{"id":13154,"date":"2025-06-24T16:46:18","date_gmt":"2025-06-24T15:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/solutions-and-impact\/connectivity-for-good\/external-affairs\/?p=13154"},"modified":"2026-05-29T12:58:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-29T11:58:14","slug":"the-international-relations-blog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/solutions-and-impact\/connectivity-for-good\/external-affairs\/international-relations\/the-international-relations-blog\/","title":{"rendered":"The International Relations Blog"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This blog provides the latest updates from the GSMA’s International Relations team as we engage with a wide range of governments, UN Agencies, NGOs and international organisations, to amplify the mobile industry\u2019s core messaging at key international events from across the globe.<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
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Foundations of the Digital Economy: The Road to the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

(29\/05\/2026)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, the highest UN treaty-level event on ICT policy, takes place later this year in Doha. Gathering senior policymakers from all ITU Member States, it will elect the Union’s leadership and set the direction for the next four years. What is decided in November will also lay the foundations for the 2027 World Radiocommunication Conference, shaping the digital economy and its regulatory environment for years to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more than 4.7 billion people, mobile connectivity is the primary, and often only, gateway to the internet, enabling access to digital services, innovation, and economic opportunity. As AI, IoT, and advanced data systems drive the next phase of the digital economy, high-quality, resilient, and intelligent connectivity will become even more critical to enabling these technologies to function and scale. Mobile networks are not only the foundation of today\u2019s digital economy, but also the essential infrastructure underpinning its future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of this conference, the GSMA is asking Member States to focus on three foundational aspects to the digital economy: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. 1. Usage Gap – <\/strong>Addressing the demand-side barriers, especially device affordability, that keep billions of people offline despite available coverage;\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. 2. Network Investment <\/strong>– <\/strong>Enabling an investment environment that allows networks to expand and modernise;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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    1. 3. Spectrum<\/strong> – Managing spectrum effectively, allowing operators to meet users’ demand for more data and reach people in rural areas.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      To advance these priorities, the GSMA is engaging with regional preparatory meetings and running capacity building workshops to give policymakers a grounded understanding of the mobile digital economy, showing what connectivity at scale actually requires and what it costs operators to build and sustain it.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The GSMA shared these messages at the Global Symposium for Regulators held in Ankara two weeks ago with a delegation headed by GSMA\u2019s Chief Strategy Officer, Hakan Dursun. As we continue on the road to Doha, our Plenipotentiary campaign will continue to engage governments and policymakers around the world to ensure that operators\u2019 voices are heard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      The GSMA Highlights the Critical Role of Digitalisation as a Bridge for Inclusion at the W20 South Africa Summit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      (14\/11\/2025)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      Earlier in October, member state delegations from across G20 countries convened for the annual Women 20 (W20) Summit<\/strong><\/a> hosted in Johannesburg, South Africa. South Africa holds the G20 Presidency for the first time this year, marking a historic milestone\u2014not only for the country but for the entire African continent. This year also celebrates the tenth anniversary of W20: the G20\u2019s official engagement group dedicated to advancing gender equality and women\u2019s economic empowerment. Under the theme \u201cUbuntu \u2013 Women in Solidarity towards Sustainable Socio-Economic Development,\u201d the W20 South Africa Presidency has been shaping a bold agenda for inclusive growth, equity, and sustainability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Tamara Dancheva, Senior International Relations Manager at the GSMA, took part in the W20 Summit as Co-Head of the EU Delegation and Co-Chair of the W20 South Africa Taskteam on Bridging the Digital Divide, STEM and Education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Speaking on a panel titled Invisible No More: Women\u2019s Leadership in the Economies We Can\u2019t Overlook <\/em>alongside representatives from the Ocean20 Engagement Group, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, the University of Rwanda and the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association, Tamara spoke about the power of digitalisation to transform women\u2019s lives and shared actions governments and the private sector can take to close the mobile gender gap: \u201cDigitalization holds enormous potential to transform women\u2019s