The business vision of what WSIS should do and can achieve
Article submitted by Ayesha Hassan, Senior Policy Manager, E-Business, IT and Telecoms,
International Chamber of Commerce, Paris
For business, the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) is an opportunity to raise awareness of information and communications technologies (ICT) as a tool for economic and social growth.
Provided the right conditions are created at every level - national, regional and international - new markets will open. There will be plenty of opportunities for both foreign and local investment and entrepreneurship will flourish.
That is the business vision of what WSIS can achieve. Its fulfillment will mean more jobs, wealth creation and higher living standards, especially in the developing countries that so urgently need to derive the fullest benefits from ICT.
Business knows that it has much to contribute to the success of WSIS. After all, it is largely business that is developing communications technologies, and it is business that brings them to market and applies them.
So we are calling - and this was the thrust of business interventions at the second Preparatory Committee meeting (PrepCom II) – for the fullest possible business involvement in every stage of WSIS. In the run-up so far, this has not always been forthcoming.
However, the Coordinating Committee of Business Interlocutors welcomes the positive reaction from governments' response to the points business representatives raised at the PrepCom II. Admission of business representatives as observers to some of the later PrepCom sessions was a further positive step.
It is also gratifying to see that some of the business priorities are included in the governments' section of some of the preparatory documents, so that from the business point of view, the right tone is being set. However, we would like to see stronger acknowledgment of the importance of market forces in securing the objectives that have been set for WSIS.
The Coordinating Committee of Business Interlocutors (CCBI) is preparing substantive written comments on the revised declaration and action plan and will make these available before the end-May deadline, and thus ahead of the intersessional meeting.
That meeting will be most productive if observers are allowed to speak, providing additional input that will ensure that WSIS itself has every chance of success.
So much for the run-up to WSIS. But what in more precise terms does business hope that the World Summit it will achieve? This article will give a broad overview of how a truly global information society can be developed that will benefit all mankind.
WSIS should call on all stakeholders to work to facilitate broader and global access to ICT and information as important tools to promote economic development, social development, human rights, cultural diversity, freedom of expression and gender equality. That is the core message.
The information society must rest on three fundamental building blocks:
A secure infrastructure, a sound and equitable education and health care system, and recognition of the benefits of ICT applications, such as e-learning, e-health and e-government.
This requires:
1. Adoption of pro-competitive, transparent and predictable policies that promote investment in ICT infrastructure, applications and content.
2. Recognition of the role of ICTs in economic development, social growth and poverty reduction, including the use of ICT as important tools in achieving the Millennium Declaration.
3. Development of national ICT strategies that create an opportunity for measurable targets to assess progress toward their implementation.
4. Promotion of Public- private partnerships for capacity building and human resource development.
5. Commitment to an open policymaking process where all stakeholders can contribute equally, recognizing their unique contributions to policy dialogues.
To promote the development of a truly global information society for all, WSIS should encourage the following actions to facilitate broader and global access to ICT and information as important tools to promote economic development, social development, human rights, cultural diversity and gender equality:
1. Setting up national ICT Strategies with achievable and measurable goals. There should be clear prioritization of actions necessary to fully embrace the information society.
2. Implementing transparent and predictable legal and regulatory environments to promote of competition and investment in ICT infrastructure and applications, including actions such as the following:
· Promoting competition in the underlying infrastructure.
· Removing legal obstacles to e-commerce.
· Ensuring effective intellectual property protection.
· Recognizing electronic signatures and contracts.
· Ensuring a neutral and non-discriminatory tax regime.
· Ensuring transparent processes for policy development.
3. Implementing policies that promote competition and demand for ICTs and ICT applications with the goal being continued innovation of products and services at affordable prices, including free choice of ICT products, services and content.
4. Creating education systems and skills development programs for all segments of society with the objective being that populations have the skills necessary to reap the benefits of the information society, including the use of ICT for education.
5. Creating healthcare systems that utilize ICTs to increase productivity and efficiency within the provision of healthcare globally.
6. Promoting appropriate information sharing about security issues with the objective being the enhancement of secure and reliable networks including actions such as the following:
· Working to develop a culture of security.
· Preventing cybercrime and enforcing laws related to it.
· Facilitating information sharing and analysis centers around the world.
7. Developing programmes to foster entrepreneurship including the uptake of ICT by SMEs with the objective being to enable efficient business practices and further promoting universal access to ICT and the Information Society.
8. Establishing public/private partnerships with the objective being the seizing of digital opportunities and the advancement of e-Education, e-Health, etc.
Speaking for business at the summit
The Coordinating Committee of Business Interlocutors (CCBI) is the voice of business at the Summit.
Principals of the Summit host countries and executive secretariat invited the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to create the CCBI as a vehicle through which to mobilize and coordinate the involvement of the worldwide business community in the processes leading to and culminating in the Summit.
The CCBI is made up of – and open to all – representatives of individual business firms, as well as of associations and other organizations that represent business interests.
Among the organizations actively involved in the work of the CCBI, in addition to ICC, are: Associacion Hispanoamericana de Centros de Investigacion y Empresas de Telecomunicaciones, Brazilian Chamber of Electronic Commerce, the Business Council of the United Nations, Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD; Global Business Dialogue on Electronic Commerce; Global Information Infrastructure Commission; Money Matters Institute; United States Council on International Business; World Economic Forum; and World Information Technology and Services Alliance.
Article submitted by Ayesha Hassan, Senior Policy Manager, E-Business, IT and Telecoms,
International Chamber of Commerce, Paris