Asian Civil Society Forum, Bangkok, Thailand, 22-25 November 2004
APDIP organized a session on Internet Governance at the Asian Civil Socety Forum.
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“Information and Communication Technology governance processes should be multilateral, transparent, democratic and open to full participation by governments, the private sector and civil society”
This is one of the key messages that more than 300 participants of the 2nd Asian Civil Society Forum (ACSF) 2004, representing over 100 civil society organizations from more than 30 countries of the Asian expressed in their final statement.
The message was inspired by a well-attended briefing session on Internet governance that UNDP’s Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme (APDIP) helped organize together with the Foundation for Media Alternatives, Philippines.
The session highlighted the latest developments in the run-up to the second part of the UN World Summit of the Information Society (WSIS) and flagged issues of particular concern from a development and civil society perspective.
A demanding agenda
On invitation by APDIP, Adam Peake, one of the key co-ordinators of civil society input to WISIS provided a first hand update of the events around WSIS and pointed out the many challenges for civil society participation. Dieter Zinnbauer of APDIP provided participants with an introduction to APDIP’s Open Regional Dialogue on Internet Governance (ORDIG) and invited participants to get involved. The initiative, which is financially supported by the International Development Research Center of Canada, was warmly welcomed. Several participants expressed their support for ORDIG in their interventions and Renate Bloem, President of the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CONGO) noted:
"I am very happy that the APDIP has setup a mechanism for discussing Internet Governance where stakeholders can come together, especially from civil society”
A commitment to outreach
The session was complemented by a direct video-link with members of the UN Working Group on Internet Governance in Geneva, where the group was in session for a series of substantive deliberations. Participants concurred on the need for outreach and inclusive information sharing. Shahid Akhtar, regional co-coordinator of APDIP, reaffirmed ORDIG’s commitment to these objectives and both sides agreed to explore further options for co-operation.
For more information on ORDIG and APDIP visit www.igov.apdip.net
Last modified
2005-07-21 12:13 PM
