Info insight
The digital revolution, with the support of ICTs, has brought basic changes in the way of our thinking, behaving, communicating, working and earning our livelihood. The new ways to create knowledge, educate people and disseminate information are most important product of this evolution. And it has been strongly felt that the access to information and knowledge is a prerequisite to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It enhances better communication between people that further helps to resolve conflicts and attain world peace. But behind this enlightened future of information dissemination pertaining to betterment of livelihood in an ICT way, lies the huge shadow of uncertainties which is termed as ‘digital divide’. It is the typical gap between the rich and the poor, between knowledge and ignorance, between enlightened and non-enlightened.

Recognising that this new dynamic requires global discussion, the International Tele-communication Union (ITU), following a proposal by the Government of Tunisia, resolved at its Plenipotentiary Conference in Minneapolis in 1998 (Resolution 73) to hold a World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and place it on the agenda of the United Nations. In 2001, the ITU Council decided to hold the Summit in two phases, the first from 10 to 12 December 2003, in Geneva, and the second from 16 to 18 November 2005 in Tunis. This was endorsed by the UN General Assembly on 21 December 2001 (Resolution 56/183). The Resolution 56/183 further recommended that preparations for the Summit take place through an open-ended intergovernmental Preparatory Committee or PrepCom that would define the agenda of the Summit, decide on the modalities of the participation of other stakeholders in the Summit, and finalise both the draft Declaration of Principles and the draft Plan of Action. It invited the ITU to assume the leading managerial role in the Executive Secretariat of the Summit and invited governments to participate actively in the preparatory process of the Summit and to be represented in the Summit at the highest possible level. In Resolution 56/183 the General Assembly also encouraged contributions from all relevant UN bodies and other intergovernmental organisations, including international and regional institutions, non-governmental organisations, civil society and the private sector to actively participate in the intergovernmental preparatory process of the Summit and the Summit itself. The first phase took place in Geneva hosted by the Government of Switzerland from 10-12 December 2003. The second phase will take place in Tunis hosted by the Tunisian Government, from 16-18 November 2005.


WSIS session in progress, Geneva, 2003
Geneva to Tunis – the long way
The UN General Assembly Resolution 56/183 endorsed A High-Level Summit Organising Committee (HLSOC) has been established under the patronage of Kofi Annan. The UN agency that holds the leading role in the organisation of the Summit is the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), based in Geneva (Switzerland). The host countries, Switzerland and Tunisia, have also established Executive Secretariats, as also the ITU. WSIS, invites representation from governments at the highest level and also invites participation of all relevant UN bodies and other international organisations, non governmental organisations, private sector, civil society, and media to establish a truly multi-stakeholder process.

This message is to let you know that we have entered a summary of ‘ICT and Human Rights Promotion in Bangladesh’ in the Strategic Thinking section of the website of The Communication Initiative. Petra Ellis The Communication Initiative pellis@comminit.com The Women’s Media Centre of Cambodia (WMC) would like to thank you very much for sending a copy of The First monthly magazine on ICT4D to us. Tive Sarayeth Women’s Media Centre of Cambodia wmcc@online.com.kh I would like to thank you for the article you published and look forward to Euro-India ICT Co-operation and i4d working together in the future. Douglas McKinley, Metaware SpA, Italy d.mckinley@metaware.it I got the opportunity to browse some of the previous issues of i4d distributed at the seminar at India Habitat Centre. I was really delighted to see the contents and the quality of the magazine. Congratulation! Dr. Ravindra K. Gupta rkgm@bol.net.in It will be great if you could send me a complimentary copy of December 2004 issue of your very valuable and informative magazine, i4d. Dr R K Gupta rkgmk@softhome.net I have gone through the i4d website and seen my article and other articles. I want to show my appreciation for the nice editorial touch and layout. I think the magazine is great and has a much brighter future to come. I wish to receive the hard copy of this magazine. Lawrence Kweku Yamuah Armauer Hansen Research Institute, Ethopia yamuahlk@yahoo.co.uk I am impressed by your print magazine, which I received for the first time in May this year. I am moved by the features based on real life experiences in developing world and how IT is helpful in enhancing learning. I would like to contribute features on ICT4D based on experiences in East Africa. Menda. A S JustaAfrica yamuahlk@yahoo.co.uk Many thanks for sending me this beautiful, informative issue of i4d. It indeed was excellent and refreshing experience going through the content of this magazine. Keep up the great work. Shahzad Ahmad Pakistan shahzad@isb.sdnpk.org I was interested to read about the articles based on real life experiences and IT to enhance learning. I would like to send a brief summary about the success of the National Galleries of Scotland website. Anne Buddle National Galleries of Scotland abuddle@nationalgalleries.org Thank you for responding positively on our request to publish the article from Zimbabwe carried in your February 2005 issue, in our newsletter. We did enjoy reading your publication, which carries information of interest to us. We will keep you updated on developments in Zimbabwe. Best wishes in your endeavours. W. Moyo Embassy of Zimbabwe zimdelhi@vsnl.net I am in Dublin attending a UN ICT Task Force meeting on ICTs in Education and saw the i4d print magazine for the first time. Looks great. Well done! Shafika Isaacs SchoolNet Africa s.isaacs@schoolnetafrica.org Greetings from Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC). I was deeply impressed by the form, style and content of the i4d. I congratulate everyone of i4d family, for the novel, trend setting and path breaking printing and smart presentation that immediately captures attention and provide excellent reading. AHM Bazlur Rahman Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication info@bnnrc.net I just received a copy of the i4d. Do let me know how we could regularly subscribe to the magazine, as it certainly seems to be a resource all of us would like to have here. Prashant Sharma ICIMOD, Nepal prashant@mtnforum.org

