IGF 2014

The Internet is viewed as a source of employment growth in the ICT sector and in creating new opportunities in the overall economy. However, it is also clear that the Internet is imposing a significant reorganization on businesses, affecting labor demand and therefore employment.
The net effects of the Internet on jobs are still poorly understood. Unemployment represents a significant challenge in OECD countries. In particular, the level of youth unemployment is alarming. The necessary condition to tackle these challenges is to reignite growth and ensure people have the necessary education, skills and Internet access to take advantage of new opportunities.
Technological change has always had disruptive effects on employment, at least at the early stage of its diffusion. Nonetheless, while for earlier technologies, such as the steam engine or electricity, the growth of productivity, employment and median income was in the same direction, with ICTs the growth of productivity has seemingly been decoupled from jobs and income. According to Brynjolfsson and McAfee this divergence is created by the very nature of the digital economy able to offer goods and services to an increasing number of additional customers at a cost close to zero.
The workshop will focus on how the Internet could help in reducing this divergence, contributing to the creation of the new ICT and entrepreneurial skills required by the labor market and allowing for increasing significantly scale and customization of actions. Furthermore, the workshop will explore how more inclusive global Internet governance could improve social equality.

Persons with disabilities and older persons represent an average of 15% of any country's population. Most IGF members involved in promoting Internet usage in their respective countries face challenges of low levels of Internet adoption amongst these groups.  The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is the first Human Rights Treaty of this millennium. A majority of countries participating in IGF have also ratified the CRPD which compels governments to implement policies that promote accessibility and encourage usage of the Internet amongst persons with disabilities.

Global surveys have demonstrated that a critical success factor for implementation is the multi-stakeholder participation in policy making.  Based on those findings and the mandates of the CRPD, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs (G3ict) have just released model policies for ICT accessibility that place strong emphasis and suggest specific processes to developing policies based upon multi-stakeholder engagement.

The joint G3ict/DCAD workshop will be reporting on good practices and global data on multi-stakeholder engagement which demonstrate how such engagement can lead to better planning, implementation and results. The workshop will also discuss how multi-stakeholder engagement can be equally effective at both the international and national level, based upon the experiences of international agencies and standard development organizations such as ITU, G3ict, W3C, WIPO and UNESCO.   

IGF 2013 showed that the topic of services for migrants and displaced people was not covered except the workshop which representatives of the NRU HSE organized. In 2014 we propose to be more focused on services which help to socialize, assimilate, and propose to discuss particular educational services available for displaced people and migrants.

We would like to discuss the role of migrants and displaced people in the Information society.
Putting connectivity and ICT services within reach of vulnerable populations and especially migrants and displaced people is important to ensure the participation of all in sustainable human and economic development.

The trends in mobile connectivity, called a “mobile miracle” by the ITU, are not just technology enhancements. They are used by governments and different stakeholders to bring services to their citizens, including educational services.

We propose to focus on ICT services and solutions, which can help migrants, and displaced people to better socialize, assimilate and become an integral part of the public local life.
We would like to discuss particular Information society educational services and capacity building programs available or to be developed for displaced people and migrants.
We would like also raising the question of “virtual” universities and MOOCs projects and how these initiatives could assist and help displaced people and migrants to have the access to fare education.

The right to the fare education and access to the information is the Human right, which has to be ensured for everyone, including migrants and displaced people. The Information society Initiatives could help to better ensure the access to education and to information for the fragile groups of society: migrants and displaced people.

The “digital economy”, based on the Internet, allows large or small businesses to have a global reach, to virtualize their processes, to mobilize their employees and business associates, and to drive velocity into their efforts. We need to consider the co-dependent relationship of globalization and the Internet, as a driver of future models of governance, economics and trade.

The workshop’s goal is to offer best practices by which we can advance new “global visions” for bringing economic growth and societal benefit through the “digital economy”.

Panelists, drawing on case studies, will explore the workshop’s subject:

- Innovation: Globalization based on the Internet, with its focus on dispersed production and value-chains, and consequent interdependence between countries, has created potential for new visions for innovation with significant implications for trade and investment.
- The Potential for economic growth and development: ICTs have increased globalization and enhanced the flows of human capital across borders, international communication has increased, all making possible a greater participation of emerging country citizens in the global economy.
- Governance policies impact on globalization: Government measures that limit globalization or that require “localization” should be examined for their impact on global trade and investment in the “digital economy.”
- The role of private sector stakeholders in globalization: Examine the vital role of the private sector, arising from private sector competition, investment, and diffusion of ICTs in fostering the benefits of globalization.

