TRA, ITU to set up international centre of digital innovation

DUBAI / WAM

The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) announced the signing of an agreement to establish an International Centre of Digital Innovation, known as I-CoDI.
I-CoDI will help ITU Members, Sector Members and other key stakeholders to integrate innovation into their national development agendas and activities. The centre, to be based in Geneva, Switzerland, will also have a virtual component. The I-CoDI design phase will be completed by the end of 2020.
Commenting on the announcement, Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori, Director-General of the TRA, said, “This experience reflects the success of innovation and creativity policies pursued by the UAE, which resulted in hundreds of projects and initiatives that contributed to achieving the UAE’s leading position in innovation. The UAE is no longer a country that imports ideas, but rather a source of innovation and success in various sectors.”
I-CoDI builds on CoDI (a Centre of Digital Innovation) launched by the UAE in 2013, as part of the UAE’s efforts in digital transformation and enhancing the digital journey of UAE citizens and government, through research, innovation, education, training, skills development, quality assurance and of advisory services.
Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, commented, “Innovation has been recognised as a powerful engine for promoting development, addressing socio-economic challenges and increasing the overall competitiveness of countries. I look forward to working closely with the TRA to establish I-CoDI and contributing to the development of innovation strategies to accelerate digital transformation and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”
Mohammad Al Zarooni, CEO of Policies and Programmes Department at TRA, said, “ITU’s aim to transfer the experience of CoDI indicates its uniqueness and importance in serving the goals of global societies aimed at achieving sustainable development and digital transformation. We are proud of our accomplishments to this day, and we will continue working to achieve more success.”
Creating a culture of innovation has been identified by ITU Member States a priority. At the 2014 World Telecommunication Development Conference, Member States mandated the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau to strengthen ITU membership capabilities to integrate ICT-centric innovation in their national development agendas and promote a culture of innovation through enhanced partnership and cooperation with multi-stakeholders in a converged ICT ecosystem.