HONG KONG, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Forum of the International Telecommunication Union's Telecom World 2006 kicked off here Monday at the Asia World-Expo.

During the five-day forum, government and industry leaders, experts and professors are to discuss the development of the telecommunication technologies under the theme of Living the Digital World.

Major topics included in the Forum's agenda are digital lifestyle, digital eco-system and digital society.

Wang Xudong, Chinese minister of Information Industry, told the opening ceremony of the Forum that the development of the modern science and technology has enabled people to live in a digital world.

The Internet has chained the different parts of the world together and the information technology has dominated the social life as the whole, deeply changing people's work, study and life styles, Wang said.

"We are facing a major task to set up an information society in which every people and every nation could share the benefit," Wang noted.

Wang called for joint efforts in the construction of the telecom infrastructure, the wider application of the information technology, the narrowing of "the digital gap," the setting up of a safer Internet environment and the widening of the multi-dimensional international cooperation.

Henry Tang, financial secretary of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, urged public policy makers to produce "an ideal and secure environment" for all walks of the life to obtain knowledge, information and to display creativity in the digital world.

The Hong Kong official said knowledge is the significant wealth of the digital world and governments have to play the role as protectors of the intellectual property, in a bid to enlarge the knowledge reserves.

Tang said governments have to take the responsibility to annihilate "the digital gap," adding that many of the world economies, developed or developing, have no chance to gain information in "the digital way."

Governments have to provide the needy communities with hardware and financial aid in their education and training to narrow "the digital gap."

The Telecom World 2006, which opened Sunday, stages two sections including the Exhibition and the Forum.