Dear WSIS Stakeholders, the WSIS Forum 2021 has held more than 100 sessions as of today and more special sessions are coming, culminating with the final week 17-21 May .

We thank you for your valuable participation and contributions striving towards ICTs for Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable Societies and Economies.

Keep an eye out for our upcoming events through our interactive Agenda and our social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter !

The WSIS Prizes champions have been announced – with a record number of 1 million votes! And the 18 winners will be revealed during the final week of the WSIS Forum 2021 - More information
Keep an eye out for our upcoming events through our interactive here

We also encourage you to browse through our virtual exhibition to learn more about our partners and the 100s of organizations showcased.

This year, we received a record number of inputs and submissions through the Open Consultation Process (OCP) of the WSIS Forum 2021 – we received 500 contributions from stakeholders worldwide during online discussions and direct official submissions. We thank all WSIS stakeholders for their continuous support in the process.

The agenda and programme of the WSIS Forum 2021 are designed on the basis of the submissions received during the OCP.

Between 22 and 26 March, more than 1550 participants joined us for 11 High-Level Policy sessions of the WSIS Forum 2021.

More than 100—Ministers, Deputies, Head of Regulatory Agencies and High-Level Representatives representing Private Sector, Academia, International Organizations, Technical Community and Civil society joined with some joining for the first time, especially from the Americas region, including Ministers and Regulators from Trinidad and Tobago, Nicaragua, Uruguay, United States (Chairwoman), Jamaica and Peru. In addition to the successful participation of Ministers and Regulators, a cross sectoral approach was engaged with the participation of Ministers and High-Levels from other sectors.

With more than 1000 participants joining from around the world, hackers had the opportunity to ideate ICT solutions and proof of concepts that respond to some of the challenges faced by older persons and that may have surfaced or been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Join us for the Finalists pitches sessions, on May 3 and May 4 where the finalists will be judges by a panel of distinguished experts in the field of ICTs and Ageing.

Final pitches part 1 – more information

This year marks the 10th Anniversary of International Girls in ICT Day with the theme “Connected Girls; Creating Brighter Futures.” Traditionally celebrated on the fourth Thursday of April, the Girls in ICT celebrations for this special year will highlight the 10 moments in the life of young girls bringing into focus some of the key stakeholders and industries responsible for promoting girls in the field of technology.

The session held on 22 April will represent the 3rd of the 10 moments: Dialogue and Conversation.

Register and join the session here:

Financing is one of the 6 enablers of connectivity identified for sustainable development for all and particularly for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), and Small Island Development States (SIDs). Financing connectivity has been recognized as a key priority in the UN Roadmap for Digital Cooperation Working Group on Universal Connectivity and in the Broadband Commission Working Group on 21st Century Financing Models.

A range of innovative financing approaches have already been applied and tested in various markets and sectors.

This session of the Road to Addis will explore some innovative financing models and their application, as well as some good practices and lessons learned in financing connectivity for sustainable development.

The theme for this year’s World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD 2021) is 'Accelerating digital transformation in challenging times' and you are all invited to join the celebration that will take place during the WSIS Forum final week, on Monday 17 May, at 1pm (CEST) – See the AGENDA for more information. To find out more visit our dedicated WEBSITE and see where you will find an Advocacy Toolkit in the six ITU languages together with the promotional materials to share with members and partners to continue to raise awareness of the importance of the Union's work to reach the goals and targets in the Connect 2030 Agenda.