list members may be interested in learning about a kuala
lumpur just passed two days ago on ict policies and
strategies in asia-pacific. please see below:
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United Nations Development Programme
KUALA LUMPUR DECLARATION ON ICT POLICIES AND e-STRATEGIES IN
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
The Kuala Lumpur Declaration on ICT Policies and
e-Strategies in Asia and the Pacific was endorsed by
high-level Asian delegates at the Asian Forum on ICT
Policies and e-Strategies, as Asia-Pacific input to the
World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) to be held in
Geneva in December 2003.
The Forum was organized by the United Nations Development
Programme$BCT(B Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme
under the auspices of the United Nations Information and
Communication Technology Task Force, supported by the
Ministry of Energy, Communications and Multimedia, Malaysia,
and jointly sponsored by the Government of Japan.
The 17 point declaration reflects the views of delegates
comprising Ministers and senior government officials, as
well as private sector and civil society representatives
from 22 countries in the Asia Pacific region and regional
and international organizations.
To ensure the views of developing nations of the
Asia-Pacific region are not marginalized in the
international discussions on formulating guidelines towards
the Information Society at WSIS, emphasis was placed on
specific policies on poverty reduction and the Millennium
Development Goals, governance, gender, infrastructure and
access, human resources, content and applications,
enterprises and entrepreneurs, and regional co-operation.
The specific needs and interests of least developed
countries, landlocked and developing island nations of the
Asia-Pacific region were also highlighted.
The World Summit on the Information Society, which will be
attended by global leaders and participants from civil
society organizations; private sector; regional
organizations and international organizations, seeks to
develop and foster clear statements of political will and a
plan of action for achieving the goals of the Information
society, while reflecting the different views of nations and
participants worldwide.
The Forum also featured a Ministers’ Roundtable, chaired by
Datuk Amar Leo Moggie, Minister of Energy, Communications
and Multimedia, Malaysia, which reviewed a range of issues
and concerns on ICT policy and strategy formulation in the
region while discussing the impact of global trends and
development.
The delegates also agreed to re-convene an Asia-Pacific
forum on ICT policies and e-strategies next year, to
deliberate the outcomes of the WSIS process in Geneva, and
review national and regional action plans while discussing
common challenges in implementation.
For more information, please contact
Gopi Pradhan (gopi@apdip.net)
ICT Policy Specialist
UNDP Asia Pacific Development Information Programme
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tel: 603-20959122
Fax: 603-20939740
Forum website: www.apdip.net
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KUALA LUMPUR DECLARATION ON ICT POLICIES AND e-STRATEGIES
IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
22 October, 2003
ASIAN FORUM ON INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
POLICIES AND
e-STRATEGIES
KUALA LUMPUR
20-22 OCTOBER, 2003
KUALA LUMPUR DECLARATION ON ICT POLICIES AND e-STRATEGIES IN
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
22 October, 2003
ASIAN FORUM ON INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
POLICIES AND
e-STRATEGIES
The Asia-Pacific is one of the most dynamic regions in terms
of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
developments. Representing this vast, diverse and dynamic
region, delegates, including Ministers and senior government
officials as well as private sector and civil society
representatives, from 22 countries in the Asia-Pacific
Region and regional and international organizations convened
at a Forum on Information and Communication Technologies
held on 20-22 October 2003 in Kuala Lumpur. The participants
of the Forum engaged in productive deliberations, which are
reflected in this declaration:
Underlining the importance of Poverty Reduction and the
Millennium Development Goals as a focus of development
aspirations in the region;
Recognising the extraordinary potential for human
development embodied in the cluster of goods, services, and
practices described as information and communication
technologies;
Understanding the possibilities opened up by ICTs for
creativity, decentralised decision-making, and innovation by
persons, groups, and enterprises hitherto marginalized from
full participation;
Accepting the responsibility of government to create the
conditions for the optimal utilisation of the new
possibilities by citizens, groups, and enterprises through
institutional reforms;
Emphasising the importance of involving private sector and
civil society, in particular women, in the development and
implementation of ICT policies and e-strategies;
