afea 1

1
THE POST WSIS ERA AND THE IGF

Dr. George Papadatos Directorate of UN
International Conferences and Organizations Greek
Ministry of Foreign Affairs E-mail geopapa_at_mfa.gr
2
Introduction

• - My involvement with the WSIS process has
  been long and energetic. As a member of the
  Bureau of the preparatory process of Phase II and
  Rapporteur of all its PrepComs and of the Tunis
  Summit I had the opportunity to become acquainted
  in depth with most of the issues and to
  participate actively in the Bureau discussions
  regarding innovative approaches to the Plenary of
  the Tunis Summit and the better representation
  and participation of all stakeholders
• - As a representative of the country which
  will host the Inaugural meeting of the IGF I
  shall put forward some ideas regarding the
  institutional identity and possible structure of
  the Forum and brief you on the state of
  preparations in Greece

3
WSIS PROCESS-TUNIS-IGF

• -The WSIS process raised a number of issues
  concerning Internet Governance but did not manage
  to resolve them. In Tunis consensus was reached
  that some of these issues continue to be
  discussed in a new international framework, the
  IGF together with emerging ones
• -The Forum represents a high level political
  commitment, which has taken a concrete form at
  the Tunis Summit

4
CAN WE CONTINUE WHAT TUNIS STARTED?

• One of the greatest attributes of the Tunis
  Summit was that it offered a suitable avenue to
  raise the profile of key and complex issues
  worldwide, which have not received the attention
  they deserve. Most importantly it contributed to
  mobilizing and bringing together diverse
  participants around shared goals and politically
  significant results.

5
HOLES IN THE TUNIS TEXT AND THE NEED FOR
ARCHITECTS WITH IMAGINATION

• The Tunis texts shed little light on the issue
  of the institutional identity and the design
  criteria of the IGF. Its structure poses a
  formidable architectural challenge for the
  upcoming Geneva consultations.

6
CAN A UN ENVIRONMENT CREATE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR
INSTITUTIONAL INNOVATION?

• Stakeholders should seize this unique
  opportunity to design something new where the
  soft power and quality of ideas will impact on
  policy makers and other forums. The IGF could
  build policy consensus on a number of issues. It
  should be a positive step in the evolution of
  multilateral institutions.

7

• DESIGN PARAMETERS

-Free flow of ideas through increased interaction
among stakeholders could lead to an independent
and reflective treatment of the
issues.   -Adequate preparation for the
discussion of topics   -Diversity of participants
combined with openness offer an opportunity for
the serious engagement of all stakeholders and is
likely to have a direct impact on a range of
public policy areas. The output of a unique and
innovative Forum combined with a comprehensive
approach to the issues may render it an
attractive input to other organizations, academic
institutions and other entities.
8
HOW IT WILL FUNCTION

• - A once a year session for three days seems
  adequate. It can open with a plenary and break
  into panels and/or working groups
•  
• - Small secretariat to
• support the chair and organize meetings and
• deal with administrative and logistical
  matters.
• - Its financing can be innovative as well as
  the distribution of talent among diverse
  employees
•  
• - Bureau representative of the Forums
  diversity and openness
• Five????
•  
• - A Plenary for general discussion,
  organizational issues etc

9
PANELS/WORKING GROUPS

• Deliberative in nature to treat previously
  identified topics and prepare reports for
  consideration at the plenary
•  
• - On line deliberation and work by the Groups
  could facilitate the overall process.

10
IGF S OUTPUT

• The Forums report could offer a synthesis of
  presentations and discussions highlighting some
  of the main points which emerged from the
  deliberations. In my view it is not intended as a
  transcription of the various presentations but
  rather reflecting the crosscutting issues,
  questions and concerns raised by presenters and
  participants. Based on the discussions, the
  purpose is to present an overview of the
  complexity of issues and identify areas which
  merit further examination and possible action.

11
The Inaugural Meeting of IGF in Athens
Preparations to date

• Establishment of a Greek Interministerial
  Steering Committee
• Briefing of the ICANN board and GAC in Vancouver
• Briefing of UN DSG Ms Louise Frechette at UN
  Headquarters New York
• Exchange of letters between H.E., the Minister of
  Transport Communications of Greece, Mr.
  Michalis Liapis, and the UN SG, Mr. Kofi Annan
• Consultations in Paris and Geneva with the ITU
  SG, Mr. Yoshio Utsumi, Regional Groups and other
  stakeholders
• Creation of a Greek Website dedicated to the
  ianugural meeting of IGF (IGF-Greece2006.org)

12
(No Transcript)
13
Next Steps

• Consultations with Civil Society- February 15, in
  Geneva
• Participation in the Consultations regarding the
  IGF, organized by the representative of the UN
  SG- February 16-17, in Geneva
• High Level Greek Delegation to visit the UN SG in
  New York
• Final setting of a date for the 1st meeting of
  the Forum t.b.c with the UN SG (most probable
  date, 25-26 October 2006)

14

• Thank you for your attention and you are all
  welcome in Athens!
• For any further information please contacts
  us, or visit our website
• (IGF-Greece2006.org)