The APEC Telecommunications and Information Working Group convened its 45 th meeting in Da Nang City on April 9 to prepare documents for the ninth APEC TEL Ministers’ Meeting (APEC TELMIN 9) scheduled for St. Petersburg , Russia from August 6-8.

The officials, during their three-day sitting, will assess new technologies and applications, gaps in capacity between different economies and the specific challenges and actions that are suitable for each APEC member.

When addressing the function, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Nguyen Thanh Hung, pointed out the difficulties and challenges that the information and telecommunications sector faces.

Seminars on issues including telecommunications and IT (ICT); the security of computer networks; urgently needed telecoms networks; competition in the telecoms sector and ICT for the disabled will also take place as part of the meeting.

All APEC economies are due to update their ICT policies and work closer together on ICT, the official said.

The meeting will also discuss APEC TEL projects by reviewing their operations and initiatives.

APEC TEL was first set up in 1990 to propose and support policies relating to ICT.

The group operates under three steering groups, one to promote liberalisation, one on the development of ICT and another that’s focuses on security and prosperity.-VNA