Taken individually, each phase of the Summit marks the culmination of many months of consultations and negotiations among Member States, UN experts, the private sector, and non-governmental representatives. These consultations and negotiations take place prior to the Summit itself and constitute the Preparatory Process.

Phase 1 in Geneva, 10-12 December 2003
The objective of the first phase held in Geneva (10-12 December, 2003) was to develop and foster a clear statement of political will and take concrete steps to establish the foundations for an Information Society for all, reflecting all the different interests at stake. At the Geneva Phase of WSIS nearly 50 Heads of state/government and Vice-Presidents, 82 Ministers, and 26 Vice-Ministers and Heads of delegation from 175 countries as well as high-level representatives from international organisations, private sector, and civil society provided political support to the WSIS Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action that were adopted on 12 December 2003. More than 11,000 participants from 175 countries attended the Summit and related events. The scope and nature of this ambitious project requires new public-private partnerships, many of which were formalised during the Geneva Summit.

Phase 2 in Tunis, 16-18 November 2005
The road to Tunis involves a process of monitoring and evaluation of the progress of possible actions laid out in the Geneva Plan and a concrete set of deliverables that must be achieved by the time the Summit meets again in Tunis in November 2005. Efforts are made to put the Plan of Action into motion and working groups are being set up to find solutions and reach agreements in the fields of Internet governance and financing mechanisms.

In supporting the first phase of the WSIS, the ICT Task Force of the United Nations, set up in 2001 by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, successfully helped in placing the United Nations development objectives at the heart of the Summit and mobilised the participation of the multi-stakeholder networks, organised a series of side events and launched new initiatives, including on education.  The Task Force intends to contribute actively to the preparations for the second phase of the WSIS leading up to the Tunis Summit in November 2005.


Panel to welcome delegates to PREPCOM 1 in Tunisia
Based on internationally agreed development goals, including those in the Millennium Declaration, which are premised on international cooperation, indicative targets may serve as global references for improving connectivity and access in the use of ICTs in promoting the objectives of the Plan of Action, to be achieved by 2015.

Joining hands at Tunis
Like all UN Summits, WSIS is mainly an intergovernmental process. Decisions are taken by States. Ultimately, if voting is done, only government delegations can vote. However, the other stakeholders in the Information Society can participate in WSIS as observers. The Rules of Procedures of the Preparatory Committee and the Summit distinguish several categories of observers:

• Entities and organisations having received a standing invitation to participate as observers in the sessions and work of the General Assembly;
• UN Secretariat and organs;
• UN Specialised Agencies and other invited intergovernmental organisations;
• Associate Members of Regional Commissions;
• Accredited civil society entities (including NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC, which, as a rule, are considered as accredited);
• Accredited business sector entities (including all ITU Sector Members, which are automatically accredited). 

