Accelerated use of digital public services during the pandemic, mobile money, and the need for digital skills for jobs has made mobile internet access through a smartphone more important than ever.
The Broadband Commission Working Group on Smartphone Access was launched to examine the smartphone access gap. Co-chaired by Mr. Nick Read, CEO of Vodafone, Mr. Houlin Zhao, Secretary General of the ITU, and UN-OHRLLS, the Group was launched during the Broadband Commission Virtual Annual Fall Meeting in September 2021. Stay tuned for the launch of the outcome report in Fall 2022.
Overview
The Working Group will produce a report and set of concrete recommendations including:
- Original analysis and data on the smartphone access gap;
- Quantification of the social and economic impact of providing everyone with smartphone access by 2030, including assessment of moving users from 2G feature phones to 4G smartphones; and
- Analysis of initiatives or pilots designed to increase smartphone access. Vodafone Group has committed to launch two pilot projects on device affordability as part of this process
Vodafone is honoured to be part of this monumental global initiative with the UN, to improve the lives of billions of people through smartphone access. As our societies become more digital, everyone should have the ability to find jobs, be able to get public services, financial services and critical information that are increasingly only available through the internet. This is such a complex challenge that no network operator, device manufacturer, financial services provider or national government can solve on their own – but working together we can break through the barriers.
The Working Group Model
Composition and Activities
- Mr. Houlin Zhao, ITU
- Mr. Nick Read, Vodafone Group
- UN-OHRLLS
- Mr. Lacina Koné, Smart Africa
- Mr. Mats Granryd, GSMA
- H.E. Ursula Owusu-Ekufu. Ghana
- Dr. Carlos Jarque, America Movil
- H.E. Aurélie Adam-Soule Zoumarou, Benin
- Dato Lee Yee Cheong
- Ms. Pamela Coke-Hamilton, ITC
- Dr. Qu Dongyu, FAO
- Mr. Mauricio Ramos, Millicom
- Mr. Ziyang Xu, ZTE
- Former Commissioner Mr. Adrian Lovett, World Wide Web Foundation
- Former Commissioner Mr. Stephen Spengler, Intelsat
- Intel
- Federal Communications Commission
- A4AI
- Softbank
- ARM
- Trustonic
- Pay Joy
- Transsion
- HMD/Nokia
- Mara Phones
- TCT
Focus Area
Outcome Resources
Co-Chairs
Mr. Nick Read
CEO of Vodafone
Mr. Houlin Zhao
Secretary General of the ITU
UN-OHRLLS
Broadband Advocacy Targets
SDGs