[WSIS CS-Plenary] statement to sub-committee B on implementation/ follow-up

[Parminder]

 The following is the statement read out today in the sub-committee B calling 
for clear implementation / follow-up structures for WSIS that should be set up 
by  the Tunis summit itself.


Statement on behalf of
the Civil Society Working  Group on WSIS follow-up
Sub-Committee B of the WSIS PrepCom3
September 22, 2005


Following our statement yesterday evening, I am pleased to announce that we 
are compiling  in a single document all civil society contributions on 
paragraphs 10 to 14 and 29 to 35 of the GFC document now under consideration. 

It lists, paragraph by paragraph, in a first column, the formulation contained 
in the GFC draft Document 6, in a second column, the proposed text, and in a 
third column, some explanatory comments related to the change. This third 
column was necessary given the little time for oral comments that is available 
for civil society. 

Upon final reviewing tonight, we will be ready to transmit it to the 
secretariat so that those submissions can be integrated in the future “clean 
version” to be distributed next week in the same way document DT-6 was 
structured. 

This will allow all governments to review these contributions in the same way 
they did it for paragraphs 1 to 9.

We believe the follow-up framework we need must enable numerous bottom-up 
initiatives to emerge so that all stakeholders can contribute to the 
implementation of the ambitious goals set in Geneva. Our contributions 
describe in detail, in line with our first statement last Tuesday, precise 
mechanisms to facilitate the formation of multi-stakeholder thematic 
initiatives along Thematic clusters. But I will not detail them here. 

Because, at present, I want only to address a key missing element in the 
present draft, an element that was present in document DT-6, that is the need 
for an appropriate coordinating body. Spontaneous organization is not enough. 
It needs an anchor, something that :
helps the coordination  of implementation activities and
allows coherence in the policy debate

For that reason we will propose that a paragraph 14 f) be added for the 
purpose of establishing an appropriate coordination body at the global level. 

Such a body should be multi-stakeholder in its composition, paying attention 
to regional and gender balance in its composition, as well as guaranteeing 
representation of marginalized groups. 

It could be mandated with, among others, the following functions:

-Help different organizations, including intergovernmental organizations, 
interface on their matters of common concern or interest 

-Ensure that all organizations are fully involved in the Thematic Clusters 
relevant to their mandate and competencies 

-Provide a holistic approach to implementation by coordinating activities of 
the various actors

-Identify and document emerging information society issues, to facilitate 
policy debate on them and define the relevant framework to address them 

-Promote and assess on an ongoing basis the integration of WSIS principles and 
objectives in the activities of all involved actors

-Review, on an ongoing basis the progress - or lack thereof - in the 
achievement of the WSIS objectives and report on an annual basis to the UN 
General Assembly.

Precise modalities for the creation of such a coordination body should be 
established through an open and inclusive process mandated by the Tunis 
summit, in order for the coordinating body to be set up before the end of 
2006. 

Precise wording of a new paragraph 14 f. along those lines is integrated in 
the submission we will transmit tonight. 


    
Parminder

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