[Irl-dean] CSTD Recommendations re ICT

[Frank Mulcahy]

See mail below.  It may be of interest to some.

Frank Mulcahy
'Franmar'
2 Castle Village Court
Celbridge
Co. Kildare
Ireland

Tel.: +353 1627 1314
Mobile/Cell Phone: +353 8723 44934
E-mail 1: fmulcahy at iol.ie
E-mail 2: frankmulcahy2005 at yahoo.co.uk

The United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development Panel on promoting the building of a people-centred, development-oriented and inclusive information society

6-8 November 2006

UNESCO Headquarters

RECOMMENDATIONS

Bearing in mind that the comprehensive review by the GA of WSIS will take place in 2015, and that ECOSOC requested that at its next session the Commission shall develop a multiyear work programme, the Panel took note of the issues paper presented by the secretariat, and after considering this matter requested the secretariat to undertake consultations with relevant stakeholders and to present to the Commission a draft programme of work that should be flexible and inclusive.

In order for ECOSOC, through CSTD, to carry out its mandate of overseeing system-wide follow up of the WSIS effectively, it would require that the Commission has an effective interface with all agencies and mechanisms that are tasked with implementation of WSIS outcomes and other post WSIS activities.  In this regard, the Panel proposed the following:

Multi-year work programme and methods of work

The Panel requests the UNCTAD Secretariat to prepare a Note for consideration at the Tenth session, which contains proposals for a multi-year work programme of the Commission and new methods of work. 

This Note should take into account the time frame for the comprehensive review, as well as the clustering and sequencing of thematic issues from WSIS outcome documents. The work programme should adequately address the thematic concerns of WSIS, but also be flexible enough to accommodate any future need for adjustment, in view of the fast pace of technological development. To gather inputs on the work programme, the Secretariat will carry out informal, open-ended consultations, before February 2007, with a wide range of stakeholders. These consultations could be scheduled back to back with meetings of Action Line facilitators and moderators.

The Note should also elaborate on new methods of work of the Commission, including through interactive dialogues during its annual session, with the active participation of Action Line facilitators, and other agencies and mechanisms involved with implementation of WSIS outcomes. Additionally, the Note should propose concrete ways to explore development-friendly and innovative use of electronic media, drawing upon existing on-line databases on best practices, partnership projects and initiatives, as well as other collaborative electronic platforms, which would allow all stakeholders to contribute to the follow-up efforts, share information, learning from the experience of others and explore opportunities for partnerships.

Since WSIS implementation constitutes ongoing activities over a wide area, which will be fast evolving, the Commission may consider a wide range of topics to examine every year. The panel suggests that the Commission invite the facilitators of Action Lines, and other agencies and mechanisms involved in implementation of WSIS, as well as members of other stakeholder groups, to participate in its annual sessions.

The Panel also proposes that the Commission at its tenth session in May 2007 request the United Nations system entities, including the regional commissions, engaged in the implementation of the Geneva and Tunis outcomes of WSIS to collaborate closely with the Commission on Science and Technology for Development by providing it with periodic reports on the progress made in the implementation of the main themes and Action Lines of the World Summit for the Information Society, with a view to enabling the Commission to monitor, review and appraise progress achieved and problems encountered in the implementation, and to advise the Council thereon.

http://www.unctad.org/sections/dite_dir/docs/dite_pcbb_stdev0045_en.pdf 
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