"ITU has received a strong message from our members that it should remain the world's preeminent global telecommunication and ICT standards body," said Malcolm Johnson, director of the ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Sector. "And we also hear very clearly that ITU should continue on its mission to connect the world, and that bridging the standardization gap -- by increasing developing country participation in our work -- is an essential prerequisite to achieve this goa'."

The meeting brought together about 800 experts from 100 countries, who laid out a road map for the future development of standards that underpin the world's communications networks, noted Hamadoun Touré, ITU Secretary-General.

ITU members and administrations from around the world called for increased emphasis on key areas such as ICTs and climate change, the deployment of IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6), accessibility to ICTs for persons with disabilities, conformance and interoperability testing, and encouraging academic participation in the ITU's work.

Delegates attending the 10-day meeting agreed to restructure the ITU's standards and to also carry out studies aimed at introducing an ITU mark, which would permit suppliers -- on a voluntary basis -- to make a visible declaration that their products conform to ITU recommendations.