Access to broadband could be the universal catalyst that lifts developing countries out of poverty and puts access to healthcare, education and basic social services within reach of all.

This is according to the United Nations (UN) Broadband Commission for Digital Development, and comes on the back of a meeting in Dublin at the weekend. During the event, the commission reiterated a call to the international community to recognise the "transformational potential of high-speed networks".

The commission called on the international community to ensure broadband penetration targets are specifically included in the UN post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals. It urged governments and international financing bodies to work to remove current barriers to investment.

The commission includes some of the world's most prominent leaders from the tech sector, government, academia and UN agencies. Established in 2010, it is a top-level advocacy body that focuses on strategies to make broadband more available and affordable worldwide, with a particular emphasis on accelerating progress towards the eight UN Millennium Development Goals.