ex United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board Hundred and seventy-fourth session 174 EX/15 PARIS, 10 February 2006 Original: English Item 13 of the provisional agenda REPORT BY THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF AND FOLLOW-UP TO THE OUTCOMES OF THE WORLD SUMMIT ON THE INFORMATION SOCIETY (TUNIS, TUNISIA, 16-18 NOVEMBER 2005) SUMMARY In accordance with 33 C/Resolution 52, the Director-General, through this document, provides a report on the results of the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and outlines the functions that UNESCO will play in the implementation and follow-up to decisions taken at WSIS. Decision proposed: paragraph 32.
174 EX/15 A. WSIS background A five-year process 1. The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), 1 held in two phases, 2 constituted a five-year process involving, in a truly multi-stakeholder process, governments, relevant United Nations bodies and other IGOs, NGOs, civil society and the private sector. 2. Four documents were adopted in Geneva and in Tunis including principles, action areas and instructions on implementation mechanisms: Geneva Declaration of Principles, Geneva Plan of Action, Tunis Commitment and Tunis Agenda for the Information Society. UNESCO s role in the process 3. UNESCO s distinctive contribution for WSIS 3 has been the elaboration of the concept of (building) knowledge societies, qualified by four key principles: freedom of expression; universal access to information and knowledge; respect for cultural and linguistic diversity; and quality education for all. 4. For Tunis, UNESCO released the World Report Towards knowledge societies, which contextualizes the so-called digital divide within the wider knowledge divide that is particularly manifest in the world s North-South divide. The report was presented through press conferences in Paris, Brussels, New York and Tunis and its publication received coverage by the international media. Results for UNESCO 5. For UNESCO, the overall result of the Summit is very positive as illustrated by the reference to UNESCO in the Tunis documents which also struck an appropriate balance on issues of concern to the Organization. UNESCO s input contributed to the international dialogue, establishing frameworks for collaborative actions, creating awareness of the potential of ICT for development, and shifting the debate from technology to content issues. 6. UNESCO was able to increase considerably its visibility as a significant actor in ICT for development and other information society related issues. UNESCO s role in adding value to the international ICT arena was well recognized as demonstrated by the number of new partners, especially from the private sector and other agencies that the Organization was able to mobilize throughout the WSIS process. This lent credibility to UNESCO and the Organization was assigned one of the leading roles in the implementation process. UNESCO during WSIS in Tunis 7. UNESCO was an active and visible participant in the Tunis phase of WSIS organizing three events and an exhibition promoting the concept of building knowledge societies. All events were webcast with more than 4,000 viewers. 8. The need to promote culturally diverse and people-centred content was emphasized by leading information technology thinkers and policy-makers at UNESCO s main event, the highlevel round table debate on Shaping the future through knowledge hosted by the Director-General of UNESCO on 17 November 2005. They stressed that education is an indispensable premise for 1 2 3 http://www.wsis.org Geneva, Switzerland, 10-12 December 2003; Tunis, Tunisia, 16-18 November 2005. http://www.unesco.org/wsis
174 EX/15 page 2 the building of knowledge societies and that UNESCO should continue with this focus. They also highlighted the need for universal access to information for all people, in all languages, and for an open Internet that rests on freedom of expression and information. Stressing that the growth of a digital society does not guarantee the development of knowledge, let alone wisdom, the participants voiced concern about the loss of vast quantities of knowledge, notably indigenous knowledge. Because of the globalization of lifestyles and cultures, cultural and linguistic diversity is essential for the development and well-being of societies. 9. The workshop on ICT and persons with disabilities held on 16 November looked at how to guarantee participation of persons with disabilities in inclusive knowledge societies. ICT has great potential to unleash productive capacity and facilitate social participation of persons with disabilities. 10. The Round Table on The role of UNESCO in the construction of knowledge societies through the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme reviewed experiences in networking universities to contribute to the creation of knowledge societies, in particular through the unique initiative of the UNESCO Chairs and Networks in ICTs. B. Tunis decisions on the framework for implementation 11. One of the essential outcomes of the World Summit was the establishment of a framework for implementation. Overall, the Summit decided that WSIS implementation and follow-up must be an integral part of the United Nations integrated follow-up to major United Nations conferences, in line with United Nations General Assembly resolution 57/270 B and must contribute to the achievement of internationally agreed development goals and objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals. Management and coordination within United Nations system 12. For the management and coordination within the United Nations system, the United Nations Secretary-General will establish within the United Nations System Chief Executive Board for Coordination (CEB) a United Nations Group on the Information Society comprising the relevant United Nations bodies and organizations. 4 The mandate of the group is to facilitate the implementation of WSIS outcomes. The Summit did not assign a specific entity to lead, but suggested that in considering lead agency(ies) of this Group, [CEB] takes into consideration the experience of and activities in the WSIS process undertaken by ITU, UNESCO and UNDP. 5 UNESCO will actively participate in defining the mandate of the group and in carrying out its operations. Political follow-up through United Nations intergovernmental bodies 13. In order to ensure political follow-up through United Nations intergovernmental bodies, the Summit requested the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to oversee the system-wide follow-up of the Geneva and Tunis outcomes of WSIS. To this end, ECOSOC is requested to review[s] [ ] the mandate, agenda and composition of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), including considering the strengthening of the Commission, taking into account the multi-stakeholder approach. 6 UNESCO will participate in the discussions on the mandate of CSTD. 4 5 6 The issue is on the agenda of CEB s April 2006 meeting. Tunis Agenda, para. 103. Tunis Agenda, para. 105.
