The United Nations requires bridging the hole in web connectivity and digital governance
Danger mitigation
Given speedy technological advances, together with synthetic intelligence, which threaten to exacerbate present inequalities, the Discussion board focuses on how you can harness the advantages of digital applied sciences, whereas mitigating the dangers.
Whereas know-how is shifting at breakneck pace in a choose group of nations, the truth is that 2.6 billion persons are nonetheless not related to the Web, most of them within the World South and susceptible communities.
In response to the United Nations, digitalization is a society-wide phenomenon, affecting each related and offline populations, but the distribution of its advantages stays extremely uneven.
Harnessing digital applied sciences
In his opening message to the Discussion board, UN Secretary-Common António Guterres pressured the necessity to work collectively to bridge the connectivity and digital governance hole, and re-enforce a human rights and people-centred strategy to digital cooperation.
“We have to proceed to harness digital applied sciences enabled by the Web to assist obtain the Sustainable Improvement Objectives, take local weather motion and construct a greater world,” Mr. Guterres mentioned in a video message on Sunday.
The Secretary-Common additionally highlighted the significance of the United Nations World Digital Constitution, which goals to ascertain rules, objectives and procedures to safe a human-centred digital future, which will likely be addressed on the Future Summit subsequent yr.
“Governments, the personal sector and civil society should meet repeatedly to make sure that the commitments set out within the Constitution are adopted by,” he mentioned.
The Web we wish
The opening day of the Discussion board additionally noticed the discharge of a imaginative and prescient paper entitled “The Web We Need” by the Chairman of the Discussion board’s Management Committee appointed by the UN Secretary-Common, Vint Cerf, who’s acknowledged as one of many “Fathers of the Web”. and Vice President, journalist Maria Ressa, winner of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.
The paper reiterated that digital governance is important to financial, social and environmental growth, and is a important enabler of sustainable growth.
He additional defined what it means for the Web to be full, open, international, inclusive, flowing, reliable, secure, safe and rights-respecting.
The IGF Management Committee added: “The Web we wish is: full and open, international and inclusive, free-flowing and reliable, secure and safe, and rights-respecting.”
Navigating international challenges
Highlighting the important position of the Web in overcoming international challenges and shifting in the direction of a greater and extra resilient future, UN Below-Secretary-Common for Financial and Social Affairs, Li Junhua, warned: “However this requires responsive insurance policies that make the most of the advantages of digital applied sciences whereas mitigating the dangers.”
He mentioned: “The Discussion board must strengthen its position as the worldwide discussion board for digital coverage, to find factors of convergence and consensus and figuring out digital options to succeed in the 2030 Agenda.”
Web Governance Discussion board (IGF)
The Web Governance Discussion board, convened by the Secretary-Common of the United Nations and hosted this yr by the Authorities of Japan, is the worldwide multi-stakeholder discussion board for dialogue on Web governance points.
The IGF Annual Assembly brings collectively stakeholders from world wide to debate probably the most urgent Web governance traits and challenges. IGF conferences facilitate the change of knowledge and the sharing of insurance policies and good practices associated to the important parts of Web governance as a way to promote the sustainability, robustness, safety, stability and growth of the Web.
This yr’s Web Governance Discussion board, held from October 8 to 12, brings collectively greater than 8,000 registered individuals from greater than 170 nations, making it the biggest and most geographically numerous discussion board to this point. Representatives of governments, the personal sector, civil society, the technical group and worldwide organizations take part within the convention.
This system contains greater than 300 classes, with eight sub-topics: (1) Synthetic Intelligence and Rising Applied sciences; (2) keep away from Web fragmentation; (3) cybersecurity, cybercrime and on-line security; (4) information administration and belief; (5) Digital gaps and inclusion; (6) World digital governance and cooperation; (7) Human rights and freedoms; and (8) sustainability and surroundings.
The outcomes of the Web Governance Discussion board, together with high-level, parliamentary and youth tracks, will function a concrete framework for the worldwide digital compact to be agreed on the UN Summit for the Future subsequent yr.
