The African Union (AU) kicked off its 14th summit in Addis Ababa Sunday in the Ethiopian capital to discuss development of the continent's Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), among other issues of major concern.

Ban Ki-moon, secretary-general of the United Nations, addresses a press conference during the 14th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, Jan. 31, 2010. [Mao Siqian/Xinhua]

During the three-day summit, heads of state and government from more than 50 AU member states are expected to exchange views on challenges and prospects for the development of Africa's ICT sector, a crucial part of Africa's infrastructure development.

The leaders will also discuss issues of major concern in the continent, including regional conflicts, Africa's political and economic integration, climate change and Africa's stance on UN reforms, among others.

A series of reports will be considered at the summit, including reports on the African Year of Peace and Security, unconstitutional changes of government, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), as well as the implementation of previous decisions of the Executive Council and the Assembly.

The summit started with observing silence for the victims of the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash which occurred last Monday, killing at least 90 people on board.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Jean Ping, the chairperson of the AU Commission, extended heartfelt condolence and sympathy to the victims of the plane crash.

He also expressed sympathy and solidarity to the government and people of Haiti for the serious humanitarian crisis they are experiencing which was triggered by a strong earthquake early this month.

Jean Ping said the African continent has made great progress in the past year in many areas, including infrastructure, education, the Information and Communication Technologies and agriculture.

The chairperson added the African continent has also made concrete progress in democracy and transparency. However, he noted that the continent is still facing challenges but did not elaborate. He said with the efforts of all AU member states, the continent is evolving and developing. The chairperson called on African countries to step up their efforts to develop ICTs so as to bridge the "digital gap" with the other parts of the world.

He said against the backdrop of the economic globalization, Africa must keep pace with the world development in every aspect. ICTs are essential to the development of the African continent and African countries must invest more in building infrastructure including the ICT infrastructure, Jean Ping said.

For his part, UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon said ICTs have brought significant changes in Africa, including the sectors of banking system, education and health, and African countries should expand the use of ICTs to push the social and economic development.

The UN chief hailed AU for choosing ICTs as the theme of the current summit.

The three-day 14th summit of AU is convened under the theme " Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Africa: Challenges and prospects for Development".