The FINANCIAL — The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) welcomed on March 20 the formation of the new Multistakeholder Advisory Group (MAG) responsible for steering preparation of the annual Internet Governance Forum (IGF).
UN Secretary General António Guterres appointed 28 new members to serve on the MAG that will work to prepare the 13th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) – the open forum for inclusive policy dialogue on issues of Internet governance, according to ICC.
Timea Suto of ICC Business Action to Support the Information Society (BASIS) and BASIS members Christoph Steck (Telefonica) and Ben Wallis (Microsoft) were nominated as representatives of the private sector along with three other private sector candidates from Barbados, Hong Kong and Namibia, joining five previously serving business members of the MAG that have been renewed for another term.
Working with renewed IGF MAG Chair Lynn St. Amour, a total of 55 members make up the 2018 MAG, spanning all stakeholder groups and all regions, representing governments, civil society, the private sector and the technical community.
The IGF was established to fulfil one of the commitments laid down by the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which took place in Tunis in 2005. The inaugural meeting of the IGF took place in Athens in 2006 and the forum has been held in different countries every year since. After 10 years, the UN General Assembly conducted a review of the WSIS process concluding in a high-level meeting in December 2015. The IGF was renewed for a mandate of 10 years, recognising its contribution as a unique opportunity for all stakeholders to discuss issues of crucial importance to the global development of the Internet.
The first face-to-face meeting of the IGF MAG will take place on 20-22 March in Geneva to kick off preparations for this year’s IGF.