Agenda:

1. Free Flow of Data and Information for Fostering Innovation and Economic Growth
- Ross LaJeunesse, Head of International Policy, Google

2. Overcoming Contradictory tendencies in the “Digital Economy” with a Focus on Developing- Country Enterprises
- Dr. Rohan Samarajiva, Chair, LIRNEasia, Colombo, Sri Lanka

3. How Innovation in Emerging Countries Contribute to further Economic Growth and Social Development
- Minister Diego Molano Vega, Bogota, Colombia

4. Recent Policy and Regulatory Developments in the Termination of International Communication Traffic
- Sam Paltridge, OECD, Paris France

5. Current Cases concerning Required Localization of Networks and Data Storage and their Consequences for Trade Law
- Dr. John Selby, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia

6. Impact of Changing Market and Technology Realities on Current and Future Trade Negotiations and Internet Policies
- Jacqueline Ruff, Vice President, Verizon Corporation, Washington, DC

7. Limits and Potential for a New Vision of Globalization based on the Evolving Multistakeholder Model
- Subi Chaturvedi, Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India

8. As we Pursue Policy Goals of Investment, Competition and Innovation in Global Markets are Legacy Regulatory Models in Alignment with Market Facts?
- Eric Loeb, Vice President, AT&T Corporation

Substantive Rapporteur: Jessica Jones, Government Relations Manager, BT America

Economic activity, human development and civic engagement converge on the Internet. In connecting producers and consumers of information, online intermediaries serve as a valuable tool for growth and innovation. By organising and facilitating access to information, data and user-generated content, intermediaries play a crucial role in protecting the human rights of end users. While the economic benefits provided by online intermediaries is fairly widely acknowledged, a concerted approach to understanding their impact on human rights demands our urgent attention.
This workshop will consider the various roles and functions that intermediaries fulfil in the online space. Currently, the types of intermediaries covered by different liability regimes changes considerably across jurisdictions. Policy concerns raised by classification of functions and responsibilities across different types of intermediaries are not addressed systematically in existing law or jurisprudence, leading to widely differing regimes being imposed both across different legal systems and within the same legal system. The aim of this workshop will be, then, to come to a more in-depth and rounded understanding of what are the different classes of intermediaries, how they differ functionally and if their differing roles should bear an impact on their responsibility with regards to protection of human rights.
The workshop will be an opportunity to present and discuss ongoing research on the changing definition of intermediaries and their responsibilities across jurisdictions and technologies and contribute to a comprehensible framework for liability that is consistent with the capacity of the intermediary and with international human-rights standards.

This workshop discusses the issue of public interest or public responsibility and how different organizations in the Internet governance ecosystem have over the years evolved in this respect. Different organizations have certainly developed diverse approaches to the global public interest issue and how best to pursue it, while preserving the core objectives of the organization in question. Moreover, foundations and development agencies have been offering programs in developing and least developed economies using the tools and the powers of the information technology in general and the Internet in particular. 

Agenda: The Global Public Interest of the Internet 

 

Thursday, September 4, 2014

11:00- 12:30pm

 

Duration: 90 minutes

Schedule:

11:00-11:10 Introduction
Pierre Dandjinou


11:10-11:25 Defining the Global Public Interest of the Internet- the Work of Panel for the Public Responsibility Framework
Nii Quaynor 


11:25-11:50 How can organizations in the Internet governance ecosystem forge better collaboration in the global public interest agenda?
Nevine Tewfik
Rinalia Abdul Rahim

Titi Akinsanmi

11:50-12:25 Discussion
Led by Pierre Dandjinou

Pierre poses questions for floor discussion on defining public responsibility and the global public interest in the Internet, and the role of organizations, governments, and civil society in addressing this. 

Questions will also be taken from Remote participants.

12:25-12:30 Final Remarks from Panelists and Close

The process of moving to cities is putting tremendous pressure on sustainable growth and development globally, especially in developing countries. In this scenario, cloud computing and mobile Internet is becoming a key solution. However, compared with developed countries, development induced by Clouds and mobile Internet in developing countries is lagging behind.

Lacking of mature infrastructures is hindering developing countries to adopt Clouds and mobile Internet. More importantly, the shortage of implementation strategy is blocking developing countries to benefit from them in promoting economic growth and advance social development.