lives-yet for millions of women working in informal and invisible economies, that promise remains out of reach. For women working across invisible economies, whether cultivating small plots of land, managing fisheries, or leading micro-enterprises in circular and blue economies, digital tools can be truly transformative. Yet GSMA data shows that the mobile internet gender gap in low- and middle-income countries is still 14%,<\/strong> meaning 235 million fewer women are using mobile internet than men. <\/strong>Digitalisation can connect women farmers to market prices, link women fishers to traceability systems, and power digital financial tools for women-led climate solutions. But only if policies are deliberately inclusive and go beyond infrastructure, investment thereby focusing on meaningful use<\/strong>. This means tackling key barriers to digital inclusion such as lack of affordability of devices and data through targeted subsidies or innovative financing including for low-cost smartphones.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The W20 Summit was attended by the South African Minister for Human Settlements H.E. Thembi Simelane <\/strong>(among other dignitaries) who received the W20 Communique<\/strong><\/a>: the final policy outcome of the W20 deliberations which this year called on G20 leaders to advance financing for equality and develop a Global AI and Gender Equality Index among other key policy outcomes. The W20 policy outputs also cite GSMA data on the economic benefits from closing the usage gap across G20 member states as well as the mobile gender gap across low- and middle-income countries. Additionally, the call for action section of the W20 Communique highlights the importance of public-private partnerships in addressing key barriers to Internet adoption and stresses on the urgency of tackling device affordability and lack of digital skills and literacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      To mark the 10-year anniversary of W20, the South African Presidency published a special report<\/strong><\/a> highlighting the influence of the G20 engagement group on the global gender policy landscape<\/strong>. The report indicates that over the past 10 years the W20 has submitted 220 recommendations to G20 leaders. Recent analysis shows that 74 of these, over one-third, have been adopted into G20 Leaders\u2019 Declarations, with 84% of G20 countries implementing at least one gender-related reform between 2014 and 2024. Key successes include recognition of the care economy, digital and financial inclusion advocacy, and parenthood policy reforms.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      A major milestone of the W20 South Africa Presidency this year is also the introduction of the Johannesburg Goals<\/strong>: to reduce the female labor force participation gap, the gender wage gap, and the unpaid care gap by 35% by 2035. These ambitious targets reflect the urgency and determination of the W20 to move from rhetoric to measurable impact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The W20 South Africa Presidency has also published a policy brief on \u202fClosing the Gender Gap in Digital, Education, STEM and AI<\/strong><\/a>\u202f which reflects GSMA research and data on the digital gender divide. \u202f  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      Reflections from UNGA: Digital Cooperation at the Heart of Global Progress<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      (06\/11\/2025)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      The annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is always a unique moment \u2014 a week when global leaders, policymakers, private sector representatives, and civil society converge in New York to shape the future of international cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      This year, one trend stood out clearly: digital transformation has become a central theme across the global agenda. From official meetings to side events, digital inclusion, connectivity, and technology governance featured prominently in discussions \u2014 reflecting how vital these topics have become for governments, international organisations, and the private sector alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Read the full blog from Alix Jagueneau, Head of External Affairs, GSMA here<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      European Union Delegation to W20<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      (02\/10\/2025)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      The GSMA, represented by Tamara Dancheva, Senior International Relations Manager and Co-Head of the European Union Delegation to W20<\/a>, met with the European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Disaster Management H.E. Hadja Lahbib<\/strong> at the European Commission earlier this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      During the meeting, Tamara shared what the EU delegation has been prioritising in terms of policy recommendations to G20 Leaders via the W20 Communiqu\u00e9. Key success were highlighted as part of her current mandate as Co-Chair of the W20 South Africa<\/a> Task team on Digital Inclusion, Education and STEM and past mandates as Co-Chair of the Digital Inclusion Working Groups under the W20 Indonesia<\/a>, W20 India<\/a> and W20 Brazil<\/a> Presidencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      As such specific language was highlighted in the digital inclusion thematic area which had been adopted such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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