Singapore has been appointed by the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Kofi Annan to be on the advisory group for the Internet Governance Forum. The Republic takes one of 18 government seats on the 46-member group, which also has ...
June 12, 2006
Singapore has been appointed by the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Kofi Annan to be on the advisory group for the Internet Governance Forum.
The Republic takes one of 18 government seats on the 46-member group, which also has members from the business community, civil society and academia.
The group, established at the World Summit on the Information Society last November, will advise Mr Annan on how the forum should function. The forum is a platform for multi-stakeholder public policy dialogue on Internet Governance issues.
A working definition of Internet Governance states that it is about "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 programmes that shape the evolution and use of the Internet".
This means tackling issues that surround the operations of the World Wide Web, including the management of critical resources such as Internet Protocol addresses and the abuse of the Net.
These issues are multi-dimensional in nature and cannot be addressed by governments alone, thus the need to involve other communities.
IDA will bring to the table its experience on public policy matters related to the Internet, along with counsel on issues like spam, multilingualism and cyber-security. The objective is to ensure that the Internet, being a critical developmental tool, can also benefit developing countries just as it has for Singapore.
The Internet has played a pivotal role in Singapore's social, economic and governance fabric, and will continue to do so as the country moves towards being a totally connected nation.
Singapore's appointment to the advisory group is a testament to its growth and stature as a connected country. IDA is proud to be appointed to the advisory group and looks forward to contribute to the work of the Internet Governance Forum.
For more information on the IGF, please visit http://www.intgovforum.org/
The advisory group has identified openess, security, diversity and access as broad themes under the overall theme of 'Internet Governance for Development' for the first forum to be held in Athens, Greece from 30 October to 2 November 2006. A call for contributions on specific themes and sub-themes is open, and the deadline for submissions is 15 July 2006. If you like to provide your views and questions on the IGF and the issues above, please contact Lionel Choo at lionel_choo@imda.gov.sg
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