Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook, spoke at the United Nations on Saturday to issue a call for universal Internet access. However, the details about the plan have not been officially divulged.
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He said Internet access will help refugees seek aid and communicate with their families.
Mark Zuckerberg claims “when communities are connected, we can lift them out of poverty” and that “we can and must do more” to accomplish this humanitarian goal.
Bringing Internet access to refugee camps is just one way to make this happen.
Though the U.N’s goal was only set officially on Friday, the ambition to increase internet access availability has been Zuckerberg’s for quite a few time now. “Every country must now agree an urgent plan to implement the Global Goals, and mission-critical within those strategies is connectivity for all“.
This new endeavour began when Zuckerberg started a petition with U2 vocalist Bono on delivering internet access to everyone.
Currently, three billion people around the world have access to the Internet – less than half of the global population.
Pushing the mantra of his Internet.org body at the 70th annual UN General Assembly session, Zuckerberg told guests including Angela Merkal and United Nations sec-gen Ban Ki-moon that “more than four billion people don’t have a voice online”.
Bill and Melinda Gates, Richard Branson, Arianna Huffington and Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales have also backed the campaign by signing the declaration. Facebook also has a solar-powered drone called Aquila that would be able to beam down lasers to deliver Wi-Fi connectivity.
Facebook CEO advocated that when communities are connected, weaker sections can be lifted out of poverty. In a post he made in his official account on Facebook, he announced that he is now working with the ONE campaign to make his movement possible.
The idea of expanding internet far and wide to all corners of the globe is not something new to Zuckerberg.
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After meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Pacific Northwest earlier in the week, Zuckerberg hosted India Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a town hall.