Giving weight to the values of equality of opportunity,
non-discrimination, cultural and linguistic distinctiveness,
and sustainability;
Acknowledging the benefits of mutual learning, co-operation,
and co-ordination among the members of the Asia-Pacific
region in the areas of ICT policies, strategies, and
practices;
Realising the important role of regional and international
organizations in facilitating the application of ICT to
development; and
Taking note of previous deliberations and declarations,
including the Communiqué of the Ministerial Roundtable on
$BE5(Boward Knowledge Societies’ held on 9-10 October 2003
during the 32nd session of UNESCO$BCT(B General Conference, the
Association of South East Asian Nations – Joint Statement
for the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) 2003, the
Tokyo Declaration adopted at the WSIS Asia-Pacific Regional
Conference held on 13-15 January 2003, and the Pacific
Islands Information and Communication Technologies Policy
and Strategic Plan of 2002;
We the participants of the Asian Forum on Information and
Communication Technology Policies and e-Strategies hereby
endorse the formulation, adoption, and implementation of ICT
policies and e-strategies at the national, bilateral,
regional, and international levels that include the
following elements:
Poverty Reduction and the Millennium Development Goals
1. Ensure that ICTs are harnessed in the pursuit of poverty
reduction and the achievement of Millennium Development
Goals, thus helping to overcome the Digital Divide;
2. Deploy ICTs actively in the policies and strategies for
empowering women;
Policy and Governance
3. Ensure transparency and accountability of governments and
the participation of multiple stakeholders, including women
and ethnic minorities, in the formulation and implementation
of ICT policies and e-strategies, utilising the technical
features of ICTs;
4. Establish legal and technical principles to assure trust
and confidence, and make possible trust-building actions by
users, giving due regard to data protection, privacy and the
security of persons, enterprises, and society against any
harm;
5. Ensure that policies and strategies are periodically
evaluated and modified as necessary to yield the desired
results;
6. Encourage South-South learning through effective
arrangements at an inter-agency level to initiate exchange
of information, best practices, and explore possible
collaborative development programs;
Infrastructure and Access
7. Create the conditions and incentives for the provision of
widest possible access to ICTs, particularly for rural and
under-served areas in configurations responsive to demand;
8. Enable the private sector and civil society to
participate in the provision of affordable ICT
infrastructure, products, and services in forms of their
choosing;
Human Capacity
9. Facilitate opportunities for human resource development
and life long learning through and on ICTs, with particular
attention to women;
10. Support youth programmes related to ICT skills
development;
Content and Applications
11. Reflect the appropriate balance between rewarding the
originators of knowledge and creative content, and the fair
and flexible use of information products;
12. Develop creative approaches to preserving and advancing
cultural and linguistic distinctiveness and self-expression
in the new ICT environment;
13. Balance considerations of software alternatives between
open source and proprietary platforms and applications;
Enterprise and Entrepreneurs
14. Allow the greatest flexibility for entrepreneurs and
enterprises to use ICTs to create wealth, trade, and
employment opportunities;
15. Ensure the provision of sustainable sources of revenues
to priority programs;
Strategic Compacts and Co-operation
16. Engage in bilateral, multilateral, regional, and
international co-operation, to fully realise the potential
of ICTs, to learn from each other, and adopt best practices;
17. Take into account the special needs of least developed
countries, landlocked and developing island nations of the
Asia-Pacific in the application of ICT to development.
Governments, regional organizations, and international
organizations responsible for the formulation and adoption
of ICT policies and e-strategies are urged to develop and
adhere to adequately resourced action plans that designate
responsible actors, timelines, and priorities as appropriate
for their particular circumstances.
This declaration is timed so as to be able to make a
contribution to the Geneva phase of WSIS 2003. As follow up
and in light of the outcomes of the Geneva phase of WSIS, we
agree to convene the Asia-Pacific Forum on ICT Policies and
e-Strategies, which will involve stakeholders from the
public, private sector, civil society, regional and
international organizations, during the inter-Summit period
(2003-2005) to:
· review national and regional action plans vis-à-vis the
WSIS 2003 Plan of Action;
· discuss common challenges in implementation;
· exchange information on lessons learned and best
practices, and
· establish solutions-oriented e-strategies.
Kuala Lumpur, 22 October, 2003