ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin provides her insights on global connectivity, artificial intelligence, and the role of women in tech.

This year, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is commemorating its 160th anniversary. What can we celebrate?

Every time you send an email, watch a video or make a call, you benefit from ITU’s work. That kind of impact is worth celebrating!

Ever since 1865, ITU has shaped how the world connects and communicates — from the telegraph to radio and television, from satellites to the internet, mobile, and now AI. We haven’t just kept pace with history; we’ve helped write it. And now, we are helping build a digital future that’s more inclusive, more secure, and more sustainable.

We can also celebrate the power of global digital cooperation – something we can never take for granted. Over the years, ITU has been bringing together governments, industry, academics and civil society under one roof with one purpose: to bring out the best in technology, while leaving no one behind.

As we mark ITU’s 160th anniversary, I want to express gratitude to everyone who has been part of our journey, especially our 194 Member States and over 1,000 Sector Members, associates and academia.

How do you see the future of global communications, and what role do you see for ITU in shaping it?

Digital innovation is advancing at a rapid pace. Where past technologies took years, sometimes decades, to scale, emerging technologies like generative AI have reached millions of users in mere months.

Looking ahead, global communications will continue to fundamentally transform how we live, work, learn, and connect. And our shared digital future is about so much more than just technology — it’s about ensuring these advances serve all of humanity.

At ITU, we’re focused on bringing meaningful connectivity to the estimated 2.6 billion people still offline, particularly women, rural communities, and developing countries.

We are also committed to driving sustainable digital transformation through green standards development, including for emerging technologies like AI, through digital infrastructure resilience, and through the equitable management of spectrum on Earth and in space. All of this requires strong partnerships. ITU is uniquely positioned to convene the public and private sectors, and drive concrete action as we build our shared digital future together.

Some have argued that Artificial Intelligence is the new electricity. Would you agree?

Like electricity did many years ago, AI can be a general-purpose technology with the potential to reshape every aspect of our lives. It offers incredible opportunities, including for enhanced medical diagnosis, optimized agriculture practices, and advanced disaster alerts.

However, AI comes with major challenges — far different in scale from electricity. Gender bias, misinformation and deepfakes are just a few examples of the ethical dilemmas we face. AI’s impact is heavily dependent on the data it’s fed, and the intentions of those deploying it. This makes governance absolutely essential to ensure AI truly serves humanity.

The comparison with electricity highlights another critical challenge: AI’s appetite for power. Training large language models can consume as much energy as some small countries annually. Through our Green Digital Action initiative, ITU is collaborating with industry partners to advance the use of sustainable technology and reduce the digital sector’s carbon footprint.

Our technical standards work also plays a major role here, including to support energy-efficient computing architecture and sustainable data center practices. But, standards aren’t enough to ensure the benefits of AI reach everyone, while minimizing its many risks.

Launched in 2017, ITU’s AI for Good platform promotes responsible AI development that balances innovation, inclusion, and environmental stewardship. Our goal is to ensure global dialogue and identify practical applications of AI to accelerate progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

You have dedicated almost your entire career to ITU and the tech industry. What inspired you to work in the telecommunications sector?

It’s a combination of things. First, I caught the technology bug early. Growing up, I was always crazy about science. Later in graduate school in Washington, DC, I studied international communications policy, and took up an internship at the U.S. Department of Commerce. My work at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce changed my life. I had the opportunity to be part of the team that rewrote U.S. satellite systems policy.

Then, in 1994, I joined ITU as a policy analyst in the Telecommunication Development Bureau. That year, ITU held the first World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC). Only 20 million people — about 0.3% of the world’s population — were online.

More than 30 years later, we are still organizing WTDC, and the figures have drastically changed! I’ve always been fascinated by technology itself, but also love the impact connectivity has on people’s lives.

You have always been a strong advocate for increasing women’s participation in tech and science. In 2025, the international community will review the progress in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action, 30 years after its adoption. What progress do you see, and what remains to be done?

We’ve broken many records, yet barriers remain. Today, women in tech face persistent gender bias, unequal pay, as well as a lack of mentorship and support networks. They are less connected to the internet than men and are still underrepresented, particularly in leadership positions. Take two examples. Less than a quarter of all ministers for information and communication technology are women, and although women account for a growing share of the world’s AI specialists, they still barely exceed 30%. I simply refuse to accept that it will take more than 130 years to close the gender gap across the globe.

As the first female Secretary-General of ITU in its 160-year history, I understand how hard it is to break the glass ceiling.

If we want to make tech a real force for good, we must have more women at the table.

That’s why, through our new Gender and Youth Office, ITU is working hard to help our Member States implement inclusive digital policy, support capacity building, and bring more women into the tech workforce. We must ensure women tech leaders are no longer the exception but the norm.

What impact would you like to leave for the next generations?

I want future generations to inherit a more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable digital world. One where technology bridges rather than deepens divides. And one where everyone has the opportunity to benefit from digital — no matter their age, gender, location, economic status, or ability. This requires equipping young people with the digital skills and resources they need to thrive. ITU is tackling this through many initiatives, including Giga, in partnership with UNICEF, which aims to connect every school to the internet by 2030.

Youth inclusion must also be reflected internally. The digital world is evolving at warp speed and our institutions need to keep up, especially ones that are 160 years old!

One of my priorities is to make ITU a fit-for-future organization and an employer of choice for young people. I initiated an internal Youth Task Force to make this a reality. I also launched ITU’s first-ever Young Professionals Programme (YPP), just days after taking office, and set up a Youth Advisory Board last year.

We want to hear from talented young people everywhere, but especially from underrepresented demographics — countries that often find themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide. I am convinced that only together will we be able to ensure that digital progress is truly felt by everyone, everywhere.

This article first appeared in UN Today.

Learn more about ITU’s 160th anniversary.