Hong Kong, 16 March 2017

  • Thank you SG/ITU Mr Houlin Zhao and Deputy Co-chair, Ms Irina Bokova UNESCO,
  • Co-chair Mr Carlos Jarque, in the name of Carlos Slim.
  • I want to thank our host, Chairperson of Huawei, Ms Sun Yafang.
  • Distinguished Commissioners.

I wanted to start by thanking all of you. Since the MDGs, now SDGs, there has been a good effort in the area alignment of broadband and its contributions to these processes.

So I wish to thank the members and support teams, who have been working on different tasks in working groups, motivated by wanting to have the global community connected, especially the billions of unconnected people.

We will always succeed especially when we work together: government, industry and civil society leaders. Suffice to say also, that it is going to be helpful to take a moment, at the right time, to measure the practical progress we have made.

ICT and broadband have come to, amongst other things, link people for the better of economies and societies. I wish to therefore to thank the distinguished members of the Broadband Commission and the leaders that I have mentioned, and wish us all a productive day.

Thank you everyone for this noble effort.