174 EX/15 page 3 Multi-stakeholder implementation of each Action Line 14. One of the most important decisions of the Summit was that the implementation of the WSIS outcomes at the international level should be multi-stakeholder. Its organization should take account of the themes and action lines in the Plan of Action and be moderated or facilitated by United Nations agencies when appropriate. 7 15. UNESCO, having experience in working in a multi-stakeholder way, has already forged strong relationships with many key stakeholders in civil society, including the private sector that will significantly assist in the implementation efforts. 16. The following table adopted by the Summit 8 offers an indicative and non-exhaustive list of facilitators/moderators for the Action Lines of the Geneva Plan of Action: Action Line Possible Facilitators/Moderators С1. The role of public governance authorities and all ECOSOC/UN Regional Commissions/ITU stakeholders in the promotion of ICTs for development С2. Information and communication infrastructure ITU C3. Access to information and knowledge ITU/UNESCO C4. Capacity-building UNDP/UNESCO/ITU/UNCTAD C5. Building confidence and security in the use of ICTs ITU C6. Enabling environment ITU/UNDP/UN REGIONAL COMMISSIONS/UNCTAD C7. ICT Applications E-government UNDP/ITU E-business WTO/UNCTAD/ITU/UPU E-learning UNESCO/ITU/UNIDO E-health WHO/ITU E-employment ILO/ITU E-environment WHO/WMO/UNEP/UNHabitat/ITU/ICAO E-agriculture FAO/ITU E-science UNESCO/ITU/UNCTAD C8. Cultural diversity and identity, linguistic diversity and UNESCO local content C9. Media UNESCO C10. Ethical dimensions of the Information Society UNESCO/ECOSOC C11. International and regional cooperation UN Regional Commissions/ UNDP/ITU/UNESCO/ECOSOC 17. The role of facilitators/moderators should include, inter alia, information exchange, creation of knowledge, sharing of best practices, and assistance in developing multi-stakeholder and public/private partnerships. 9 18. The selection of the facilitation/moderation is still to be confirmed and modality of the work to be defined. However, in the cases where UNESCO is named as sole Facilitator/Moderator, UNESCO should endorse this role. In the cases where several agencies are named, approaches as to who should lead the facilitation effort range from negotiating the distribution of roles among the agencies named in the list to wider engagement by including competent, but not named, agencies to share functions. Another possibility is that the United Nations Group on the Information Society 7 8 9 Tunis Agenda, para. 108. Tunis Agenda, Annex I. Tunis Agenda, para. 110.
174 EX/15 page 4 may decide the approach. However, in accordance with the multi-stakeholder spirit of WSIS, the participants of each Action Line team should be self-selecting and open to civil society and the private sector. Coordination of multi-stakeholder implementation 19. The Summit documents do not explicitly refer to the overall coordination of multi-stakeholder implementation. However, it states that the experiences of, and activities undertaken by, United Nations agencies in the WSIS process notably ITU, UNESCO and UNDP should continue to be used to their fullest extent. These three agencies should play leading facilitating roles in the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action, and, for this purpose, organize a meeting of facilitators/moderators. 10 20. To promote coherence and exchange information among the teams of moderators/facilitators responsible for individual Action Lines, the Summit anticipates some form of overarching coordination in order to avoid duplication of efforts and redundancy. This overarching coordination should make use of existing international organizations and cooperation mechanisms and not create new organizational forms. The purpose of overarching coordination should focus on establishing structures for information gathering and exchange, consolidating stocktaking, facilitating review processes and channelling insights gained during the implementation process to the relevant policy fora. The possible roles of the United Nations Group on the Information Society, the CSDT and of the Global Alliance as the successor to the United Nations ICT Task Force, need clarification in this regard. C. UNESCO s role 21. UNESCO s role in the implementation process could be threefold: 1. UNESCO implements concrete activities included in the Geneva Plan of Action within the framework of its regular programme and budget; 2. UNESCO facilitates the coherent implementation of up to eight Action Lines in its areas of competence; 3. UNESCO, together with ITU, UNDP, CSTD and the future United Nations Group on the Information Society, may be engaged in the overall multi-stakeholder coordination of the facilitators of all 11 Action Lines. UNESCO as an implementer: Focusing on concrete actions 22. Following the first phase of the Summit, UNESCO took prompt action by emphasizing the need to move beyond the global debate on the Declaration of Principles towards implementation of the Action Lines in the WSIS Plan of Action, thus operationalizing UNESCO s principles on how to build knowledge societies. UNESCO has communicated its implementation efforts to key stakeholders on numerous occasions, including to the General Conference at its 33rd session, which endorsed this approach. 23. More than half of the 150 actions that are listed in the Geneva Plan of Action fall under UNESCO s competence. The UNESCO WSIS Action Directory 11 takes stock of activities so far implemented by UNESCO in this context, mostly within documents 32 C/5 and 33 C/5. 10 11 Tunis Agenda, para. 109. http://www.unesco.org/wsisdirectory
