Spio-Garbrah lobbies African and C'wealth countries

...to help elect first black African Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union in Turkey

14 November, 2006. Antalya, Turkey -- With the help of unified support from most African and Commonwealth countries, Hamadoun I. Toure of Mali was Friday 10th November voted in by member countries of the International Telecommunications Union as their new Secretary-General for a four year term. On the same day, Mr Houlin Zhao, of China, was elected as Mr Toure’s deputy.

The election, which took place during the 17th annual ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, saw Dr Toure elected to his new position on a wave of support from Commonwealth and African nations; he polled 95 out of the possible 155 votes in the third round of voting. Mr Zhao was elected in the first round with 93 votes, after Ghana had withdrawn the candidature of Major John Tandoh, to throw its weight and those of African and Commonwealth behind the Chinese candidate. Mr. Malcolm Johnson of the United Kingdom was elected as Director of the Standardisation Bureau in voting today, also on the strength of support from the Commonwealth ITU Group. Also in voting today, a Commonwealth candidate for Director, Bureau for Development and Training, Mr. Patrick Masambu of Uganda, lost to a Saudi candidate, Sami Basheer.

Commenting on the elections, Dr. Spio-Garbrah, CEO of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization (CTO), who was on site to lobby the dozens of Commonwealth and African countries, stated that the role of the Commonwealth ITU Group in influencing the outcomes of the ITU elections was felt throughout the process. “The Commonwealth ITU Group has been meeting for less than four years, but during this period it has established itself as a formidable caucus and lobby group for various positions of interest to its member countries. I am pleased that the impact of Commonwealth countries is becoming increasingly felt within ITU circles, and most candidates for positions there have come to understand the merits of gaining the support of the nearly 50 votes controlled by countries within this group.” The CTO CEO, who is also an aspirant for the flag bearership of the NDC in the forthcoming December elections in Accra, also said: “As the first African to head the CTO in 100 years, I am pleased to congratulate my old friend Hamadoun as the first black Secretary General of the ITU, which has not had a citizen from sub-Saharan African as its head in its 140-year history. Together, the CTO and the ITU should work more closely together to serve the global community well, especially the countries that are most deprived of access to ICTs.”

In his first address to the assembled 1500 member delegates from around the globe, Mr Toure pledged to work with transparency, objectivity and vigour to realize the two main objectives that were central to his campaign: to eliminate the digital divide and to ensure that cyberspace would become more secure. He said, "The Millennium Development Goals that were endorsed by all the world’s leaders, as well as the WSIS resolutions, are the ingredients we need to get down to work." The new ITU Secretary General-elect, Dr Toure holds a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics in Moscow and after working as a Group Director for Intelsat for ten years he became the Director-General, Africa, of ICO Global Communications in 1996. In 1998, he was appointed Director of ITU’s Telecommunications Development Bureau, where he has been working up until last week. Mr Toure’s profile and established credentials amongst, particularly African and Commonwealth countries, have undoubtedly contributed to his successful elevation to his new position last Friday.

Mr Houlin Zhao joined the ITU in 1986, having worked previously in various positions at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, China. He was elected as Director of the TSB in 1998 and re-elected at the Plenipotentiary conference in 2002. In his thank you to delegates, Mr Zhao pledged to do his best to both assist Mr Toure in his post, and also to make the ITU a more dynamic organisation that would contribute to the emerging global information society.

After helping to achieve this important victory for Africa, Dr Spio-Garbrah is expected back in Ghana at the end of this week to continue with the final phase of his campaign to be elected as the flag bearer of the NDC party.