ICC's new e-business chief, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh has pledged to use the resources of the world business organization to extend the benefits of the digital age to developing countries.
Reacting to his appointment as the new chair of ICC's Commission on Telecommunications and Information Technology, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh, a leading Jordanian entrepreneur said the commission would focus its energies on developing competitive telecommunications services throughout the world and bridging the digital divide.
"The internet may have transformed the way people live and work in the developed world, but for a vast proportion of the world's population, it remains an inaccessible pipe dream," he said. "ICC will work through its countless member companies in the developing world and in tandem with other international organizations to ensure the vast potential of the internet to generate prosperity in all corners of the globe is realized."
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh, one of the Arab world's leading management consultants and intellectual property experts, is a member of various international internet organizations, including ICANN (a technical coordination body for the Internet).
He is the founder of the Arab Internet Domain Name Consortium (AINC) and is a member of a number of global organizations involved in multi-lateral trade, intellectual property and professional services.
Through his professional services firm, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh International, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh has launched several programs aimed at increasing the ability of those in developing countries to access the internet. Last year he coordinated several regional and international conferences on the subject.
"As a professional in the Arab world, I know what kinds of issues need to be addressed to bridge the digital divide," he said. "It requires widespread economic and structural reforms in the countries themselves, it demands the development of infrastructure and, perhaps most importantly, it requires education."
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh stressed the important role governments have to play in the process, saying while business could develop the information and communication networks, it was up to governments to create the appropriate regulatory environment.
"Business can build the vehicle for the journey across the digital divide, it is up to governments to smooth the path," he said.
He added: "The internet offers enormous opportunities for enterprising individuals, companies and communities to access the global economy. Both as a businessman and as a citizen of a developing country, it is in my interest to see that the developing world becomes a knowledge society."