ITU Global Youth Celebration wraps up in Baku PHOTO

The “ITU Global Youth Celebration 2025” was held in Baku as part of the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-25).

The event aimed to engage creative young people in shaping the digital future and to connect them with government officials and leading figures in the telecommunications sector, Caliber.Az reports per local media.

The opening ceremony featured remarks by Azerbaijan’s Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport, Samaddin Asadov, and the Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau, Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava.

Both speakers underscored the importance of active youth participation in the ICT sector, as well as the growing role of space technologies in advancing global development goals.

The programme continued with an “Intergenerational Dialogue” session, where representatives of ITU’s six regional offices and Azerbaijan exchanged views on the sector’s future.

Throughout the day, interactive sessions, workshops, and discussions were held at the National Aviation Academy, the STEAM Innovation Center, and the Space Academy of the Azerbaijan Space Agency (Azercosmos) under the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport.

At the National Aviation Academy, an interactive session focused on creating equal opportunities for young ICT professionals, accompanied by a technical tour of simulators, aerospace laboratories, and the aviation technologies center.

The STEAM Innovation Center hosted an interactive panel discussion with astronauts Alper Gezeravcı (Türkiye’s first astronaut), Tuva Cihangir Atasever (Türkiye’s second astronaut), and Dumitru-Dorin Prunariu (Romania’s first astronaut). The discussion highlighted the role of telecommunications in space exploration.

At the Space Academy, university students took part in a workshop titled “Establishing Telecommunication Links with the International Space Station,” where they learned to assemble their own orbital antennas and establish real communication with the ISS.

The first day concluded with a cultural and intergenerational networking event at the Hilton Hotel, bringing together WTDC-25 participants, young professionals, and prominent public figures, and creating an environment for collaboration and dialogue.

By Khagan Isayev