[governance] Re: AW: [tt-group] FW: GAID

Sat Dec 26 15:46:56 EST 2009

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________________________________
From: Hakikur Rahman <email at hakik.org>
To: Michael Gurstein <gurstein at gmail.com>; governance at lists.cpsr.org <governance at lists.cpsr.org>; 'Jean-Louis FULLSACK' <jlfullsack at orange.fr>; 'William Drake' <william.drake at graduateinstitute.ch>
Sent: Sat Dec 26 01:40:24 2009
Subject: RE: [governance] Re: AW: [tt-group] FW: GAID

Dear Michael,

Happy Holidays!

Yes, at this point I would agree that many developing nations are clearly out of focus in spending for this sort of 'service area' (which directly or indirectly relates to ICT4D), as you have mentioned. Perhaps, lack of knowledge/expertise at the both levels, policy initiators and practitioners. Any thoughts or action plans in diminishing these gaps!

Best regards,
Hakik

At 06:26 AM 12/24/2009, Michael Gurstein wrote:
Hakik,

The Universal Service Funds I was referring to were national funds, often set up at the time of privatization of PTT's.  These funds retain a small percentage of overall telecommunications revenues in national funds generally to be used to ensure "universal (telecom) service" in otherwise un-serviced areas.

M

-----Original Message-----
From: Hakikur Rahman [ mailto:email at hakik.org]
Sent: Wednesday, December 23, 2009 9:38 PM
To: Michael Gurstein; governance at lists.cpsr.org; 'Jean-Louis FULLSACK'; 'William Drake'
Subject: RE: [governance] Re: AW: [tt-group] FW: GAID

To me major donor agencies have shifted their prime focus in other wings, not very specific to ICT4D. Are the Universal Services fund accessible to developing economies? It will be great to learn about links providing information on them.

Thanking you,
Hakik

At 10:46 PM 12/23/2009, Michael Gurstein wrote:
The issue is only partially one of lack of funding for ICT4D projects... In fact, in many cases/places there are funds available for ICT4D (particularly now with ioncreasingly widespread mobile and broadband infrastructures) either through donor resources or from Universal Services funds but there is an overall lack of knowledge/experience/capacity to spend this money in an appropriate and useful/effective way.

Doing the assessments, building the knowledge bases, bringing together those with the experience as developers and end users, developing the multistakeholder issue oriented dialogues and networks is the role that is currently lacking and has been lacking since WSIS and before. The GAID said they would do some of this but they didn't, the IGF dilettantes at the edges but only muddies the waters, the ITU is too clearly top-down (in current speak non-multistakeholder...)

So where to go from here...

Best to all for the season!

M

-----Original Message-----
From: Jean-Louis FULLSACK [ mailto:jlfullsack at orange.fr]
Sent: Wednesday, December 23, 2009 7:44 AM
To: governance at lists.cpsr.org; William Drake
Subject: re: [governance] Re: AW: [tt-group] FW: GAID

Hello Bill, Wolfgang and all
I think there is also another issue to be dealt with very urgently : financing the ICT4D projects and -first of all- the WSIS Action Plan objectives. Remember : the two "hot potatoes" of WSIS were Internet governance and financing for "bridging the digital divide".
The fisrt one was (partly) resolved by setting-up the IGF. Therefore I was asking for a "Financing Mechanisms Forum (FMF)" since the beginning of the WSIS follow-up process. Without any success.
During the the last (or better : the "first") WSIS Forum held in May my proposal didn't recieve any support from the CS side (except from some African grassroot orgs). Therefore I submitted a personal request to the ITU SG for this demand to be taken in consideration, in June after recovering from my heart attack. I was told by a person of ITU to present this proposal as a contribution to the September meeting, convened bu the UNGIS and the ITU, whose topic was precisely the financing mechanisms for ICT4D. But unfortunately I couldn't go to Geneva, my surgeon having advised me against, for medical reasons. That's why my "FMF" proposal is still pending.

As Wolfgang mentions, in 2010 we are at the halfway between Tunis and the deadline of the WSIS Action Plan. We should take profit of this opportunity to push this proposal in the foreground of our demand.
With my best wishes for a merry Christmas and a happy and peaceful New Year to all of you
Jean-Louis Fullsack

> Message du 23/12/09 15:31
> De : "William Drake"
> A : "Kleinwächter, Wolfgang"
> Copie à : "Tim Unwin" , "George Sadowsky" , "Michael Gurstein" , "tt-group at vancouvercommunity.net" , "governance at lists.cpsr.org"
> Objet : [governance] Re: AW: [tt-group] FW: GAID
>
>
> Hello
>
> I understand George's perspective, it's hard not to be frustrated and
> a bit cynical about the way things played out with GAID, although to
> me it's more a matter of missed opprtunities to have a useful and
> inclusive space in the UN for ICT4D than of wasted resources (costs
> were a drop in the bucket, really). The fact that per Michael we
> can't really know what's going on within the UN with the next (if any)
> steps is symptomatic of the long standing problems. Re: Wolfgang's
> suggestion, I would be rather surprised if the ITU were to accept
> making it's "forum" an open multistakeholder process rather than a
> showpiece for itself, they could have done this already and have
> showed no inclination. And It might be risky given the stuff with IGF
> etc. But perhaps it'd be a good way to call their bluff and feed into
> the Plenipot discussion...?
>
> Bill
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>
> On Dec 23, 2009, at 3:54, "Kleinwächter, Wolfgang"
> e> wrote:
>
> > Dear list
> >
> > one opportunity to have a more strategic brainstorming around a
> > reasonable Follow up of GAID could be the IGF consultations in
> > February in Geneva. I propose to have on Wednesday, February, 10,
> > 2010, over lunch (1315 - 1500) a meeting of people present in
> > Geneva. We had a similar meeting last year (in the ITU Montbrillant
> > Building) where we identified an "identity crisis of GAID" with no
> > consequences after the meeting. The meeting was chaired by Bill and
> > Sarbulan was online from NY.
> >
> > Any proposal?
> >
> > BTW I could imagine to move the "WSIS Forum", which is emerging from
> > the annual meetings of the Actions Lines, into something which could
> > absorb previous UNICTTF/GAID activities. My impression is that so
> > far the "WSIS Forum" is mainly in the hand of the ITU and other
> > IGOs, having the lead position in the Action Lines. The WSIS Forum
> > could be further "multistakeholderised" and the responsibility to
> > organoze the meeting - convened by the UN/ITU/UNESCO/FAO/ILO - could
> > go to a MAG like group. Do not forget that 2010 makrs half way
> > towards 2015m the dateline for the Geneva and Tunis Commitments.
> >
> > Wolfgang
> >
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