World Summit on the Information Society

2023 ECOSOC Partnership Forum Side Event: WSIS Cooperation for Accelerating Progress on the SDGs

2023 ECOSOC Partnership Forum Side Event: WSIS Cooperation for Accelerating Progress on the SDGs

United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS) and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)

Session 131

Tuesday, 31 January 2023

08:30-9:45 (UTC-5) New York
14:30–15:45 (UTC+01:00) Geneva
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The achievement and the progress for 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development require multistakeholder collaboration and partnerships. Given the global challenges and with eight years ahead to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the need for accelerated actions is paramount. To collectively achieve the SDGs, collaboration within the UN system and with non-UN stakeholders, including private sectors, civil societies, academia, youth, and many more is imperative.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development highlights the importance of information and communication technologies (ICT) and global interconnectedness as powerful enablers of growth, to accelerate human progress, to bridge the digital divide, and to develop knowledge societies. More needs to be done to leverage the potential of digital technologies.

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) is a UN process that includes an annual, multistakeholder Forum where governments, civil societies, private sectors, academia, international organisations, technical communities, and others are able to network, partner, and share how to achieve the SDGs through the framework of the WSIS Action Lines. WSIS emphasises multistakeholder collaboration and cooperation across all regions and sectors.

United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS) is a great example of existing well-functioning digital cooperation in the UN system. Its mandate includes promoting collaboration and partnerships among the members of the Chief Executives Board (CEB) to contribute to the achievement of WSIS goals, providing guidance on issues related to inclusive information and knowledge societies, helping maintain issues related to science and technology at the top of the UN Agenda, and mainstreaming ICT for Development. UNGIS offers a valuable knowledge and resource base that has been developed in the past decade on a multi-stakeholder basis focusing on innovative tools and approaches to tackle multiple development challenges.

This session, co-organised by WSIS and UNGIS will focus on how the ICTs and the WSIS cooperation can help accelerate the SDGs, learning from the COVID-19 experience to build an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable societies and economies. It is important to strengthen partnerships and digital cooperation towards achieving goals and targets across the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

More information about the 2030 ECOSOC Partnership Forum: https://sdgs.un.org/events/ecosoc-partnership-forum-2023

Registration to the 2030 ECOSOC Partnership Forum (virtual participation only): https://forms.office.com/e/vF2zDD6Hsg. Deadline is Monday, 30 January.

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CoNGO is a civil society partner of the WSIS Process.

Twenty-fifth Session of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development

Twenty-fifth Session of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development
28 March – 01 April 2022
Palais des Nations
Geneva, Switzerland
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The Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) is a subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the United Nations focal point for science, technology and innovation (STI) for development, in analyzing how STI, including information and communications technologies (ICTs), serve as enablers of the 2030 Agenda.

It acts as a forum for strategic planning, sharing lessons learned and best practices, providing foresight about critical trends in STI in key sectors of the economy, the environment and society, and drawing attention to emerging and disruptive technologies.

Every year, the commission has two priority themes. For the twenty-fifth session, these are:

  1. Industry 4.0 for inclusive development.
  2. Science, technology and innovation for sustainable urban development in a post-pandemic world.

The Commission will also review the progress made in the implementation of and follow-up to the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society at the regional and international levels; and hear presentations on ongoing science, technology and innovation policy reviews.

Participants will include representatives of Governments, international organizations, civil society and the private sector.

Programme

28 March
  • Opening ceremony, followed by a dialogue between eminent economists and scientists on the opportunities of and challenges in scientific breakthroughs for sustainable development.
  • High-level round table on the role of science, technology and innovation in a sustainable and resilient recovery from the current pandemic. Held as a contribution to the Economic and Social Council and the high-level political forum on sustainable development, whilst at the same time advancing the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
29 March
  • High-level session on Industry 4.0 for inclusive development.
30 March
  • High-level session on Science, technology and innovation for sustainable urban development in a post-pandemic world.
31 March
  • High-level session to review the progress made in the implementation of and follow-up to the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society at the regional and international levels.
1 April
  • Science, technology and innovation policy reviews.
  • Gender dimension in science, technology and innovation policies.

Logistics

The session will be held with physical participation at the Palais des Nations and remote participation through a simultaneous interpretation platform in the six official languages of the United Nations.

A link to the formal virtual meeting will be sent to registered participants, at the email address used for registration, one day in advance of the start of the session.

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