On October 12, 2021, the ITU Digital World Session was held Ministerial Roundtable - Reducing Costs: Can Affordable Access Accelerate Digital Transformation? The session was held in a virtual format using the Zoom platform.

The event was attended by representatives of regional and international telecommunication organizations.

The above meeting was opened and welcoming remarks were made by Nguyen Man Hung, Minister of Information and Communication (MIC) of Vietnam and ITU Secretary General Houlin Zhao.

Houlin Zhao stressed that effective communication - that is, access to and use of relevant Internet services - is critical to digital transformation. Universal access is quickly becoming a matter of accessibility and opportunity, not infrastructure or technology. According to ITU data, in 2020 more than 90% of the urban population and over 70% of the rural population worldwide were covered by 4G, satellite or other technologies, yet only 51% of the world's people use the Internet. Barriers to Internet adoption include accessibility, digital skills, public awareness and availability of relevant content in local languages.

The session was moderated by Malcolm Johnson, ITU Deputy Secretary General.

At this session, the following issues were considered:

- How can governments solve the problem of accessibility?

- Are there enough available devices for citizens to connect and use the Internet?

- How can governments work with manufacturers to incentivize cheaper plans or make low-cost devices more available?

- Should governments subsidize access or even provide free connectivity for everyone?

- How should governments address key demand-side issues, including the cost of electricity?

- What innovative regulatory measures or successful public-private models can best reduce connection costs for end users?

The discussion was attended by:

- Pham Minh Chin, Prime Minister of Vietnam;

- Vandet Chea, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia MPTC (Cambodia);

- Paola Vega Castillo, Minister of Science, Technology and Telecommunications (Costa Rica);

- Devusin Chauhan, State Minister of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of India;

- Boviengkham Vongdara, Minister of Technology and Communications of the Lao People's Democratic Republic;

- Admiral Tin Aung San, Union Minister of Transport and Communications (Myanmar);

- Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy (Nigeria);

- Gabriela Servilia Jimenez Ramirez, Minister of Science and Technology MPPCT (Venezuela);

- Rashad Nabiyev, Minister of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan;

- Ramiro Camacho, Commissioner, Federal Telecommunications Institute IFT (Mexico);

- Jean Filbert Nsengimana, Chairman Emeritus, Alliance for the Affordable Internet Web Foundation (United States);

- Karim Lesina, Executive Vice President for External Relations, Millicom International Cellular SA (Luxembourg).

During the discussion, the floor was given to the Minister of Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Rashad Nabiyev. He noted that affordable telecommunications can indeed accelerate digital transformation, as about half of the world's population is not currently connected to the Internet.