World Summit on the Information Society

The need to include community networks as a solution to access gaps in the World Summit on the Information Society follow-up and implementation process was the main focus of APC’s participation at this year’s Commission on Science and Technology for Development session. 

More than 10 years after the realisation of WSIS, open, affordable and free internet access remains a critical challenge. There is growing concern about the significant digital divides that still exist, such as those between and within countries and between women and men.

Access to information and knowledge has been recognised as a key principle for achieving the WSIS vision since 2003. Information and knowledge for all are key for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals because they link to empowerment and mobility, enabling people to improve their lives.

The African School on Internet Governance was announced this week as the winner of a 2017 World Summit on the Information Society Prize, awarded by the International Telecommunication Union.

APC's inputs towards the elaboration of the annual report to the Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) on the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).

The WSIS+10 review process and its commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development offer a unique opportunity to focus on the interaction between technology and the various aspects of development.    

This new phase of the WSIS process is a unique opportunity to focus on the interaction between technology and the various aspects of development, recognising that technology alone cannot resolve development challenges and that the information society is primarily a matter of human development.

"I want to thank the member states who have produced an outcome that not only does no harm to the Internet but offers opportunities for us to reinforce the global Internet as a resource that is to be shared equitably by all people."