The State of Qatar has affirmed that it attaches great importance to utilizing and investing in the enormous potential offered by information and communication technology (ICT), and considers it an essential element to move forward towards achieving sustainable development.

This came in a statement by HE Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office in Geneva Dr. Hind bint Abdulrahman Al Muftah, during the celebration of the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, which focuses this year on empowering the least developed countries through ICT.

Her Excellency pointed out that the State of Qatar's strategy and projects for digital inclusion will contribute, by raising the level of basic digital skills for all, to many of the United Nations' sustainable development goals, stressing the State of Qatar's keenness to promote the use of technology in the implementation of most of its economic, social, environmental and development programs, and establishing sustainable societies.

She stressed that Qatar's support for the development plan for the least developed countries was and will always remain constant, adding that hosting the 5th UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) last March constituted another great opportunity to renew global solidarity with the least developed countries.

The second pillar of the Doha Work Program associated with LDC5 focuses on benefiting from the power of science, technology and innovation to combat multidimensional weaknesses and achieve sustainable development goals, and also provides concrete proposals to access modern technologies for sustainable development, to support the efforts of the LDCs to significantly improve their capabilities to achieve digital development.

HE Dr. Al Muftah asserted that LDCs need financial and technical support, whether through multilateral or bilateral development cooperation, in a spirit of fair and genuine partnerships that would contribute to structural transformation and enable long-term achievements in the field of sustainable development.

She called upon all states, development partners and international organizations, including the International Telecommunication Union, to support the implementation of the Doha Work Program by continuing partnership with LDCs, particularly with regard to supporting these countries in building their broadband infrastructure.

HE Dr. Hind bint Abdulrahman Al Muftah referred to the "SDG Digital Day" event, slated for September 17 in New York, and co-sponsored by the State of Qatar and Singapore, in cooperation with the International Telecommunication Union and other partners, explaining that the event aims to highlight, among other things, the potential of data and digital technologies to accelerate progress towards the sustainable development goals, and called on everyone to actively participate in it.