Call to incentivise broadband build

Governments need to offer greater incentives for the private sector to develop the infrastructure needed to roll out broadband, particularly to developing countries, a UN conference in Ireland heard at the weekend.

The UN Broadband Commission for Digital Development met in Dublin on Saturday and Sunday, with some of the most influential figures in the area of telecoms in attendance.

Following the conference, the commission issued a statement saying that broadband could be the catalyst that would help lift some of the most disadvantaged countries in the world out of the poverty trap and help provide them with access to healthcare, education and basic social services.