[DAKAR, SENEGAL – 24 October 2011] – The Internet Society today announced that its Board of Trustees held its 90th meeting on 22 – 23 October 2011 in Dakar, Senegal. During the meeting, the Board reviewed and approved the organization’s three-year business plan that includes a wide range of programs in support of its mission to promote the open development, evolution, and use of the Internet for the benefit of all people throughout the world.
While the world population rapidly approaches 7 billion, approximately 2 billion people have access to the Internet. Internet penetration in many developing countries hovers well below 5%. Compared to other regions of the world, Africa has the lowest percent of Internet users to total population; however it is one of the fastest-growing regions for Internet penetration and usage.
“Dakar is a fitting venue for our Board meeting. The Internet Society has a vibrant community in Africa, with 21 active Chapters and more than 9,000 members,” said Lynn St. Amour, Internet Society President and CEO. “Since its inception in 1992, the Internet Society has been dedicated to a ubiquitous, reliable, and sustainable Internet that is equal in all countries, and where the developing world is on a par with the rest of the world.”
With a global membership that spans nearly every country around the world, the Internet Society engages in a broad array of enabling activities to expand access to and participation in the Internet. Internet Society programs include offering hands-on technical training, organizing conferences on topical Internet issues, supporting local and regional Internet organizations, issuing briefings and white papers on Internet technologies, and funding participation opportunities for Internet experts in developing countries.
The Internet can transform lives, and spur economic growth, development, innovation, knowledge dispersion, and essential services in developing countries and around the world. Raul Echeberria, Chairman of the Internet Society’s Board of Trustees commented, “Developing countries are critical to the future of the Internet. The next frontier for Internet growth lies substantially in emerging markets, and our Board of Trustees are highly supportive of the broad array of impressive and enabling activities underway at the Internet Society to expand access to and participation in the Internet.”
The Internet Society has long been dedicated to supporting the deployment of the next generation of Internet protocol, IPv6. The deployment of IPv6 is critical, as the world’s Internet-using population is already reaching the capacity of the current version, IPv4, and some regions have already had to introduce austerity measures for allocating IPv4 addresses. Earlier this year, the Internet Society organized World IPv6 Day, which demonstrated that major websites around the world are well-positioned for a global IPv6-enabled Internet, allowing for its continued exponential growth. It is imperative that network operators across the globe understand that there is no future in IPv4, and now is the time to deploy IPv6.
About the Internet Society
The Internet Society is the world’s trusted independent source of leadership for Internet policy, technology standards, and future development. Based on its principled vision and substantial technological foundation, the Internet Society works with its members and Chapters around the world to promote the continued evolution and growth of the open Internet through dialog among companies, governments, and other organizations around the world. For more information, see: http://www.internetsociety.org .
