The eighth Millennium Development Goal (MDG) calls for a global partnership for development, and the Information and Communication Technology sector is the only business sector that is highlighted as critical in achievement of the goals.

The week’s main event was the General Assembly meeting about the MDGs at UN headquarters Ericsson’s CEO was invited to participate as one of only three representatives from the private sector. His speech highlighted the role of technology in the fight against poverty.

“Access to mobile communication is not only transforming lives; it is breaking down barriers of isolation between people and cultures, one of the key defining aspects of poverty,” Svanberg said.

In emerging markets, access to mobile communications has also been proven to have a positive impact on GDP. Studies have shown that for every 10 percent increase in mobile penetration, there is an increase in GDP growth rate of about 0.6 percent.

This year marks the midpoint for achieving the MDGs, which include halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, by 2015.

Elaine Weidman-Grunewald, director of Corporate Responsibility at Ericsson, says access to mobile communication is critical to achieving the MDGs. “In emerging economies, mobile communication can provide an opportunity for poor communities to substitute time and resource consuming activities with access to modern technology,” she says.  “While a lot of progress has been made in achieving the MDGs, there is still much to be done.  Mobile technology will play a key role.”

At UN-related events during the week, Ericsson announced the establishment of an Innovation Center in sub-Saharan Africa to explore the development of applications relevant to Africa and the rural poor, and in particular the Millennium Villages. The company also announced it was joining the Digital Health Initiative and would take an active lead in the technology cluster, with emphasis on mobile and wireless technologies to enable delivery and access to mobile health (m-health) and telemedicine applications.

“By utilizing our core technology, we have gained international credibility in the corporate responsibility space.  We are prioritizing initiatives that will positively impact the environment or the MDGs, and at the same time result in sustainable business cases,” Weidman-Grunewald says.