The Asia-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO) awarded Senator Stephen Conroy, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy the 2009 ASOCIO IT Award for contributions to the Australian ICT industry at a gala dinner on Thursday December 17.

Announcing the Award, ASOCIO President Ashank Desai, of India’s peak technology industry body NASSCOM, said “Senator Conroy has made an outstanding contribution to the role of the industry in Australia and  the Asia Pacific ICT community through initiatives that range from the National Broadband Network to establishing the groundwork for a true Digital Economy in Australia.”

“Asia Pacific trading partners are looking to Australia with optimism and greatly renewed interest on the back of these initiatives.”

The Award was made at the Asia Pacific ICT Alliance (APICTA) Awards, held in front of an audience of over 500 international guests at the Crown Palladium in Melbourne. The APICTA Awards formed part of a packed international agenda at the Asia Pacific Digital Innovation Summit, hosted by AIIA over the course of the week.

During the Summit, ASOCIO released new research into the future of the Asia Pacific technology industry indicating that not only will the region will rise to become the world’s largest contributor to global GDP, but that the technology industry will drive that growth.

“The technology industry has the potential to catapult Asia Pacific to the largest regional economy in the world by 2020,” said AIIA CEO Ian Birks. “Combined, regional economies are on track to deliver up to 75 percent of the world’s information technology needs over the next decade.”

“The key will be trade partnerships and collaboration at a far deeper level that we have achieved in the past. The Australian Government’s approach to the infrastructure and policy framework required to achieve this level of engagement with our economic neighbours is a very important step in the right direction,” Mr Birks continued.

“This award demonstrates the level of interest in Australia’s technology industry from our regional trading partners. The ICT sector will need to work closely with Government to ensure that we capitalise on current activity and realise the benefits on offer to the Australian economy.”