ITU has announced new industry commitments to its Partner2Connect (P2C) Digital Coalition, which has reached $73-billion in pledges for universal, meaningful connectivity.
The latest commitments, presented during Mobile World Congress 2025 (MWC25), reflect growing momentum from leading mobile and satellite industry players rallying to bridge the digital divide.
Partner2Connect is ITU’s initiative to mobilize pledges and resources to reinforce global connectivity efforts, strengthen the world’s digital infrastructure and move closer to ensuring that everyone can use the Internet.
“In space, on land and under the sea, expansive digital infrastructure highlights how much humanity values and depends on meaningful connectivity,” says ITU secretary-general Doreen Bogdan-Martin. “These new pledges bring us even closer to our goal of delivering sustainable digital transformation to everyone, everywhere.”
The new commitments come from:
- MTN Group, which is deploying on average approximately $2-billion per year in capital expenditure across its markets over the past five years. The company expects to make similar investments over the next five years, in support of Africa’s growth and prosperity. This will be dedicated to expanding and strengthening its voice and data networks, ensuring better coverage and connectivity for its customers. MTN Group believes these investments are crucial for driving digital inclusion and economic growth in these vital markets.
- Globalstar, which is investing $2-billion to expand its LEO satellite network, delivering seamless, low-latency, and energy-efficient connectivity for direct-to-device (D2D) and IoT solutions. Through this pledge, Globalstar will expand connectivity in remote regions, delivering reliable and affordable communication solutions where they are needed most.
Today, 2,6-billion people around the world remain offline, according to ITU’s Facts & Figures report.
The organisation has called for $100-billion in commitments to Partner2Connect by 2026 for projects driving digital transformation across all countries, with special attention to the hardest-to-connect communities.
ITU estimates that $1,6-trillion is required in hardware costs alone to complete the task of connecting the world, with most of the resources needed in developing countries.
The new commitments will be used to expand and enhance digital infrastructure, strengthen connectivity in underserved areas, and accelerate digital transformation through innovative technologies.
In total, over 1 000 pledges have been made to the Partner2Connect platform from governments, industry, and other stakeholders, covering 147 countries.