UN Commissions Jointly Utilize WSIS to Promote Interregional Cooperation

The five United Nations regional commissions for Africa, Europe, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western Asia played an active role at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held in Geneva from 10-12 December 2003, jointly promoting the importance of national strategies and regional action in the development of a global information society. 

During the Geneva Summit, the regional commissions, together with UNDP, UNCTAD, the UN ICT Task Force and the World Bank, organized four panel discussions on the theme of “National Strategies for the Information Society and the Role of Regional and Global Organizations”. 

The panel discussions highlighted the important role the regional commissions can play in the implementation of the outcomes of the first phase of WSIS through technical assistance, capacity building and training; facilitating peer dialogue, exchange of experience and promoting good practices; development of indicators and benchmarks; and in the design and future development of national and regional information society strategies and roadmaps.  As was recognized at the Geneva summit, the UN regional commissions can help countries implement the principles and goals of the World Summit on the Information Society by adapting these to the regional and national levels based on the effective recognition of their particular interests.

The regional commissions are also coordinating among themselves to intensify their work on the follow-up of the WSIS and to prepare for the second phase of the Summit in Tunis next year. They plan to hold appropriate regional/subregional preparatory meetings, undertake a joint publication of an ICT Handbook, and prepare a joint project for funding by the Fifth Tranche of the Development Account. ECE coordinated the strategy of the regional commissions for the Geneva phase of the WSIS; and this role has been taken over by ECA who will lead the regional commissions in preparing for the WSIS Tunis in 2005.