Participants from accredited civil society entities (including NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC) and from accredited business sector entities (including ITU sector members) can sit as observers in public meetings (plenary, committee or subcommittee meetings). Upon the invitation of the presiding officer of the body concerned, and subject to the approval of that body, such observers may make oral statements on questions in which they have special competence. If the number of requests to speak is too large, the civil society and business sector entities shall be requested to form themselves into constituencies, which will then speak through their respective spokespersons.

There are also variety of ways observers from civil society and business can contribute and influence the negotiation process, even if they do not act as negotiating partners: Interacting with States, briefing governments on the concerns of their constituencies, circulating information, advocating positions at the national level, underscoring links between national actions and international commitments, organising caucuses to strengthen advocacy work, forging connections between the UN and NGOs around the world, and drawing the media’s attention to the issues at hand. For more information about participation of NGOs in intergovernmental meetings of the UN in general see: http://www.un-ngls.org/d_making.htm 

Corners of conclaves
WSIS is no more an isolated event, rather it is going to be an event of many people of various thoughts and innovative ideas. The WSIS Human Rights Caucus, for example, includes 50 organisations from around the world, has been working since the first preparatory meeting of the first phase of the Summit, in July 2002, to ensure that human rights are not left off the WSIS agenda, neither off its process. The Caucus has been created to put human rights on the WSIS agenda, with full respect of their universality and their indivisibility. The Caucus will, during the Tunis process, monitor the conditions in which this process is proceeding, and will report on obstacles to the exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the host country. In light of the general human rights assessment made in 2005, all the participants to the process, governments, international organisations, private sector and civil society, will be called for making their decision.

The WSIS Gender Caucus traces its beginnings to Bamako 2002 when organisations responded to an invitation by UNIFEM to contribute to ensure that gender dimensions are included in the process of defining and creating a Global Information Society that contributes to sustainable development and human security. It is a multi-stakeholder group of women and men from national governments, civil society and non-governmental organisations, the private sector and the United Nations system. It takes as a starting point the importance of aligning the WSIS process and outcomes with the achievement of the MDGs and urges governments to acknowledge gender equality and women’s rights as fundamental principles in the creation of an Information Society. It has developed a portal containing useful resources on gender equality advocacy in the ICTs arena: http://www.genderwsis.org

The Youth Caucus of the World Summit on the Information Society is a loose group of youth who are active leaders in all kinds of areas. The WSIS Youth Caucus isn’t an official organisation, but both TakingITGlobal and SchoolNetAfrica provide logistical and technical support. There is no official list of members, because the Youth Caucus is open to membership; there is no application process, therefore members are not listed. There are however, various ways to ascertain the member base of the Youth Caucus - mainly the WSISYouth mailing list (hosted by TakingITGlobal), a central virtual ‘shouting board’, which allows important information to be communicated to caucus members.


The WSIS Civil Society Internet Governance Caucus expresses its strong support and appreciation for the process and outcome of WGIG. We believe WGIG achieved the mandate set for it by the WSIS Geneva Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action. With regard to public policy issues, the caucus expresses its appreciation for the background document’s comprehensive coverage and prioritisation of issues requiring immediate attention, as outlined in the WGIG report. The first phase of World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) agreed to pursue the dialogue on Internet Governance in the Declaration of Principles and Action Plan adopted on 12 December 2003, with a view to preparing the ground for a decision at the second phase of the WSIS in Tunis in November 2005. The first phase of the Summit requested the United Nations Secretary-General to establish a Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG). The WGIG will present the result of its work in a report ‘for consideration and appropriate action for the second phase of the WSIS in Tunis 2005’.

Tunis phase coming up…
In his message, Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General, has stated that “This Summit is unique. While most global conferences focus on global threats, WSIS will consider how best to use a new global asset”. We will have to wait for another month for this unique event which may prove the statement of Kofi Annan once again: “Information and communication technologies are not a panacea or magic formula. But they can improve the lives of everyone on this planet. We have tools that can propel us toward the Millennium Development Goals; instruments with which to advance the cause of freedom and democracy; vehicles with which to propagate knowledge and mutual understanding. We have all of this potential. The challenge before this Summit is what to do with it.” May Tunis event show the right way!

Saswati Paik, saswati@csdms.in