Abu-Ghazaleh Proposes Unprecedented Changes
15 Apr 2003AMMAN - Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Co-Chairman of the United Nation’s Information & Communication Technology Task Force (UN ICT TF), will speak at the Center for International Development (CID) at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts on April 18, 2003. The subject of Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh’s address is ICTs for Development.
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh is well known in the Arab world as one of the earliest and most forceful campaigners for the effort to bridge the Digital Divide between the Arab world and the digitally developed countries. In addition to his work with the UN ICT TF, he is active in forging Arab-International cooperation with many of the most well known international agencies, NGOs, etc., such as the World Bank, World Trade Organization, World Economic Forum, Arab Knowledge Management Society and numerous others. He is known both for his role as a leading Arab businessman (www.tagi.com; www.agip.com) and for his increasing role as a leader in development circles.
The subject of his address at the CID is ICTs for Development. Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh’s presentation addresses the developing consensus regarding the place of ICTs in international development and what the most important impacts from ICTs will be on global development efforts. If anyone is in a position to evaluate the current state of the development/ICT relationship at the global level, it certainly is Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh. The global development effort is generally considered to consist of three main components: government, private sector and NGOs (representing civil society). In addition to having personally held leadership positions of one sort or another in all three of these, the UN ICT TF, which Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh co-chairs, is characterized by its unique efforts to link all these groups into one targeted effort to use ICTs to contribute to the UN’s development goals, particularly the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh noted recently, “While the development community is beginning to make certain adjustments in its expectations, much as the private sector did after the bursting of the DotCom Bubble, we now see only more clearly as to how ITCs can be important in meeting our goals. We all profit from reviewing our assumptions and editing our plans.” Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh is known to be a stimulating if sometimes provocative figure in the global business and development communities.
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