About the CTO

Our Organisation

The Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) is an international organisation subject to a Headquarters Agreement with the UK Government, and with its offices located in London. The CTO has four broad categories of members: Full Member Countries, Affiliate Member Countries, ICT Sector Members and Academia.

According to its constitution, the CTO has four main purposes:

  • To support the development and use of ICTs within the Commonwealth and beyond;
  • To promote the provision and use of ICTs to meet the needs of members, to support development in Member countries, and to ensure the inclusion of marginalised people;
  • To promote effective cooperation and partnership amongst its members and other organisations; and
  • To develop and implement activities to promote the above three objectives.

To this end, the CTO has four main organs:

  • The CTO Council is composed of Full Member Countries, is the principal organ of the CTO and meets at least once a year;
  • The Executive Committee acts on behalf of Council in the interval between meetings and makes recommendation to the Council concerning the CTO’s strategic policies;
  • The CTO Forum is composed of representatives of Full Member Countries, Affiliate Member Countries, ICT Sector Members and Academia Members; it provides an opportunity for all members to contribute ideas and provide advice to Council; and
  • The CTO Secretariat is the legal representative of the CTO, and is responsible to Council for carrying out the functions of the CTO.

Our Services

The CTO offers services to members in four main areas: Capacity Development, Research, Technical Support, Consultancy and Advisory Services and Events and Conferences.

Capacity development and training

With a network of over 250 telecom, IT and broadcasting specialists, we assist our members in a variety of ways to suit their specific needs. Services include:

  • Bespoke in-country programmes;
  • Over 50 open courses each year;
  • A pooled procurement services for training through the Programme for Development & Training;
  • Fellowships and secondments; and
  • Add-on courses during conferences

Research

Through our research services, we support policymaking regulatory bodies, specialised agencies and the private sector in understanding the challenges and opportunities new technologies bring and facilitate evidence-based decision-making. Recent studies completed have addressed a wide range of issues, from access to quality of service to e-health sustainability.

Technical support, consultancy and advisory services

The CTO undertakes consultancy projects for members and non-members. In recent years, the division has become an invaluable resource for a wide range of stakeholders, including multilateral and bilateral development partners, operators, government ministries, communications regulators, civil society organisations and various industry associations.

Events and conferences

The CTO’s events and conferences gather ICT policymakers and their advisers, private sector executives and civil society leaders to help establish environments that are conducive of more effective adoption and uses of ICTs in national development. National and global initiatives in areas such as universal access, cyber governance, privacy and e-applications are presented and discussed in depth, turning each event into a unique learning experience.

Internal Structure

The Secretariat has four main departments reporting to the Secretary-General:

Membership & Communications, including:

  • Membership division
  • Communications division

ICT Development, including:

  • Capacity Development division
  • Technical Support & Consultancy division
  • Events division

Finance & Pensions, including:

  • Finance division
  • Pensions division

Human Resources & Administration, including:

  • HR division
  • Administration division (including IT and Logistics teams)