The Digital Transformation Centres (DTC) Initiative was launched by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in partnership with Cisco in September 2019 during ITU Telecom World held in Budapest, Hungary. Through this Initiative, ITU will work with a global network of institutions to develop digital skills for citizens mainly at basic and intermediate level. The Initiative is part of a broader goal of building an inclusive digital society where lack of digital skills should not be a barrier to participation in the digital economy. This Initiative contributes to the achievement of the ITU-D Objective 4 of the Buenos Aires Action Plan agreed at WTDC 2017, to foster the development and use of telecommunications/ICTs and applications to empower people and societies for sustainable development.
The DTC Initiative will be implemented through a multi-stakeholder partnership involving, among others, Governments, private sector, development agencies, and non-governmental organizations. Partners can participate at global level or they can support specific DTCs at national level.
To kick-start the Initiative, 10 DTCs have been selected globally for phase 1, based on expressions of interest received from organisations and assessment of their suitability. Phase 1 will run for 18 months starting in January 2020. At the end of the phase 1, an open call will be made for additional DTCs to join the network in phase 2.
Stakeholders are encouraged to join this initiative in order to provide as many people as possible with the digital skills needed to make a significant contribution to the digital economy. Interested partners can contact ITU's Capacity and Digital Development Unit at hcbmail@itu.int
Further information on the Digital Transformation Centres Initiative can be found on our website at https://academy.itu.int/main-activities/digital-transformation-centres-initiative