WSIS 2023 High-Level Interactive Policy Sessions
Chairperson
H.E. Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh
Minister of Digital Transformation
Republic of Slovenia
The WSIS Forum 2023 serves as a key forum for discussing the role of ICTs as a means of implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and targets, with due regard to the global mechanism for follow-up and review of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (UNGA Resolution A/70/1). The WSIS Forum also provides a platform to track the achievements of WSIS Action Lines in collaboration with the UN Agencies involved and provides information and analysis of the implementation of WSIS Action Lines since 2005.
The WSIS Forum 2023 High-Level Track will take place on 14 and 15 March 2023, at the International Conference Centre Geneva (CICG), in Geneva with enhanced remote participation, featuring an Opening segment, the appointment of the WSIS Forum 2023 Chairperson, High-Level Policy Sessions, a Ministerial round table, and High-Level dialogues.
The High-Level Policy sessions will gather High-ranking officials of the WSIS Stakeholder community, representing the Government, Private Sector, Civil Society, Academia and International Organizations. Interactive policy statement sessions will be moderated by High-Level Track Facilitators (HLTFs), nominated and identified by each stakeholder type and will be grouped around different themes identified as important by the WSIS Stakeholders during the open consultation process. The main task of the HLTFs is to capture the vision, identify emerging trends, opportunities and challenges shared by the leaders of their session.
The concluding session of the High-Level Track will take place on 15 March 2023. During the concluding session, the WSIS Forum 2023 Chairperson will provide an executive summary, giving a platform for all the HLTFs to submit the outcomes of their respective policy session. A publication entitled "WSIS Forum 2023: Policy Statements and Executive Brief" will be issued to encapsulate these outcomes.
High-Level Participants
Prof. Salma Abbasi
Chairperson and CEO
eWorldwide Group
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Lamia Fathi ABUSEDRA
Ambassador Extraordinary & Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative.
,
Permanent Mission of Libya to the United Nations Office
Libya
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Teuta AGAI-DEMJAHA
Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of the Republic of North Macedonia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
North Macedonia
On-site Participant
Mr. Farid Ahmadov
Deputy Minister
,
Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Mashael Al Hammadi
Acting Assistant Undersecretary of Government Information Technology Affairs
,
Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
Qatar
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Mohamed bin Thamir Al Kaabi
Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications
,
Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications
Bahrain
H.E. Mr. Admirim Aliti
Minister
,
Ministry of Information Society and Administration
North Macedonia
On-site Participant
Dr. Mercedes Aramendia Falco
Presidenta de Directorio de URSEC
,
Unidad Reguladora de Servicios de Comunicaciones (URSEC)
Uruguay
Dr. Nelson de Jesús Arroyo Perdomo
Presidente del Consejo Directivo
,
Instituto Dominicano de las Telecomunicaciones (INDOTEL)
Dominican Rep.
