ICT Summit in Uzbekistan has become a unique and powerful platform for all the key players to come together to share information and exchange experience, UNDP official in Uzbekistan said at the opening ceremony of the ICT Summit 2007.

The 5th anniversary ICT Summit 2007 opened in Tashkent on 27 September. The event was organized by the Coordination Council for Development of Computerisation and ICT, he Committee on Information and Communication Technologies of the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis, Uzbek Agency for Communication and Informatization (UzACI), United Nations Development Programme in Uzbekistan through ICT Policy Project (ICTP) and Association of IT Companies and Organizations of Uzbekistan.

The ICT Summit 2007 aims to encourage discussions on general and policy issues as well as on specific topics in the specific ICT areas. Topics for general discussion include trends and major developments in regulatory policy, progress and challenges in implementation of national ICT development programmes, experience of ICT applications in various sectors, development and application of standards, issues of infrastructure development and other important issues.

Kyoko Postill, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Uzbekistan, said at the opening ceremony of the summit: "Today, the Summit celebrates its fifth anniversary and it has become a unique, and powerful platform for all the key players to come together to share information, learn from each other, and discuss and identify measures to address issues that emerge from the wide-scale application and rapid development of ICTs."

In a world that has increasingly become interactive and inter-dependent, the effective use of Information and Communication Technologies are key for the countries to move successfully towards a knowledge based society that promotes sustainable growth, increases productivity, and enhances the quality of life, she said.

Ms Postill said UNDP will be further assisting the Government of Uzbekistan by bringing the best international practices and developing initiatives in ICT sphere, especially in promoting e-government, establishing foundations for creation of science and technology parks, and strengthening human resource capacity in ICT.

"We are confident that this summit will make a significant contribution to the ICT development in Uzbekistan, as well as strengthen efforts towards achieving goals and objectives set forth in the National ICT Programme and World Summits on the Information Society in Geneva and Tunis," she said.