The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event 2024 was held in Geneva, Switzerland from 27-31 May 2024, co-organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and co-hosted by ITU and the Swiss Confederation. The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event was a five-day engagement convened with the objective of taking stock of the achievements and key trends, challenges, and opportunities since the Geneva Plan of Action in 2003. The venue for the said engagement was the International Conference Centre Geneva (CICG) and ITU headquarters.
The High-Level Event 2024 covered a wide range of topics, including but not limited to emerging technologies, the WSIS+20 review process, digital inclusion, digital governance processes, the Global Digital Compact (GDC), the Summit of the Future, digital health, universal connectivity, sustainable digital transformation, cybersecurity, digital public infrastructure, and many more. It was attended by more than 8,000 participants from 160 countries with thousands more joining remotely.
History of WSIS
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) vide Resolution 56/183 endorsed the holding of the WSIS in two phases, with the first & second phase(s) held in Geneva, 2003 and Tunis, 2005, respectively, which led to the creation of a framework for inclusive information society. The goal of WSIS is to achieve a common vision, desire, and commitment to build a people-centric, inclusive, and development-oriented information and knowledge society where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information. The WSIS process is guided by the WSIS Action Lines framework that serves as a comprehensive framework for building inclusive information and knowledge societies. These WSIS Action Lines play a significant role in advancing progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The said process established the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) which coined the term Internet Governance (IG). It is defined as “the development and application by governments, the private sector, and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decision-making procedures, and programs that shape the evolution and use of the Internet”. Further, the multistakeholder model of the IG has its origin in the Tunis Agenda which led to the creation of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum in 2005.
WSIS+20 Dialogue(s)
The WSIS+20 advocates for sustainable digital growth to connect the unconnected i.e. 33% of the world’s population or approximately 2.6 billion people which remain offline. The main goal of the WSIS processes is digital for the benefit of all and their contribution to the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Additionally, it supports local content creation to preserve cultural heritage online and provides multilingual content to address digital content disparities to align with the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022- 2032), as declared by the UN General Assembly.
To realize its goal, the WSIS process is guided by the WSIS Action Lines framework that serves as a comprehensive framework for building inclusive information and knowledge societies. These WSIS Action Lines play a significant role in advancing progress towards the achievement of the SDGs. It is emphasized that the vulnerability of digital infrastructure is the vulnerability of modern society. The first Global Initiative on Digital Health Multistakeholder Dialogue on National Digital Health Transformation was co-organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), as action line facilitators of the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) Action line C7: E-Health. The said multistakeholder dialogue was convened under the overarching theme “Supporting Health Systems of the Future through Robust Foundations and Digital Public Infrastructure”.
Though there is no specific SDG on digital matters, digital technologies have a cross-cutting dimension as they serve as an enabler for achieving all SDGs, effectively becoming (as they are sometimes called) the ‘invisible, 18th SDG’. As per a recent estimate, digital technologies can accelerate over 70% of SDG targets, necessitating the continuation of digital transformation’s momentum gained during the pandemic. To this effect, the said event provides an ideal platform to achieve a common vision, desire, and commitment to building a people-centric, inclusive, and development-oriented information and knowledge society where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information. Moreover, Artificial Intelligence (AI), if harnessed responsibly and in an inclusive manner, can contribute to the achievement of all 17 SDGs. This was demonstrated through a wide range of use cases over the week at the WSIS Forum and also at the AI for Good Global Summit.
On the sidelines of the WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event 2024, the AI for Good Global Summit was scheduled from 29-31 May 2024, respectively. The AI for Good Global Summit – which includes the annual AI for Good Global Summit, held since 2017 – was organized by ITU in partnership with 40 UN Sister Agencies and co-convened with the government of Switzerland. The latest edition of the UN Activities Report, released at the 2024 AI for Good Global Summit, comprehensively highlights more than 400 UN use cases on AI. The discussion at the summit predominantly revolves around issues which are at the intersection of policy, society, sustainability and technology. Further, this year the summit features more than 300 experts from around the world, and 17 AI for Good Youth Zone interactive workshops, among others.
Way Forward
The discussions held during the WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event and interventions made during the event would lead to the preparation of the Outcome document(s) which will underpin discussions on the Pact for the Future that will be adopted at the Summit of the Future in September 2024 advancing the theme “Multilateral Solutions for a Better Tomorrow”.
There was a broad consensus on strengthening the existing processes such as the WSIS Forum, AI for Good Global Summit, and IGF rather than creating novel processes for tackling the emerging technologies as well as for supporting the implementation of the Global Digital Compact. All these processes have the legitimacy and requisite experience to uphold the principles of the multistakeholder model and address digital issues in inclusive, informed, and impactful ways. Moving forward, digital technologies should act as a catalyst, leaving no one behind, and enabling people to benefit from its transformation including emerging technologies such as AI.
Written by Sameer Gahlot