Despite of all these obstacles, some developing countries have taken some steps. With cloud computing and mobile Internet, development in China is led to a more sustainable way, by reducing the cost of growing business, raising the energy efficiency of IT infrastructure, and enhancing reasonable distribution of social resources. African countries is moving forward on advocating cloud computing by improving their interconnect speeds and reducing bandwidth costs.

With case studies, speakers from multi stakeholder groups from both developing countries and developed countries will address the issues on:
1.What are the challenges for developing countries to benefit from Clouds and mobile Internet?
2.How can we tackle the issues on IT infrastructure development in developing countries?
3.What are the practical strategies to make Clouds and mobile Internet contribute more efficiently in promoting sustainable growth and development of developing countries?
4.How can we encourage win-win multi-stakeholders co-operation between developed countries and developing countries, and among developing countries?

The proposed agenda is as follows:
1. Mr. Forrest Lin, the moderator of the workshop will make scene-setting remarks for 5 minutes.
2. Mr. Endong Wang will introduce Chinese Industry Cloud from two perspectives. High-end server, mass storage and cloud operating system; enterprise, industry and government informatization software, and terminal products and solutions developed in China all together form a solid foundation for the Chinese Industry Cloud. Then Mr. Endong Wang will present some cases of the construction of government cloud platform, industry cloud platform and enterprise cloud platform in China. The talk will last for 15 minutes.
3. Ms. Fiona Asonga from TESPOK will give an introduction of Kenya Internet Exchange Point (KIXP) and how KIXP enhances Internet use with fast, efficient and inexpensive services. Ms. Fiona Asonga will lead the discussion on the adoption of cloud computing with the help of KIXP. The talk will last for 15 minutes.
4. Mr. Paulo Calçada from EuroCloud will discuss on how can developing countries benefit from the experience of European adoption of Cloud computing, especially the European Cloud Strategy. He would begin his talk with a brief description of European Cloud strategy followed with a case study on how European cloud strategy works. The talk will last for 15 minutes. The talk will last for 15 minutes.
5. Prof. Xiaofeng Tao from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications will briefly introduce 4G mobile Internet program in China and how Chinese benefit from 4G mobile Internet to promote Cloud Computing and other Internet services. The talk will last for 15 minutes.
6. Mr. Forrest Lin and Ms. Asonga will make a short conclusion of the above four talks for about 3 minutes.
7. Open Q&A will last 20 minutes allowing all the speakers and audience including remote participants to share experience, discuss on question of interest.
8. A short summary will be made by Mr. Forrest Lin and Ms. Asonga to wrap up the workshop.

Cloud computing and M2M technologies are being employed globally in ways never imagined. The rapid growth of mobile telephony in developing countries offers them opportunities to utilize cloud computing and M2M technologies to grow businesses, expand economies, and tackle larger social issues. They further enhance participation in the Internet governance ecosystem.

Nevertheless, many emerging economies have yet to tap the enormous potential of these technologies owing to challenges related to infrastructure and networks, capacity building, Internet governance, privacy and security policies.

Panelists, using case studies, will identify best practices and strategies that have proved successful in addressing some of the following challenges:

• Trends in Infrastructure: Infrastructural issues -- such as international broadband connectivity, national backbone, and Internet exchange points -- will influence whether a country can receive the benefits of the cloud computing and M2M technologies.
• Research and Education: More research and better educational frameworks needed to build potential user capacities with respect to cloud and M2M technologies.
• Privacy, Security, and Internet Governance: The potential of cloud computing and M2M technologies to foster innovation, create new jobs, and address social welfare needs a safe and secure online environment and sound Internet governance principles -- but without creating unnecessary burdens or resulting in unintended consequences for users.
• The Potential of Cloud, M2M and Big Data to Realize Broader Social Objectives: Cloud and M2M technologies can be leveraged to achieve larger social goals. In particular, cloud computing may serve as a platform for big data analytics, which can provide new insights into how to address a broad array of public policy issues.

