[governance] [WSIS CS-Plenary] RE: need of a descriptionforcapacity building?

[Parminder]

Dear Ken

It will be useful to use the occasion of the IGF meeting to organize effort
on capacity building as well, without, as we agree, diluting attention on
crucial public policy issues. A parallel workshop should be good. However,
we need to build some background on this issue, on what exactly are the
capacity building needs here, and how can they be met. 

For example, capacity building for running local internet registries
successfully, is very different from building capacity of civil society
actors for engaging purposefully in public policy debates on IG. Though, it
remains a fact that some understanding of technical issues regarding
internet and IG may be necessary for effective engagement with public policy
issues, one does need that levels of technical knowledge for this as many
techies will like us to believe. And this is not to underestimate the
requirements of sheer technical capacity building in developing countries as
well. 

Part of the capacity building is to understand this difference, and
de-mystify IG related public policy debates. Technicalities of global
commerce and IP law can often be as intricate as those of the Internet and
its technical governance, however many CS actors today engage with WTO and
WIPO issues quite effectively without being economists or being lawyers.  

We should organize CS efforts to define these capacity building needs, and
ideology-neutral ways of meeting these needs. And these efforts can cohere
around a parallel event at the IGF meeting. 

Best regards

Parminder 
 

________________________________________________
Parminder Jeet Singh
IT for Change
Bridging Development Realities and Technological Possibilities 
91-80-26654134
www.ITforChange.net 

-----Original Message-----
From: governance-bounces at lists.cpsr.org
[mailto:governance-bounces at lists.cpsr.org] On Behalf Of Ken Lohento
Sent: Monday, March 27, 2006 4:07 PM
To: plenary at wsis-cs.org; governance at lists.cpsr.org
Subject: Re: [governance] [WSIS CS-Plenary] RE: need of a
descriptionforcapacity building?

Dear Parminder and Milton

>It is my pleasure to agree wholeheartedly with Parminder on this.
>--MM

I'm also happy that the question has brought about that agreement :)

More seriously: thanks for your responses. I agree with the spirit of the
suggestions and the WIPO example given by Parminder seems to me relevant.
The issue now is how to ensure that effective actions/decisions are taken
regarding capacity building in developing or more specifically least
developed countries, in relation to IG? How to ensure that IGF keeps an eye
on it? Right at the beginning of the IGF process, we should work to ensure
that; and in my opinion, at the first meeting of the IGF, we should advocate
for/discussed that without allowing all the discussions to be focussed on
that. For example, since it seems we have 4 days for the meetings, why not
focus one day on that? (more a question than a suggestion) Or maybe better,
as we may have a parallel workshop or parallel sessions, we should discuss
this question during those events and then bring the outcome of discussions
before the plenary(ies).

Best

KL
www.cipaco.org
www.panos-ao.org

-----Message d'origine-----
De : plenary-admin at wsis-cs.org [mailto:plenary-admin at wsis-cs.org]De la part
de Milton Mueller
Envoye : lundi 27 mars 2006 01:47
A : parminder at itforchange.net; governance at lists.cpsr.org;
klohento at panos-ao.org
Cc : plenary at wsis-cs.org
Objet : [WSIS CS-Plenary] RE: [governance] need of a description forcapacity
building?

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_______________________________________

It is my pleasure to agree wholeheartedly with Parminder on this.
--MM

>>> parminder at itforchange.net 3/25/2006 8:58 PM >>>
We all know how important it is to build capacity in developing countries,
and among the CS, on difficult and fast changing issues connected to IG.
However, I will prefer that this important function is organized more
outside the IGF. It is a public policy neutral function (or at least, it
should be)and we should have a separately organized effort to get academic
institutions, donor, experts etc together and pool in their efforts for this
purpose. Have something like an IG capacity building forum. And work hard on
this issue.

IGF should also keep an eye on this important function, but if we put it
substantially on its agenda as the first few issues that it should take up
this issue will only serve the need of tokenistic co-opting of developing
country agenda, without giving quarters on the real, and strongly contested,
public policy issues that concern developing countries.



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