The ITU and development assistance : North, South and the dynamics of the CCIs

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), like other UN agencies, has been called upon to assist the developing countries in establishing a telecommunications infrastructure. This article charts the change of the ITU from being an organization concerned solely with matters of technical coordination to one which is involved in development assistance. The development of its various International Consultative Committees is also explained. The author argues that the developed countries have had to accept the change in the ITU's purpose demanded by its Third World members because of an imperative to consolidate the worldwide operation of telecommunications networks. As the industrialized nations' stake in those networks increases, the higher is the cost of breaking up the collective arrangements which make their operation possible.