Creating the conditions to expand Internet access requires decisive action from governments.
How can they help close the global digital divide? By adopting new policy approaches that support community-centered connectivity solutions and meaningful connectivity.
About the WTDC-25
The WTDC is a conference hosted by the ITU every four years, which sets the development agenda for the next four years (2026-2029 for WTDC-25). WTDC is a non-treaty conference, and doesn’t provide regulatory outcomes. Rather, Member States adopt a four-year action plan to focus the work on the ITU Members and Board of Directors to realize the Development Sector’s goal of bridging the digital divide.
As an ITU-D Sector Member, the Internet Society will be present at the WTDC-25 with a strong focus on supporting Internet infrastructure development, particularly in least-developed countries, small island developing states, and landlocked developing countries.
Why Does the WTDC-25 Matter?
The two-week-long conference will serve as a discussion forum on the opportunities and challenges of bridging the digital divide. It will also act as a catalyst for partnership and investment in infrastructure development. The ITU-D priorities of affordable connectivity, an enabling policy and regulatory environment, resource mobilization and international cooperation, and inclusive and secure telecommunications/ICTs for sustainable development closely align with the Internet Society’s strategic objectives.
Our Priorities at WTDC-25
We will work to ensure that the conference’s outcomes lay the foundations for connecting the unconnected, providing meaningful connectivity, ensuring local Internet stability and resilience, and strengthening local Internet ecosystems. We’ll do so by promoting policies and language compatible with this enabling environment and by working with ITU Members to promote open and transparent policy and regulatory processes.
The priority topics of our delegation include:
- ITU-D Action Plan for 2026-2029
- Connectivity policies and regulations
- Community-centered networks
- Sustainable peering infrastructure
- The Internet’s critical role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Digital public infrastructure (DPI)
- Multistakeholder Internet governance
Get Involved
Fostering enabling policies locally is key to connecting the unconnected, providing meaningful connectivity, and ensuring local Internet stability and resilience. Our WTDC-25 Resolution Matrix presents the Internet Society’s positions on key issues and helps policymakers make informed decisions.
You can also check the WTDC-25 Background Paper to find actions governments and regulators can take to create an enabling environment for community-centered connectivity and sustainable peering infrastructure projects to flourish and expand the Internet infrastructure.
Get in Touch
We can achieve more when we work together. Connect with us at WTDC-25 and learn how to foster policies that will help achieve universal connectivity. Get started by reaching out to the Internet Society’s Director of Technical Policy, Juan Peirano.