Title: Digital Policy Perspectives: Digital Policies to Advance Equity & Inclusion
Date: 30 May 2024
Time: 14h00-14h45 CET/ 8h00-8h45 EST
Format: Hybrid (In-person and online)
Location: ITU Headquarters Geneva, Room L2
Registration: Register on the WSIS website
About the session:
In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, the creation and implementation of inclusive and equitable digital policies are critical to ensuring that technological advancements benefit everyone, without exception. Equity and inclusion must be at the heart of AI development, ensuring that algorithms are designed with diverse inputs to represent all users fairly. Similarly, equitable access to connectivity is essential to eliminate the digital divide, enabling equal opportunities for all to participate in the digital economy. Government digital services must also prioritize inclusiveness, ensuring that all citizens can access crucial services without barriers. Additionally, effective data governance must uphold the principles of equity and inclusion, protecting the rights and privacy of every individual while promoting transparency and trust.
The session will convene a distinguished panel of experts from the Broadband Commission alongside high-level guest speakers from a mix of private, public, government, and civil society sectors to share insights on how digital policies can foster an environment that champions both equity and inclusion, ensuring that no one is left behind. Our panel of experts will explore these pivotal areas, discussing how fostering equity and inclusion in AI, connectivity, government digital services, and data governance can form the cornerstone of progressive digital policies. Participants will be introduced to emerging innovative approaches and exemplary best practices that are setting new standards in making digital inclusivity a reality across the globe.
Speakers
Ms. Nur Sulyna Abdullah, Executive Director of the Broadband Commission, Chief of the Strategic Planning and Membership Department at ITU
Ambassador Stephan A. Lang, Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy, U.S. Department of State
Dr. Rumman Chowdhury, Parity Consulting, Parity Responsible Innovation Fund & Broadband Commissioner
Mr. Melle Tiel Groenestege, Senior Director of Digital Inclusion, GSMA
Ms. Anita Gurumurthy, Executive Director and Senior Research Fellow, IT for Change
Mr. Cedric Wachholz, Chief, Section for Digital Policy and Digital Transformation, UNESCO
Moderator
Ms. Leona Verdadero, Programme Specialist, Digital Policies & Digital Transformation Section, UNESCO
The annual World Summit on the Information Society Forum is a global multistakeholder platform facilitating the implementation of the WSIS Action Lines for advancing sustainable development, organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP and UNCTAD, in close collaboration with all WSIS Action Line co-/facilitators and other UN organizations. It provides an opportunity for information exchange, knowledge creation and sharing of best practices, while identifying emerging trends and fostering partnerships, considering the evolving Information and Knowledge Societies.
The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event will mark a significant milestone of twenty years of progress made in the implementation of the outcomes of WSIS which took place in two phases — Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005. Twenty years ago, WSIS set the framework for global digital cooperation with a vision to build people-centric, inclusive, and development-oriented information and knowledge societies.
