ITU Announces Honorary Patrons to help "Connect the World"

The International Telecommunication Union's Secretary-General, Yoshio Utsumi, announced Friday that five eminent individuals have accepted his invitation to serve as honorary patrons to help popularize and build public support for the Connect the World initiative including:

• Nobel Laureate, Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank and leading advocate of ICT combined with micro-credit financing to empower the poor
• HRH Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Princess of Thailand, whose efforts help people with disabilities gain independence and skills using ICT
• HRH Sheikha Al Mayassa Bint Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Qatar, Chairperson of "Reach Out to Asia", a non-profit initiative to expand access to education using ICTs
• M. S. Swaminathan, founder and chairperson of "Mission 2007," a widely recognized movement in India to make every village a "knowledge center" using ICTs
• Roberto Irineu Marinho, president of Globo and its Foundation. Globo is a major Brazilian broadcast company and Internet provider responsible for UN-recognized projects in broadcasting educational content to underserved communities.

The main role of honorary patrons is to strengthen awareness and support for Connect the World among the general public as well as political leaders outside the ICT and telecommunications sectors. This group will consist of prominent persons from all walks of life. The level of involvement of each honorary patron is flexible, and will vary according to their needs and over time. Examples include participation in special events and media and other promotional activities and supporting fundraising efforts.

"To become a broader movement to connect the unconnected by 2015, we need to reach out not only to our traditional stakeholders but also to others, including the general public," said Utsumi. "The honorary patrons of Connect the World will play an essential role in this effort and we are grateful for the participation."