New York, NY, September 29, 2022–The U.S. Council for International Business applauds the resounding victory today of Doreen Bogdan-Martin to serve as the new Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). ITU member states made history by elevating Ms. Bogdan-Martin to lead the organization the next four years — the first-ever female to serve as ITU Secretary General. Ms. Bogdan-Martin garnered 139 votes; Rashid Ismailov, a former Russian telecom official, secured 25. The vote was taken by secret ballot at the 21st meeting of the ITU Plenipotentiary (PP-22), September 26-October 14, in Bucharest, Romania.

“After 150 years, we shattered the glass ceiling,” Secretary General Bogdan-Martin said after the results were announced. The full text of her acceptance speech is available at this link.

Barbara Wanner, USCIB’s Vice President of ICT Policy, who participated in the PP-22 as a member of the U.S. Government delegation, concurred that the election represented a truly historic development. “The sheer breadth of support for Ms. Bogdan-Martin reflected a recognition across the Union that she is the right person for the job as the information and communication technology (ICT) landscape continues to evolve,” Wanner said.

USCIB was one the earliest organizational supporters of Ms. Bogdan-Martin’s candidacy. “It was readily apparent to our members that she possesses both the substantive knowledge and leadership skills to place the ITU at the forefront of global efforts to drive meaningful connectivity for the unconnected, broaden and deepen partnerships to accelerate digital transformation, and support greater organizational accountability,” Wanner noted. Thanks to members’ generous support, USCIB boosted Ms. Bogdan-Martin’s candidacy by hosting a special reception on July 13 in New York to enable her to engage informally with many UN delegates and share her leadership vision for the ITU.

In addition to electing the Secretary General and other key leadership positions, the ITU Plenipotentiary, which is held every four years, enables the ITU’s 193 Member States to conclude key agreements on the ITU’s strategic and financial plans and determine the direction for ICT issues under its remit for the next four years.

Other highlights of the first week of the PP-22 included:

• An announcement by the U.S Government that it plans to increase its assessed contribution rate to the ITU from 30 contributory units to 35 contributory units, which would represent an additional 1.59 million Swiss francs per year to support the work of the ITU; and
• Establishment of numerous ad hoc committees and informal consultations to build consensus on proposed resolutions on cybersecurity, Internet-related issues, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and space policy issues of priority interest to USCIB members.

About USCIB: USCIB promotes open markets, competitiveness and innovation, sustainable development, and corporate responsibility, supported by international engagement and regulatory coherence. Its members include U.S.-based global companies and professional services firms from every sector of our economy, with operations in every region of the world. USCIB is the U.S. affiliate of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Organization of Employers (IOE) and Business at OECD. More at www.uscib.org.