Initial Meeting of U.S.-India Information and Communications Technologies Working Group

The U.S.-India Information and Communications Technologies Working Group met in Washington D.C. December 7-8. This inaugural meeting was Co-chaired by the State Department’s U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy Ambassador David Gross and Additional Secretary M. Madhavan Nambiar of the Department of Information Technology. U.S. participants were from the Department of State, the Department of Commerce, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the National Science Foundation. Indian officials were from the Departments of Information Technology and Telecommunications of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and the Embassy of India.

Recognizing the impact that the information and communications technologies (ICT) sector has on the future of the U.S.-India bilateral economic partnership, this initiative was launched in July during the visit of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh as part of the U.S.-India Economic Dialogue.

The Working Group discussed developments in the information and telecommunications sectors in both countries. It focused on discussion of approaches governments can take to create an investment and regulatory environment that can maximize the development of the ICT sector. The dialogue addressed outstanding issues as well as opportunities for collaboration in the areas of universal service, liberalization of the ICT sector, the appropriate government role in the adoption of new technology, and facilitation for cooperation among centers of excellence in the two countries. The participants also discussed future cooperation on enhancing "cyber trust" to facilitate e-commerce and e-governance, complementing the work of the existing bilateral High-Technology Cooperation Group and the Cyber Security Forum.

The Working Group reviewed the recent World Summit on the Information Society and discussed issues of mutual importance in multilateral organizations such as the International Telecommunication Union. Finally, the Working Group identified the need for more structured collaboration with the private sector, through the creation of public-private sector groups on telecommunications and information technology.

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