Athgo’s Dr. Armen Orujyan Appointed as Broadband Commissioner

Armen Orujyan PhD, Founder and CEO of Athgo Corporation, has joined the United Nations’ venerated Broadband Commission for Digital Development as a Commissioner. The efforts are led by Mr. Carlos Slim of Grupo Carso (Co-Chair), President Paul Kagame of the Republic of Rwanda (Co-Chair), Dr. Hamadoun Touré, Secretary-General of the ITU, Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group, and Mr. John Chambers of Cisco to name a few.

“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Armen Orujyan as a member of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development. For over a decade Armen has been pioneering work in the area of social entrepreneurship with a particular focus on creating opportunities for young people. Armen has been engaged in concrete work in this area with pilot initiatives around the world and I look forward to having him on-board as we explore possibilities for harnessing the potential of broadband technologies to add value to his work. Broadband presents a once in a generation opportunity for addressing some of our most pressing social challenges, and I welcome Dr Orujyan’s input to the work of this Commission.”

Dr. Hamadoun Toure, Secretary General of ITU and Co-Vice-Chair of the Broadband Commission for Digital Development

“…Last week I was at my first UN Broadband Commission meeting as a Commissioner in Ohrid, Macedonia… The discussions ranged from what should be the target goals for broadband around the world to what types of solutions should be offered through Broadband. This is where what we have been doing with Athgo for the past decade or so came in handy – providing opportunities to individuals with limited resources and enabling young people building projects collaboratively. To say the least, it was and is an honor to be able to contribute to the discussions about global solutions with people who have and

do affect our almost every decision by their creativity and innovation.  Yours truly contributed heavily in terms of driving youth and employment issues as well as small and medium size enterprises as primary beneficiaries of expanded broadband, especially when offered in a wireless form...

The Broadband Commission for Digital Development was established in May 2010 as a joint initiative by ITU and UNESCO. Its purpose is to promote the deployment of high-speed, high-capacity broadband connections to the Internet as an essential part of modern infrastructure, with considerable economic and social benefits in countries at every stage of development.