174 EX/15 page 5 24. In order to enhance its visibility as an active contributor to the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action, the most critical issues for UNESCO are as follows: (a) need to identify all actions in document 33 C/5 that are considered to contribute to the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action (action already stated); (b) registration of actions undertaken in the UNESCO WSIS Action Directory (ongoing action); (c) need to prepare and process a template for ensuring consistent reporting on actions; (d) need to communicate UNESCO s direct implementation efforts to wider WSIS stakeholders (action already started). UNESCO as a facilitator: Creating communities around individual Action Lines 25. UNESCO s main responsibility in the post-wsis phase is to facilitate, alone or together with partner organizations, the implementation of Action Lines of the Geneva Plan of Action falling within its areas of competence. 26. If done well, this will place UNESCO as one of the key players in the international development of the Information Society. If UNESCO does not set expectations properly and/or deliver on expectations, there may be a major loss of credibility. UNESCO as a co-coordinator: Participating in the overall coordination 27. UNESCO, together with ITU and UNDP, is mentioned as a possible participant in the overarching coordination of the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action. In order to be successful, this coordination team must define its mandate including a common vision based on the WSIS decisions and United Nations General Assembly resolution 57/270 B and establish a breakdown of responsibilities of the 11 Action Lines facilitators/moderators. 28. In this context, the United Nations Group on the Information Society, 12 will play an important role. The Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) may also play a role, to be defined by ECOSOC. UNESCO will contribute to the definition of the mandate and responsibilities of the Group and actively participate in its operations. Participating in the other parts of the international post-wsis coordination machinery 29. Internet Governance will remain a core issue for UNESCO. Therefore, UNESCO will participate in the work of the Internet Governance Forum and will continue to advocate an open, transparent and inclusive approach to Internet Governance echoing its consistent advocacy of the principle of openness, which encompasses the free flow of information, freedom of expression and technical interoperability. The main areas of relevance to UNESCO are the concern for ethical dimensions, 13 the realization of multilingualism in the Internet development environment 14 and capacity-building. 15 30. UNESCO will continue to participate in the work of the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development 16 ensuring for example that the set of core ICT indicators that are presently being 12 13 14 15 16 Tunis Agenda, para. 103. Tunis Agenda, para. 43. Tunis Agenda, paras. 49 and 53. Tunis Agenda, para. 51. http://measuring-ict.unctad.org
174 EX/15 page 6 developed include those related to the application of ICT and their impact, in particular in the areas of education, science and culture. Resource implications 31. UNESCO s role as an implementer, facilitator and coordinator as well as its participation in other parts of the international post-wsis coordination machinery has over the next years serious implications for the Organization s credibility, visibility, strategic and operational planning, and on its human, technical and financial resources. 32. In the light of the information contained in this document, the Executive Board may wish to adopt the following resolution: The Executive Board, 1. Recalling 33 C/Resolution 52, 2. Taking note of the Tunis Commitment and the Tunis Agenda for the Information Society, in particular paragraph 102, subparagraph (a) stating that in implementing the Tunis decisions, each UN agency should act according to its mandate and competencies, and pursuant to decisions of their respective governing bodies, and within existing approved resources, 3. Further recalling the decision of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), in Tunis that UNESCO should facilitate, alone or together with partner organizations, the implementation of the Action Lines included in the Geneva Plan of Action falling under UNESCO s mandate and competence, 4. Having examined document 174 EX/15, 5. Congratulates the Director-General on the positive results of his action in the WSIS process which have considerably increased the Organization s visibility as a significant actor in ICT for development and other information society related issues; 6. Recognizes the great responsibility that UNESCO has in assuming the role that it has been assigned in the implementation of and follow-up to the WSIS decisions; 7. Requests the Director-General to: (a) focus on concrete actions through the implementation of activities included in the Geneva Plan of Action within the framework of document 33 C/5, in all major programmes, taking into account the recommendations in the World Report Towards Knowledge Societies; (b) ensure that UNESCO assumes a prominent role in the international framework of implementation through participation in appropriate mechanisms, including the work of the United Nations Group on the Information Society; (c) in the spirit of WSIS, maintain the momentum of building partnerships with civil society and the private sector, in the areas covered by WSIS and to strengthen or establish new ties to facilitate the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action; (d) continue to involve UNESCO in the international post-wsis coordination machinery, in particular in the areas of Internet governance and in measuring ICT for development; (e) report on the implementation of and follow-up to the decisions of the Summit and UNESCO s action in that area to the General Conference at its 34th session.