ICANN Announcements

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Partnership to Grow Internet in Pacific Island Nations | ICANN, Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association sign agreement to work together

10 May 2007

MARINA DEL REY, Calif.: Building partnerships to better share information about the Internet with the island nations of the Pacific is the goal of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and the Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association (PITA).

“This MoU is a step forward in accountability and ensuring the stability of the Internet. By sharing information, ICANN can learn about the challenges facing small island nations, and PITA will have access to expertise and ideas from other areas facing similar challenges, ” said Dr Paul Twomey, ICANN’s President and CEO.

The objective of the MoU is to build a non-exclusive partnership that will see information on Internet issues flow in both directions, promote regional telecommunications and information technology standards, and aid in transferring skills, knowledge, and capacity to the Pacific Islands region.

“This partnership is a great opportunity for active participation and collaboration of our members in the ICANN process,” said Maui Sanford, President of PITA. “The MOU gives all of our stakeholders – telecommunications companies, vendors, ISPs, and country-code top-level domains – a chance to actively engage in the ICANN discussions as the Internet is part and parcel of the ICT industry.”

Building a more cooperative relationship will include:

  • Exchanging information on issues relating to the Internet emerging from the respective organization’s work;
  • Fostering a network of stakeholders and decision makers who can contribute to discussions of Internet security, stability, and interoperability, and,
  • Providing information about respective policies under development and enable improved participation.

“Sharing information is at the heart of Internet – and it’s important that we exchange ideas that will make sure the Internet works as well as possible no matter where you are,” Dr Twomey added. “This new relationship will help Pacific Islands meet the unique challenges they face, and will help ICANN continue with its mission of ensuring the stable and secure operation of the Internet’s unique identifier system for users across the globe.”

A copy of the signed MOU is available at:
http://www.icann.org/global_partnerships/mous/pita-mou-26apr07.pdf [PDF, 177K]

About ICANN:

ICANN is responsible for the global coordination of the Internet's system of unique identifiers like domain names (like .org, .museum and country codes like .uk) and the addresses used in a variety of Internet protocols that help computers reach each other over the Internet. Careful management of these resources is vital to the Internet's operation, so ICANN's global stakeholders meet regularly to develop policies that ensure the Internet's ongoing security and stability. ICANN is an internationally organized, public benefit non-profit company. For more information please visit: www.icann.org.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and the Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association signed a Memorandum of Understand aimed at sharing information on Internet development in the Pacific Islands region. On hand for the signing at the 11th PITA AGM, held in Tahiti in April were, left to right, Fred Christopher, Manager of PITA, Theresa Swinehart, Vice President, Global and Strategic Partnerships of ICANN,  Maui Sanford, President of PITA, and Save Vocea, Regional Liaison, Australasia/Pacific, ICANN.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and the Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association signed a Memorandum of Understand aimed at sharing information on Internet development in the Pacific Islands region. On hand for the signing at the 11th PITA AGM, held in Tahiti in April were, left to right, Fred Christopher, Manager of PITA, Theresa Swinehart, Vice President, Global and Strategic Partnerships of ICANN, Maui Sanford, President of PITA, and Save Vocea, Regional Liaison, Australasia/Pacific, ICANN.

Media Contacts:

Jason Keenan
Media Adviser, ICANN (USA)
Ph: +1 310 382 4004
E: jason.keenan@icann.org


International: Andrew Robertson
Edelman (London)
Ph: +44 7921 588 770
E: andrew.robertson@edelman.com