COUNRIES IN SPECIAL NEED
Countries Emerging from War and Armed Conflicts
Currently, there are 12 countries categorized by ITU as 'Countries in Special Need'. These are countries that have gone through periods of armed conflict, civil strife or war and suffered a lot of destruction to their telecommunication infrastructure. ITU provides seed money for the reconstruction of the damaged networks and is continuously seeking partners willing to co-finance projects in these countries. Projects are primarily in four key areas:
· Development of Infrastructure and Introduction of New Technologies
· Development of Rural Telecommunications
· Sector Restructuring
· Human Resources Development/Management

Below is a complete list of countries falling in this category:
· Afghanistan,
· Burundi,
· Democratic Republic of Congo,
· East Timor,
· Eritrea,
· Ethiopia,
· Guinea,
· Guinea Bissau,
· Liberia,
· Somalia,
· Rwanda,
· Sierra Leone

SPECIAL PROGRAMME FOR LDCs
The Special Programme for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) is a highly focused initiative of ITU that is administered by the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT). Its primary objective is to bridge the digital divide between the rest of the world and the world's 49 poorest countries. In its effort to bridge the digital divide, the programme focuses on reforming the telecommunication sector of these countries so as to introduce new structures, which are more conducive to faster and sustained telecommunication development, with well-managed and modern networks. It also seeks to increase the penetration of telecommunication services so as to achieve universal access to those services.
The Special Programme for LDCs provides assistance to targeted countries in the following priority areas:
· introduction of new technologies,
· sector restructuring,
· rural telecommunication development,
· human resources development/management,
· financing and tariffs.