Nowadays, information and communication sectors become vital engines of development and economic growth in other sectors of economies. The growth of digital technology and its impact on multimedia and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) have led to boundless enhancements to the quality of our daily life. They have brought drastic changes to the way business is conducted, the management of Government functions, and the communication infrastructure & network.

The opening of Sixth Asia-Pacific Symposium on Information and Telecommunication Technologies (APSITT), jointly organized by University of Computer Studies of Yangon under the Ministry of Science & Technology and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT) took place at Myanmar Info-Tech on Hline Campus in Yangon on 9 November.

The symposium will generate knowledge and innovation for the future development of information, communication and multimedia. The development of multimedia & ICT will improve efficiency and productivity and then contribute towards the increased overall competitiveness of the economy. In earlier history, wealth was measured in land, in gold, in oil and in machines.

Today, the principle measure of wealth is information; its quality, its quantity and the speed with which we acquire it. The existence of inequality in access to ICT between continents, between countries and also within countries is widely observed creating the “digital divide”. “Intelligent Living”, “Digital Society”, “Information Society”, “Networked Society”.... whichever term we use to describe our future, it is needed a modern and efficient telecommunications infrastructure to exploit fully the opportunities that lie ahead. In this context, research and development activities should be encouraged to facilitate the absorption of new technology, to facilitate speedy transfer of know-how, and to upgrade the facilities. Moreover, it is required to exert efforts to build management capability to plan and manage the use, application and integration of ICT.

Indeed, the use, application and integration of ICT is distinguishing imperative for the nation to keep abreast of global countries.