Roundtable on the United Nations’ Role with regards to the Dangers of Anocratic States

This roundtable, co-hosted by the Center on Governance through Human Rights and the Stimson Center, will discuss how and why anocratic states have become the “new normal.” Studies and research on democracy often focuses on two political regimes: democracy and autocracy. Register here!

Chair

Gabriel Amvane, Vice President and Director, French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless People (OFPRA)

Participants

Anja Mihr, Program Director, Center on Governance through Human Rights
Richard Ponzio, Senior Fellow and Director, Global Governance, Justice & Governance Program, Stimson Center
John-Mark Iyi, Associate Professor, University of the Western Cape
Kseniya Kizilova, Head of Secretariat, World Values Survey Association
James Kim, Research Fellow, Asan Institute for Policy Studies
Daisaku Higashi, Professor, Center for Global Education and Discovery, Sophia University

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Migration, please visit ngo-migration.org.

Accelerating Digital Transformation of Government Services

World Summit on the Information Society Forum 2021

This session will provide a platform for high-level dialogue between the representatives of international and regional organizations, government, civil society, and private sector, on the challenges and possible solutions, including the offering of GovStack initiative, that aims at accelerating digitalization of the governmental services across the world.

Register here: itu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4waiI4cJTRCpn5f8M6jdWg

Digital government services are vital for developing a digital economy that benefits all citizens by expanding access to critical services such as health, education, and social protection. Countries seeking to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the next ten years are increasingly looking to national digital strategies and agendas to transform the way they do business and improve the lives of their citizens. Current challenges to digital government include lack of coordination, the habit of working in siloes, funding constraints, and the absence of scalable solutions, all posing significant constraints to digital transformation in government. Amid the increasing pressure to act, countries do not have the time nor the luxury to reinvent the wheel or review fragmented and duplicated investments. This further increases costs and inefficiencies.

A “Whole-of-Government” platform approach to developing government services through the reuse and minimal customization of quick and easy to adopt building blocks is at the heart of the success of digital government services projects. Open-source models for a government platform that is built from modular and reusable components, leveraging a secure and standards-based approach, are an optimal solution to solving these issues in a cost-efficient and scalable manner.

This session will provide a platform for high-level dialogue between the representatives of international and regional organizations, government, civil society, and private sector, on the challenges and possible solutions, including the offering of GovStack initiative, that aims at accelerating digitalization of the governmental services across the world.

For more information, full agenda, and the list of panelists: itu.int/net4/wsis/forum/2021/Agenda/Session/416

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CoNGO Notes: CoNGO is a civil society focal point with the WSIS Forum. See former CoNGO President, Cyril Ritchie, in this interview with ITU: youtube,com/watch?v=cYA8UauD28U. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN.

Fulfilling the Promise of the UN75 Declaration

Join us, the Coalition for the UN We Need (formerly UN2020), and Together First to discuss ways to build momentum of the UN’s 75th anniversary to strengthen global governance innovation.

The event will feature several of the 49 signatories of the letter, A Time for Renewal: Calling for a Strengthened Multilateral System*. Signatories include former heads of government, foreign ministers, and UN officials, who urged world leaders to take stock of present challenges to the UN system by calling for a dedicated intergovernmental process to strengthen and reform the organization.

To take stock of the UN75 Declaration and advance our common agenda, the Stimson Center, Coalition for the UN We Need and Together First will launch a series of events to discuss the future of global cooperation. The first event of the series will invite prominent leaders to consider how an inclusive and networked multilateralism can help to fulfill the commitments made in the UN75 Declaration, as the UN embarks on the Decade of Action to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals.

Speakers:

Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Chair of The Elders
Maria Fernanda Espinosa, President of the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence, Ecuador
Danilo Turk, former President of Slovenia (2007-2012)
Aya Chebbi, African Union Youth Envoy
Michèle Griffin, Senior Policy Advisor, Executive Office of the Secretary-General
Ilona Szabo de Carvalho, Executive Director, Igarapé Institute

Co-hosted by the Coalition for the UN We Need (formerly UN2020), and Together First

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com.

government