottom’s floor with minimal expense and environmental influence. The set up of ultra-high pace optical networks usually comes with quite a lot of price and complexity. ITU standards are helping to change that equation by offering an answer in a position to be deployed at low price with on a regular basis instruments.
Addressing SDG 11 on sustainable cities and communities, greater than 150 cities world wide have began to judge their progress in direction of good metropolis goals and alignment with the SDGs utilizing Key Performance Indicators for Smart Sustainable Cities based mostly on ITU requirements. These cities are supported by United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC), an initiative backed by ITU and one other 16 UN companions
And for SDG 7 and 13 on local weather motion and inexperienced power, ITU standards for green ICT embrace sustainable power-feeding options for 5G networks, in addition to good power options for telecom websites and datacentres that prioritise the consumption of energy from renewable power sources. In addition they cowl the usage of AI and massive knowledge to optimise datacentre power effectivity and progressive strategies to cut back power wants for datacentre cooling.
Monetary inclusion is one other key space of motion to attain SDG 1 on ending poverty. Digital channels are bringing life-changing monetary companies to tens of millions of individuals for the very first time. Monumental advances have been made throughout the Financial Inclusion Global Initiative (FIGI) and ITU’s related improvement of technical requirements in assist of safe monetary purposes and companies, dependable digital infrastructure, and the ensuing shopper belief that our cash and digital identities are protected. Our security clinics provide teaching in attaining the safety finest practices recommended by FIGI, and our Security Lab for Digital Financial Services helps international locations to confirm that these finest practices are being adopted.
So, what is required to drive ICT standardisation ahead to proceed addressing the SDGs?
The complexity of worldwide issues requires quite a few organisations with completely different goals and profiles to work in direction of frequent objectives. Because the world’s main builders of worldwide requirements, IEC, ISO and ITU, collectively we kind a number one voice in selling collaborative efforts to handle the SDGs, recognising that the SDGs characterize the worldwide consensus on what must be performed to enhance everybody’s high quality of life.
On the ITU World Requirements Symposium, we once more emphasised how we have to proceed to work collectively intently because the World Requirements Cooperation, with the assist of mechanisms corresponding to our Standardization Programme Coordination Group, reviewing actions, figuring out requirements gaps and alternatives, and dealing to make sure complete standardisation options to world challenges.
Together with a larger number of voices in requirements discussions is essential. It’s notably essential that creating international locations are heard, and {that a} multistakeholder method is made a precedence to have a profitable and inclusive digital transformation.
Uncoordinated and non-inclusive standardisation can spell lasting hurt for international locations that already wrestle to afford long-term socio-economic investments. With out world and regional coordination, in the present day’s digital revolution might produce uneven outcomes, making it crucial that each one requirements our bodies work cohesively.
Sustainable digital transformation requires political will. It was notable that final 12 months in Italy, the G20 leaders of their ultimate communiqué acknowledged the significance of worldwide consensus‑based mostly requirements to digital transformation and sustainable improvement for the primary time. This crucial step couldn’t have been made by one requirements physique alone. Along with IEC and ISO, we plan to keep up our presence in G20 actions to construct on the momentum created by our presence underneath Saudi Arabia’s G20 Presidency in 2020 and Italy’s in 2021.
Cities, governments and firms are on a steep studying curve as they undertake new tech as a part of low-carbon, sustainable, citizen-centric improvement methods as they search to satisfy the problem of addressing the SDGs.
Worldwide requirements, recognised world wide, are important to make applied sciences in fields corresponding to fintech, digital well being and 5G, mixed with larger and higher knowledge use, accessible and helpful to everybody, in every single place.
Chaesub Lee is a director of the ITU Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau.
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