World telecommunication and Information Society Day has been celebrated annually on 17 May since 1969, marking the anniversary of the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention and the creation of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) on 17 May 1865. It was instituted by the Plenipotentiary Conference in Malaga-Torremolinos in 1973.
Previously, this day only celebrated as World Telecommunication Day. In November 2005, The World Summit on the Information society called upon the UN General Assembly to declare 17 may as World Information Society Day. Later in 2006, the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in Antalya, Turkey, decided to combine both celebrations as World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD)
Themes Of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day
2007- Connecting the young: the opportunities of ICT(Information and communication technology)
2008- Connecting persons with disabilities: ICT opportunities for all
2009- Protecting children in cyberspace
2010- Better city, better life with ICTs
2011- Better Life in Rural Communities with ICTs
2012- Women and Girls in ICT
2013- ICTs and improving road safety
2014- Broadband for Sustainable Development
2015- Telecommunications and ICTs: Drivers of innovation
2016- ICT entrepreneurship for social impact
2017- Big Data for Big Impact
2018- Enabling the positive use of Artificial Intelligence for All
2019- Bridging the standardization gap
2020- Connect 2030: ICTs for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
For Further Readings
1.World Telecommunication and Information Society Day-Wikipedia
2.World Telecommunication and Information Society Day-UN