TUNIS - "The private sector in the Arab world should assume a vital role in developing and enhancing the infrastructure of information and communications technology (ICT)," said Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman and CEO of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAGorg) at the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) meeting.
Participating and speaking in different roundtables, seminars and plenary meetings, during and on the sideline of the WSIS, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh tackled the issue of globalization of the information society calling on the private sector in all developing countries to join forces to leverage the ICT sector.
Representing the Arab private sector in the Summit, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh participated in several plenary meetings for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the Group of Eight (G8) and others.
Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh discussed the role of ICT in achieving the Millennium Development Goals and he stressed on the need to create a proper information environment for the development of e-learning.
Hailed as a resounding success by national delegations from 174 states and participants from more than 800 entities including UN agencies, private sector companies and civil society organizations, WSIS was convened in Tunis to tackle the problem of the “digital divide” and harness the potential of information and communication technologies to drive economic and social development.
Hosted by the Government of Tunisia, the second phase of the WSIS took place in Tunis from November 16-18, attracting around 19,000 participants worldwide.
Meanwhile, WSIS incorporated a number of parallel events, alongside the Summit including meetings, panels, discussions and workshops from November 15 to 19, 2005.
The “ICT 4 All Exhibition,” which incorporated 150 stands from 65 countries, was organized on the sideline of the WSIS, as part of the parallel events.
The exhibition was an opportunity for the participants to attend presentations delivered by officials, experts and businessmen on the benefits of ICT that individuals, as well as government and private sectors, could reap from this information technology breakthrough.
Under the pavilion of the government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization participated in the "ICT 4 All Exhibition" alongside the Jordanian Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (MOICT).
The joint Jordanian "ICT 4 Development" stand, which attracted high profile guests, senior delegations, ministers, businessmen as well as members of the media, was met with remarkable success reflecting the constructive cooperation and partnership between public and private sectors.
HE Nadia Al-Saeed, Minister of Information and Communications Technology, who headed the Jordanian delegation to the WSIS, discussed stages of development of the ICT sector in the Kingdom stressing on the need to develop an internationally competitive IT industry in Jordan.
Al-Saeed encouraged the private sector to contribute to ICT development programs, and emphasized the private-public partnership that is crucial to the success and sustainability of such on-going initiatives in the Kingdom.
Representatives from TAGorg and MOICT briefed the participants and visitors on the exhibits showcased at the stand and explained how Jordan is utilizing the vast experience of the government and private sectors in information and communications technology to make this technology within the reach of all, thus contributing to the global efforts aiming at bridging the digital divide.
The Summit’s two outcome documents - the Tunis Commitment and the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society - were endorsed by world leaders at the closing plenary of the WSIS on November 18.
Three key issues dominated the preparatory process leading to the Tunis Summit: Internet Governance, financing mechanisms, and implementation and follow-up for the Action Plan developed by the first phase of WSIS in 2003, in Geneva.
Concerning Internet Governance, a breakthrough agreement was brokered in Tunis which acknowledges the need for enhanced cooperation to enable governments and is based around a number of newly agreed principles and future mechanisms:
All governments should play an equal role and have equal responsibility for Internet Governance while ensuring its continuing stability, security and continuity
Nations should not be involved in decisions regarding another nation’s country-code top level domain (ccTLD)
There is a need for strengthened cooperation among stakeholders for public policies for generic top level domain names (gTLDs).
Another important element of the Tunis output document is the creation of a new Internet Governance Forum (IGF), to be convened by the UN Secretary-General, to foster and enable multi-stakeholder dialogue on public policy and development issues. This IGF will provide a platform for discussion of cross-cutting public policy issues not adequately addressed by current mechanisms. The new IGF is expected to be established in the first half of 2006, with an inaugural meeting to be hosted in Athens at the invitation of the Government of Greece.
The IGF will facilitate the exchange of information and best practices, and help find solutions to issues of concern to every day users arising from the use and misuse of the Internet, identify emerging issues and bring them to the attention of relevant decision-making bodies, and where appropriate, make recommendations. The IGF will draw upon resources from all interested stakeholders, including the proven expertise of International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The IGF will have no oversight function and will not replace existing arrangements, mechanisms, institutions or organizations. It will have no involvement in the day-to-day running and technical operation of the Internet.
The first phase of the WSIS took place in Geneva hosted by the Government of Switzerland from December 10-12, 2003, where 175 countries adopted a Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action.