Hungary proudly hosted the Telecom World 2019 conference of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Budapest, between 9-12 September.
The conference and exhibition, a flagship event of ITU, brought together businesses, key industry players and high-level government representatives, providing a platform to accelerate ICT innovation for social and economic development through exhibiting solutions, sharing knowledge and networking. ITU Telecom World set the stage to explore innovative technologies, such as 5G, Artificial Intelligence and smart cities.
At the opening ceremony H.E. Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary declared that “Hungary is prepared and has started to become one of the success stories of the digitalising world economy”, further adding that “Hungary is already a digital economy in the heart of Europe. Here the future has already begun (…)”.
Secretary-General of the ITU, H.E. Houlin Zhao emphasised the role of ITU in closing the digital divide, in support of the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which could transform and improve the lives of millions across the globe. The opening ceremony of the event was also attended by H.E. Francis Gurry, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). In his address, the Director General stressed the importance of connectivity, stating that “Telecommunications are a fundamental driver of innovation in the world today”.
Hungary was awarded to host the prestigious event for the second time after the successes of ITU Telecom World 2015. The initiative, launched in 2015, to foster the participation of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) came to a fruition, as more than 150 SMEs took part in this year’s gathering, coming from 40 different countries.