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Ousman A. Bah
Honorable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy
,
Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy
Gambia
On-site Participant
Mr. Carlos Manuel Baigorri
President
,
National Telecommunication Agency (Anatel)
Brazil
Mr. Slava Banik
Head of eServices Development
,
Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine
Ukraine
On-site Participant
Ms. Phyllis Barkman Ferrell
Global Head, External Engagement, Alzheimer's Disease and Neurodegeneration
Eli Lilly & Company
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Nizar Ben Néji
Minister of communication technologies
,
Ministry of communication technologies
Tunisia
On-site Participant
Prof. Peter A. Bruck
Chairperson
World Summit Award
On-site Participant
Mr. João Cadete Matos
Chairman of ANACOM's Board of Directors
,
Autoridade Nacional de Comunicações (ANACOM)
Portugal
On-site Participant
Eng. Gilbert Camacho Mora
Council Member
,
Superintendence of Telecommunications (Sutel)
Costa Rica
Dr. Hui Cao
Head Of Strategy & Policy, Huawei EU Public Affairs And Communication Office
Huawei
On-site Participant
Ms. Maria Manuela Catrina
Undersecretary of State, Deputy-Director
,
National Cyber Security Directorate
Romania
On-site Participant
Dr. Olga Cavalli
Director
South School on Internet Governance SSIG
Ms. Laura Fernández Cavas
Head of Sustainable Finance
Telefónica SA
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Vandeth Chea
Minister of Post and Telecommunications
,
Ministry of Post and Telecommunications
Cambodia
Mr. Guangzhe Chen
WB Infrastructure Vice-President
The World Bank
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Bella Cherkesova
Deputy Minister
,
Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation
Russian Federation
On-site Participant
Mr. Thomas Coughlin
2023 President Elect
IEEE
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Jose Agustinho da Silva
Minister of Transport and Communications
,
Ministry of Transport and Communications
Timor-Leste
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Luke DAUNIVALU
Ambassador and Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Fiji to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
Fiji
On-site Participant
Ms. Moira de Roche
IFIP Vice President
International Federation for Information Processing IFIP
On-site Participant
Dr. PAVAN DUGGAL
CHAIRMAN
INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON CYBER SECURITY LAW
On-site Participant
Mr. Stéphane Duguin
CEO
CYBERPEACE INSTITUTE
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Usha Dwarka-Canabady
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Mauritius to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
Mauritius
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Meirav EILON SHAHAR
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Israel to the UN
,
Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations Office
Israel
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Anna Karin Eneström
Ambassador,Co-facilitator, Global Digital Compact
,
Permanent Mission of Sweden to the United Nations Office
Sweden
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Alexandre Fasel
Swiss Special Representative for Science and Diplomacy
Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Ömer Fatih Sayan
Deputy Minister
,
Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure
Turkey
Eng. Napoleon Gai
Director General
,
National Communication Authority
South Sudan
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Ousmane Gaoual DIALLO
Minister
,
Ministère des Postes, des Télécommunications et de l'Économie
Guinea
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Claver Gatete
Ambassador, Co-facilitator, Global Digital Compact
,
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Rwanda to the United Nations Office
Rwanda
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Belete Getahun
Minister
,
Ministry of Innovation and technology
Ethiopia
On-site Participant
Mr. Amandeep Singh Gill
UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Technology
United Nations
On-site Participant
Eng. Wilfredo Gonzalez Vidal
First Deputy Minister
,
Ministry of Communications of Cuba
Cuba
On-site Participant
Mr. NK Goyal
President
CMAI & TEMA
On-site Participant
Ms. Rebecca Grynspan
Secretary-General
UNCTAD
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Hassan Hamid HASSAN
Ambassador, Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Sudan to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
Sudan
On-site Participant
Dr. Velislava Hillman
Founder and CEO
Education Data Digital Sovereignty (EDDS)
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Stelios Himonas
Permanent Secretary
,
Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy
Cyprus
On-site Participant
Ms. Mubaraka Ibrahim
Acting Chief Information Officer
,
Emirates Health Services
United Arab Emirates
