In 2016, 300 million people around the world were affected by natural disasters. Sharing technology and resources between countries helps improve the effectiveness of any response. As Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau, ITU, said, “in disaster and emergency situations technology saves lives.”
Today, at an event hosted by EMEA Satellite Operators Association (ESOA), representatives from governments and industry gathered to sign the world’s first life-saving global treaty, The Crisis Connectivity Charter. As an active member of the Emergency Telecom Cluster, the ITU has helped support collaboration during emergency situations and is a principal signatory in the Charter which will see the satellite industry working alongside the wider community to make satellites more readily available at times of disaster. This charter aims to improve coordination of responses as well as effective planning and prediction of disasters.
