UNGIS

A side event organized by the United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS) and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)

31 January 2023, 08:30-09:45 EST, New York time / 14:30-15:45 CET, Geneva time
Virtual Platform: Zoom (webinar) 

Background:

The achievement and the progress for 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development require multistakeholder collaboration and partnerships. Given the global challenges and with eight years ahead to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the need for accelerated actions is paramount. To collectively achieve the SDGs, collaboration within the UN system and with non-UN stakeholders, including private sectors, civil societies, academia, youth, and many more is imperative. 

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development highlights the importance of information and communication technologies (ICT) and global interconnectedness as powerful enablers of growth, to accelerate human progress, to bridge the digital divide, and to develop knowledge societies. More needs to be done to leverage the potential of digital technologies. 

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) is a UN process that includes an annual, multistakeholder Forum where governments, civil societies, private sectors, academia, international organizations, technical communities, and others are able to network, partner, and share how to achieve the SDGs through the framework of the WSIS Action Lines. WSIS emphasizes multistakeholder collaboration and cooperation across all regions and sectors. 

United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS) is a great example of existing well-functioning digital cooperation in the UN system. Its mandate includes promoting collaboration and partnerships among the members of the Chief Executives Board (CEB) to contribute to the achievement of WSIS goals, providing guidance on issues related to inclusive information and knowledge societies, helping maintain issues related to science and technology at the top of the UN Agenda, and mainstreaming ICT for Development. UNGIS offers a valuable knowledge and resource base that has been developed in the past decade on a multi-stakeholder basis focusing on innovative tools and approaches to tackle multiple development challenges. 

This session, co-organized by WSIS and UNGIS will focus on how the ICTs and the WSIS cooperation can help accelerate the SDGs, learning from the COVID-19 experience to build an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable societies and economies. It is important to strengthen partnerships and digital cooperation towards achieving goals and targets across the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Panellists:

• Mr. Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General, ITU
• Dr. Tawfik Jelassi, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, UNESCO
• Mr. Jean Paul Adam, Director Technology, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
• Mr. Liberato C. Bautista, President, Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CoNGO)
• Ms. Mei Lin Fung, Chair and Cofounder, People Centered Internet and Impact Network
• Mr. Maikel Wilms, Partner & Director, The Boston Consulting Group