On-site Participant
Ms. Ekaterine Imedadze
Commissioner
,
Georgian National Communications Commission
Georgia
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Paula Ingabire
Minister
,
Ministry of ICT & Innovation
Rwanda
On-site Participant
Dr. Ismail Ismail
Director General of Resource Management and Equipment of Post and Informatics
,
Ministry Communication and Informatics
Indonesia
On-site Participant
Dr. Tawfik Jelassi
Assistant Director-General
UNESCO
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Rogelio Jimenez Pons
Undersecretary of Transport
,
Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transports
Mexico
Mr. Javier Juárez
Acting Commissioner President
,
Federal Telecommunications Institute
Mexico
Ms. Tatyana Kanzaveli
Chief Executive Officer
Open Health Network
On-site Participant
Mr. Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu
President
,
Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK)
Turkey
Mr. Ernest Mafuta KATOKA
CHAIRMAN
AFFORDABLE INTERNET ACCESS SIG ( INTERNET SOCIETY)
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Robert Khachatryan
Minister
,
Ministry of High-Tech Industry of the Republic of Armenia
Armenia
H.E. Mr. Jama Hassan Khalif
Minister of Communications and Technology
,
Ministry of Communications and Technology
Somalia
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Mohammad Khansari
Deputy Minister and Head of Information Technology Organization (ITO)
,
Ministry of Communication and Information Technology
Iran (Islamic Republic of)
On-site Participant
Mr. Apollo Knights
Director
,
National Telecommunications Regulatory Commission
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
On-site Participant
Dr. Mohamed Al Kuwaiti
Head of Cybersecurity
,
UAE Government
United Arab Emirates
On-site Participant
Mr. Stephan A. Lang
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Information & Communications Policy
,
Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy
United States
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Nele Leosk
Ambassador-at-Large for Digital Affairs
,
Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Estonia
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Paweł Lewandowski
Undersecretary of State for digital affairs
,
Chancellery of the Prime Minister
Poland
On-site Participant
Dr. Gift Kallisto Machengete
Director General
,
Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
On-site Participant
Mr. Bernard Maissen
Director General
,
Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM)
Switzerland
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Phillemon Mapulane
Deputy Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies
,
Ministry of Communications and Digital Technologies
South Africa
On-site Participant
Ms. Eglė Markevičiūtė
Vice-Minister of the Economy and Innovation
,
Ministry of the Economy and Innovation of the Republic of Lithuania
Lithuania
On-site Participant
H.E. Eng. Kundo Andrea Mathew
Deputy Minister
,
Ministry of Information, Communication and Information Technology
Tanzania
On-site Participant
Ms. Patricia Lyn MCCULLAGH
Deputy Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
Canada
On-site Participant
H.E. Eng. Majed Sultan Al Mesmar
Director General
,
Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA)
United Arab Emirates
On-site Participant
Mr. Masahiko Metoki
Director-General
UPU
On-site Participant
Mr. Drasko Milinovic
Director General
,
Communications Regulatory Agency
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ms. Alève Mine
Founder
The OneGoal Initiative for Governance
On-site Participant
Ms. Thoko Miya
CEO African Tech Unicorns - Founder @StartupThoko
African Tech Unicorns
On-site Participant
Eng. Indira Moudi
CEO and Board Director
Viandes Lafrance (Louis Lafrance et Fils Ltée)
Mr. Rafael Eduardo Muente Schwarz
Chairman of the Board and CEO
,
Organismo Supervisor de Inversión Privada en Telecomunicaciones (OSIPTEL)
Peru
H.E. Dr. Jenfan Muswere
Minister of ICT, Postal and Courier Services
,
Minstry of ICT ,Postal and Courier Services
Zimbabwe
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Felix C. Mutati
Minister of Technology and Science
,
Ministry of Technology and Science
Zambia
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Léocadie Ndacayisaba
Minister
,
Ministre de la Communication, des Technologies de l’Information et des Médias
Burundi
On-site Participant
Prof. Josef Noll
Secretary General
Basic Internet Foundation
On-site Participant
Dr. Jacek Oko
President of the Office of Electronic Communications
,
Office of Electronic Communications (UKE)
Poland
On-site Participant
Mr. Eliud Owalo
Cabinet Secretary (Minister)
,
Ministry of Information, Communication and the Digital Economy
Kenya
On-site Participant
H.E. Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami
Minister
,
Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy of Nigeria
Nigeria
On-site Participant
Ms. Maya Plentz
Director