Substantive Rapporteur
Ms. Verena Weber, Internet Governance Advisor, Comision de Regulacion de Comunicaciones, Government of Colombia

Agenda

1. Understanding the Power of M2M Technologies for Economic Development
• Mr. Rudolph Van Der Berg, Analyst, OECD, Paris, France

2. Challenges and Opportunities of Cloud Computing: An Emerging Economy User Perspective
• Dr. Rohan Samarajiva, LIRNEasia, Colombo, Sri Lanka

3. Cities as Living Labs – Technology in a Multidisciplinary Context
• Mr. Filipe Araújo, City Councilor for Innovation and Environment at Porto Municipality, Porto, Portugal

4. Colombia’s Vive Digital Initiative: Using Cloud, M2M, and ICTs to Reduce Poverty and Drive Economic Development
• Ms. Verena Weber, Internet Governance Advisor, Colombian Ministry of Communications

5. Egypt Taps into the Cloud: A Government Perspective
• Dr. (Ms.) Noha Adly, First Deputy to Minister, Ministry of Communication & Information Technology, Government of Egypt

This year, 2014, has been declared the United Nations (UN) International Year of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) celebrating their ‘vibrant and distinct cultures, diversity and heritage’ and recognising their people being ‘at the forefront of efforts to address pressing global issues through ingenuity, innovation and use of traditional knowledge’.

The data that results from Internet access and mobile connectivity can aid better policy and programmes, to help SIDS improve Internet governance, cybersecurity and resiliency in their countries. The development of a rich technological ecosystem for SIDS, which connects them with continents and the world is therefore important and data and access to information and technology which the Internet facilitates can help to support this. SIDS must provide timely context-appropriate data directly to policy makers; data to software developers; and promote the generation and dissemination of data by the public and diaspora; and data-centric applications to consumers and development agencies. It follows that there is a direct link between the development of data infrastructure and Internet governance mechanisms.

In addition, given privacy and ethical concerns and the vulnerability of these regions to information security breaches it is important that ways that these threats can be avoided through better Internet governance mechanisms is addressed.

This workshop brings together a variety of stakeholders to discuss ways that Internet Governance frameworks relating to open data and big data can help to connect these unique states with each other, their diaspora communities and the rest of the world.

When making decisions, policy makers, business leaders, and others often depend heavily upon economic assessments and models. But traditional economics is often unable to reflect the dynamic innovation enabled by the Internet. For example, old economic models assume that individuals and companies are motivated primarily by profit and can’t adequately explain innovation by collaborative, non-profit efforts such as open source software communities or the volunteer effort that created and maintains Wikipedia. The "sharing economy" and other, new economic paradigms are emerging fast and economists need new techniques and better data in order to track and understand them. New innovations such as the iPhone, which was launched in 2007, has enabled benefits that no economic model could have predicted. While new Internet and smartphone apps can be adopted by tens of millions of users in a few months, it often takes governments many years to adapt economic models and policies to new realities. New paradigms for economics and governance that can collect and analyze data in real time are called for. How can economists help develop new governance mechanisms that leverage Big Data and analytics? Policy makers and others who participate in this panel will learn more about leading-edge economic research that could help them better understand the impact and evolution of technology. Economists who attend will learn more about how policy makers are grappling with challenges related to Internet governance, Internet policy, and the evolution of the Internet and how they could benefit from better economic analysis.

Ten years ago, at WSIS, there were great hopes that the Internet could bring great social and economic opportunities for all. These hopes have however not been realized in the past decade.

Key problems are processes of centralization, and also injustices which result from lack attention to mechanims at the technical layers that would aim at contributing to ensuring social and economic justice.

These matters are described in more detail in the background paper.

The workshop is focused on discussing how these social and economic justice issues are reflected (or not) in global Internet Governance institutions and processes, and how these should maybe be reformed.

The panelists will introduce several aspects. During the course of the workshop, one of them will be chosen as a focus topic, in regard to which an outcome document will be produced, by means of a drafting process that follows up on the workshop. This outcome document will address the following question in regard to the chosen focus topic: What can and should be changed in global Internet Governance in order to improve social and economic justice?



AGENDA:

5' Opening and introduction by the workshop moderator

25' Each panelist briefly introduces one aspect of social and economic justice issues in global IG

25' Questions and interventions from the floor, and responses from panelists

5' On the basis of the questions and interventions from the floor during the previous part of the workshop, the workshop moderator chooses one of the social and economic justice issues aspects that had been introduced as a topic that the outcome document will be focused on. The workshop moderator explains that the remainder of the discussion during the workshop itself will be on this topic, and that an outcome document will be produced on this topic. Everyone who wishes to participate in the drafting process for the outcome document is welcome to give their contact information to the workshop moderator or (for remote participants) to the remote participation moderator.

25' Discussion of the chosen focus topic (interventions from the floor and from panelists)

5' Wrap-up, closing and reminder that everyone who wishes to participate in the drafting process for the outcome document is welcome to give their contact information to the workshop moderator or (for remote participants) to the remote participation moderator.