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List of WSIS events where UNECE is involved (as of 03.12.2003)
(PDF or DOC)
Report on Discussion Panel 1 "Challenges and Best Practice in the Preparation and Implementation of National Strategies for the Information Society", WSIS Geneva, 10 December 2003
(
PDF or DOC)
Panel Discussion on "Monitoring and Reviewing National Strategies: Exchange of Experience at the Regional Level", WSIS Geneva, 11 December 2003.
(PDF or DOC)
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Brochure on
the "Information Society - Regional Dimensions"
(See Highlights for introduction)
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National Strategies for the Information Society and the Role of Regional and Global Organizations, 10(afternoon)-11 December (full day) 2003
during the World Summit on the Information Society
UNECE was organizing a meeting on "National Strategies for the Information Society and the Role of Regional and Global Organizations" during the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).
Four Panel Discussions
jointly organized by the UN Regional Commissions
(ECA, ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, ESCWA)
, UNCTAD, UNDP, UN ICT Task Force and The World Bank. For more information, please see Information Notice.
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Global e-Business Forum - Challenges of Trust and Mutual Recognition in Global e-Business
A one-day forum was held on
8 December 2003 (from 09h00 to 18h00 hrs.) in
Salle XI at the Palais des Nations, United Nations Office, Avenue de la Paix 8-14, CH-1211 Geneva 10 (Switzerland). This forum was a parallel event of the World Summit of Information Society (WSIS) focussed on the need for effective co-operation between global PKI systems. The forum addressed issues of policy and operational procedure which should be taken into account when establishing any form of mutual or cross recognition. Common themes was identified and explored from policy, legal and technical perspectives and against these the potential for distinct certificate authoratives and governing/approval regimes to work together
was considered.
Agenda
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UNECE
publishes key document for
WSIS
The Information
Society in Europe and North
America: Contributions
from UNECE to the WSIS PrepCom-2
Summary
Reports of the Second Preparatory
Meeting (PrepCom-2) of
the World Summit on the Information
Society (WSIS) held on 17-28
February 2003 prepared by
the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe Information
Society Team Members.
For official
PrepCom-2 documents, please
refer to the
WSIS website.
WSIS
Pan- European Regional Ministerial
Conference and
UNECE Side Events |
The
Pan
European Regional Ministerial
Conference, in preparation
of the World Summit on the
Information Society, took
place in
Bucharest on 7-9 November
2002.
The delegates of the 55
member States of the UNECE,
represented at the Conference,
adopted a set
of principles and priorities
for action towards an Information
Society
(English
or Russian)
, which is to be presented
at the first phase of the
World Summit on the Information
Society to be held in Geneva
in 2003.
Some useful documents related
to this Conference:
At the Pan-European Regional
Conference for the World Summit
on the Information Society
held on 7-9 November in Bucharest,
the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe (UNECE)
launched the Information Economy
Report, E-Policy Development
in Transition Economies, 2002-2003
containing 16 country reports,
an annual review series, prepared
to assist member States, particularly
from transition economies,
in developing and implementing
e-strategies, e-policies and
e-regulatory framework towards
a knowledge-based economy.
(ECE/Trade/297, ISBN No. 954
- 9730 - 14 - X).
(press
release)
A Romanian view on the concept
of the Bucharest Conference
- Presentation by H.E. Mrs.
Anda FILIP, Ambassador,
Permanent Representative
of Romania to the UN Office
in Geneva - UN/ECE annual
session, Geneva - 10 May
2002.
Presentation by H.E. Mr.
Dan NICA, Minister of Communications
and Information Technology,
to the UN/ECE European Regional
Meeting on the UN ICT for
development Task Force and
the World Summit on the
Information Society - Geneva,
29 April 2002.
Concept-paper circulated
by the Delegation of Romania
on the occasion of the UN/ECE
meeting (Geneva, 15 March
2002), which approved the
proposal made by the Romanian
Government to host a Pan-European
Ministerial Conference in
preparation of the World
Summit on the Information
Society.
The International Organization
for Standardization (ISO),
the International Electrotechnical
Commission (IEC), the International
Telecommunication Union
(ITU) and the United Nations
Economic Commission for
Europe made a specific contribution
to the debate by elaborating
the theme: Global Standards
for the Global Information
Society, during the session
on the "Defining the Information
Society" on 8 November 2002.
(English
or French
and presse
release).
A Parallel Event Workshop
was held on 9 November 2002
on E-Policy and E-Regulatory
Framework Development with
special reference to transition
economies, organized by the
United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe (UNECE). The information
notice gives details
regarding the organization
and participation in this
Special Session. (press
release)
A Parallel Event organized
by the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe and
the Romanian Government on
"Building a Gender Sensitive
Information Society"
was held on 7 November. (press
release)
UNECE Report on "Building
a gender sensitive Information
society" which reflects
the main themes of the discussion,
its conclusions and recommendations.
(Report)
UNECE hails the launching
in Bucharest of the fundamental
principles of the Information
Society - Pan-European Regional
Ministerial Conference for
the 2003 World Summit on the
Information Society, Bucharest,
Romania, 7-9 November 2002..
(press
release)
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UNECE News
2003
April
2-4: 10th Belarusian Congress on
Telecommunications, Information and Banking
Technologies will be held on 2-4 April 2003.
The Congress program envisages both plenary
and group sessions, round table discussions,
presentations of new products and solutions
within the scope of Congress topics (Information
Note on the Congress).