The UN Brief
On-site Participant
Mr. Dongyu Qu
Director-General
FAO
Mr. AHM Bazlur Rahman
Chief Executive Officer
Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio & Communication (BNNRC)
On-site Participant
Prof. Alfredo Ronchi
Secretary General
EC MEDICI Framework of Coordination
On-site Participant
H.E. Ms. Micaela Sanchez Malcolm
Secretary of Public Innovation
,
Secretariat of Public Innovation of the National Chief of Cabinet of Ministers' Office
Argentina
Mr. Stefan Schnorr
State Secretary
,
Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport
Germany
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Paul Scully MP
Minister for Tech and the Digital Economy
,
Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT)
United Kingdom
Ms. Bawani Selvaratnam
Chief Development Officer
,
Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission
Malaysia
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Ali Al Shidhani
Vice Minister
,
Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology
Oman
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Ishaq Sider
Minister of Telecommunications and Information Technology
,
Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology
State of Palestine
On-site Participant
Mr. Nicolás Silva
Executive Director
,
Comisión de Regulación de Comunicaciones
Colombia
Mr. Dan Sjoblom
Director General
,
Swedish Post and Telecom Authority
Sweden
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. KAMALIDINI SOUEF
Minister of Posts, Telecommunications and Digital Economy
,
Union of the Comoros
Comoros
On-site Participant
Ms. Jūratė Šovienė
Chair of the Council
,
Communications Regulatory Authority
Lithuania
On-site Participant
Ms. Jayne Stancavage
Vice President, Policy and Regulatory Affairs
Intel Corporation
H.E. Dr. Emilija Stojmenova Duh
Minister
,
Ministry of Digital Transformation
Slovenia
On-site Participant
Mr. Daud Suleman
Director General
,
Malawi Communication Regulatory Authority
Malawi
On-site Participant
H.E. Dr. Mohammed Saud Al Tamimi
Governor
,
Space and Technology Commission (CST)
Saudi Arabia
On-site Participant
Mr. Daren Tang
Director-General
WIPO
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn
Minister of Digital Economy and Society
,
Ministry of Digital Economy and Society
Thailand
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Ivan John Uy
Secretary
,
The Department of Information and Communications Technology
Philippines
On-site Participant
Dr. P.D. Vaghela
Chairman
,
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
India
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Henri Verdier
Ambassador for Digital Affairs
,
Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs
France
On-site Participant
Eng. Marc Vetter
Co-Founder, President of the Board and CEO
4QT Holding AG
On-site Participant
Dr. Caroline Wamala-Larsson
Associate Professor, Director of SPIDER - Swedish Program for ICT in Developing Region
Stockholm University
On-site Participant
Mr. Andrew Wilson
Global Policy Director
International Chamber of Commerce
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Matthew Anthony WILSON
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative
,
Permanent Mission of Barbados to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
Barbados
On-site Participant
Mr. Mustafa Y. Sheikh
General Manager
,
National Communications Authority
Somalia
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Hiroshi Yoshida
Vice Minister
,
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
Japan
On-site Participant
H.E. Mr. Isa Zarepour
Minister
,
Ministry of Communication and Information Technology
Iran (Islamic Republic of)
On-site Participant
High-Level Track Facilitators
Ms. Meni Anastasiadou
Digital Policy Advisor
ICC
On-site Participant
Dr. Liberato C. Bautista
President
Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations
On-site Participant
Dr. Caterina M. Berbenni-Rehm
Founder & CEO
PROMIS@Service
On-site Participant
Dr. Alessandro Caforio
Doctor of Psychology, Head of Research and Innovation
Università Telematica Internazionale UNINETTUNO
On-site Participant
Ms. Anja Jeanette Haga Engen
Policy Manager
Access Partnership
On-site Participant
Mr. Antonio Luque
Professor of Electronics Engineering
University of Seville
On-site Participant
Mr. Pierre Mirlesse
Smart City Consultant
Managing Director Partner360.net
On-site Participant
Ms. Karen Mulberry
Senior Manager, Public Affairs
IEEE Standards Association
On-site Participant
Prof. Abdulkarim Oloyede
Associate Professor
Department of Telecommunication Science, University of Ilorin
On-site Participant
Ms. Claire Somerville
Medical anthropologist, lecturer, executive director of the Gender Centre
Geneva Graduate Institute
On-site Participant
Dr. Dr. Evelyne A. Tauchnitz
Senior Researcher and Lecturer Institute of Social Ethics ISE
University of Lucerne, Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI)
On-site Participant