February
24: A meeting to promote regional dimension
of WSIS process -- UN Regional Coordination
Meeting will be organized in Geneva on 24
February 2003 at 15.00 hrs. (Room XI Palais
des Nations, United Nations Office). This
will be an opportunity for the United Nations
Regional Commissions and other players to
meet and discuss common issues and cooperation
activities on the occasion of the second meeting
of the Preparatory Committee for the World
Summit on the Information Society. (draft
preliminary agenda)
2002
November
3: The reports of the
nine countries in transition of the UNECE
region (Latvia, Slovakia, Belarus Republic,
Russian Federation, Kyrgyz Republic, Georgia,
Armenia, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia), assessing
the country preparedness for a knowledge-based
economy could be seen here...
October 23-24: Resolution
of the Bishkek-Moscow Conference on the Information
Society (second stage), Moscow. The second
stage of the Bishkek-Moscow Conference on
Information Society of the CIS countries for
the preparation for the World Summit on Information
Society was held in Moscow (Russia) on 23-24
October 2002 in Moscow. The Heads of CIS Communications
Administrations, CEOs of IT companies and
representatives of business circles participated
in this Conference. Such issues as building
the Information Society; ensuring information
security; usage of information and communication
technologies (ICT) in the CIS countries taking
into account the specific features of the
region; improving and harmonizing the legal
framework at the international and national
levels; e-services of the Information Society;
the role of the State and public organizations
in developing and providing access to information
and communication technologies were discussed.
The Conference resulted in the signing of
the Resolution of the Moscow Stage and the
Declaration of the Bishkek-Moscow Conference
on the Information Society. (Resolution: English
or Russian)
(Declaration: English
or Russian).
October
21: First Meeting of
the Parties to the Aarhus Convention (Lucca,
Italy, 21-23 October 2002) - Opening remarks
by Mrs. Brigita Schmögnerová, Executive Secretary,
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
September 9-11:
The Bishkek Conference on the Information
Society, in preparations for the World Summit
on the Information Society (Geneva, 2003),
focused on the challenges of advancing the
information society in the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS) and Turkey. (press
release and Resolution)
July 17 The
remarks of Secretary-General Kofi Annan at
the opening of the General Assembly plenary
meeting on information and communication technologies
for development
May
1: UNeDocs Toolkit for
Trade Facilitators now released. UNeDocs now
makes available the first release of a toolkit
for the design of aligned trade documents...
more... |
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"Information
and knowledge will be playing
a lead role in the world economy
of the future - the post industrial
or advanced industrial society
- comparable to that of traditional
production factors in the
past, such as steam or electricity."
Kofi
Annan, Secretary General
of the United Nations
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"Today,
less than 15 years after the
fall of the Berlin Wall, a new
divide is appearing in Europe,
the divide between those who
have access to information and
communication technology and
those who do not. This ' Digital
Wall ' is beginning to separate
countries, regions, cities and
people in terms of economic
and social development.
We at the United Nations
Economic Commission of Europe
are working to overcome the
digital divide. We are convinced
that Information and Communication
Technology will be the basis
for a knowledge-based economy
and that it can provide a better
future for all people in our
region."
Ms.
Brigita Schmögnerová Executive
Secretary of UNECE
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A
high-level panel of experts on information
technology met in April 2000 and called upon
the United Nations to play a leadership and
catalytic role in helping to bridge the digital
divide and accelerate development by harnessing
the development potential of information and
communication technologies (ICT). To this
end , the recommended to bring together key
stakeholders in an international Task Force
and a Trust Fund that it would administer.
This
is a ground breaking initiative for the United
Nations for several reasons. The setting up
of this task force will establish a pivotal
role for the UN system in the ICT area and
provide the interface between the information
technology community and the development community
bringing together the private sector, the
foundations and the donor community to develop
initiative modalities to provide ICT capacity
for developing countries and transitional
economies.
The
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
(UNECE) welcomes and actively supports this
initiative. Among our member states are regions
that are spearheading the global digital revolution,
such as North America and Western Europe.
Other member countries find themselves engaged
in an up-hill struggle to connect to this
world and are increasingly concerned about
the possibility of being left out.
The
UNECE believes that that ICT is an increasingly
important resource for social and economic
development. ICT is the driving force in the
transition from resource-based economies to
economies and societies that are based on
information, skills and knowledge. For transitional
economies ICT is an opportunity to leapfrog
some long and painful stages in the development
process, thereby saving time and resources.
At the same time the growing digital divide
bears the danger that our region is falling
apart into the information-rich and the information-poor.
The borders of this digital wall follow the
new, digital map of our region: they are determined
by network topographies, availability of service
providers, educational levels, language barriers
and the like. This digital wall is not only
separating countries and regions, it is also
a divide within our societies, separating
the digitally skilled from the digitally unskilled.
In
order to activate the potential of ICT for
the social and economic development of the
region, the UNECE has set up a UNECE ICT Task
Force. The group will co-ordinate its activities
with the ECOSOC ICT Task Force and its peers
in the Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Economic
and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA),
the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and
the Economic and Social Commission for Latin
America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).
For
further information on the UNECE ICT Task
Force please contact:
United
Nations Economic Commission for Europe
Ms
Carol Cosgrove Sacks
ICT
Task Force Focal Point
8 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva Switzerland
Tel:
+41 22 917 30 96
e-mail: ICT.TaskForce@unece.org
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Copyright
United
Nations, all rights reserved
UN Economic Commission for Europe
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel: +41-22 917 2016 Fax: +41-22 917 0037
E-mail:
TradeMaster@unece.org
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