1. The Tunis phase of the World Summit on the Information Society will take place at the Parc des Expositions du Kram in Tunis, Tunisia from Wednesday 16 November to Friday 18 November 2005. The Summit will be comprised of an organizational meeting, an opening ceremony, eight plenary meetings, and round tables and high-level panels. The time management plan of the Summit is described in Annex 1.

2. The Tunis phase of the Summit shall start with the organizational meeting on Wednesday morning, which shall be opened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations or any person designated by him for that purpose. The meeting will elect the President of the Summit and the President of the organizational meeting. The meeting will thereafter continue under the chairmanship of the President of the organizational meeting and adopt the Agenda of the Summit, amend Rule 7 of the Rules of Procedure of the Summit, elect the members of the Bureau, take note of the organization of work, set up the Credentials Committee and hear the report of the Preparatory Committee.

3. The organizational meeting shall be followed by the opening ceremony of the Summit. The Heads of State of the host countries, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Secretary-General of ITU, the President of the Preparatory Committee, and one top-level representative from civil society (including NGOs) as well as one top-level representative from a business sector entity (including ITU Sector Members), identified through their self-organizing mechanisms, in coordination with the Secretary-General of the Summit, will be invited to make opening remarks.

4. Immediately after the opening ceremony, the first plenary meeting shall start with general debate. General debate will continue until the eighth plenary meeting on Friday afternoon. The last fifteen minutes of general debate of the first plenary meeting, the last half hour of general debate of the second, third, fifth and sixth plenary meeting and the last hour of general debate of the fourth and seventh plenary meeting will be set aside for statements from representatives of organizations and entities attending the Summit as observers.

5. The list of speakers of States for the General Debate will be established by a drawing of lots, in accordance with the customary UN protocol that ensures that Heads of State or Government speak first, followed by Ministers and other Heads of Delegation. Statements will be limited to 5 minutes. Only one statement per government delegation will be permitted. Palestine, in its capacity as observer, shall participate.

6. During the time reserved for observers, speaking time will be limited to 3 minutes. All speakers should represent the top-level of their organizations or entities. With regard to accredited civil society entities (including NGOs) and business sector entities (including ITU Sector Members), the spokespersons shall be identified through their self-organizing mechanisms, in coordination with the Secretary-General of the Summit. With regard to intergovernmental organizations, in principle, High Level Summit Organizing Committee members, represented at the top-level, may make statements.

7. The last 15 minutes of the fifth plenary meeting and approximately one hour of the eighth plenary meeting, upon completion of the general debate, shall hear reports from Multi-stakeholder Events that have been held in conjunction with the Summit. The list of events reporting to the plenary meetings will be established by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with the High Level Summit Organizing Committee, and self-organizing mechanisms of civil society (including NGOs) and business sector entities (including ITU Sector Members). Priority will be given to events which provide positive inputs to the objectives of the Summit as outlined in the Declaration of Principles and the Plan of Action as well as the final document(s) to be adopted at the Tunis Phase of the Summit or events which are linked to creation of sustainable multi-stakeholder partnership projects.

8. On late Friday afternoon, after hearing a report from the Credentials Committee, the last plenary meeting will adopt the final document(s) and adopt the report of the Tunis Phase of the Summit. It will then hear closing remarks by the Heads of State of the host countries and the Secretary-General of the Summit.

9. Round tables and high-level panels will take place during the Summit, in parallel with plenary meetings, at the official Summit venue. The organization of the round tables and high-level panels is described in Annex 2 and Annex 3 respectively. The modalities of the round tables and high-level panels will be further elaborated by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with the Bureau of the Preparatory Committee and Regional groups.

10. Observers will have direct access to the official Summit venue. Due to space constraints, a limited number of participants from accredited civil society entities (including NGOs) and business sector entities (including ITU Sector Members) will be allowed to attend the plenary meetings. Once the Summit program is finalized, the Executive Secretariat will inform the observers of these arrangements.

Annex 1   Time Management Plan of the Tunis Phase of the Summit

Round tables and high-level panels (agenda item 10) will be organized in parallel with plenary meetings.

Annex 2

Organization of Round Tables*

1. Round tables will be organized to provide Heads of State or Government the opportunity to engage in an interactive discussion on the future of the Information Society with leaders from organizations and entities attending the Summit as observers.

2. Each round table will have a maximum of 20 participants. Half of the participants will come from States and half from organizations and entities attending the Summit as observers.

3. Heads of State or Government will be invited by the Secretary-General of the Summit to participate in one of the round tables. Ministers will be invited when required to ensure a regional balance of participants from States. If required, Regional coordinators of States will be consulted to help ensure that each round table is regionally balanced.

4. The number and the schedule of the round tables will be determined by the Secretary-General of the Summit.

5. The round tables will be organized around one broad and inclusive overarching theme identified by the Secretary-General of the Summit.

6. Each round table will be moderated by an eminent personality nominated by the Secretary-General of the Summit.

7. Participants from organizations and entities attending the Summit as observers will be nominated by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with the High Level Summit Organizing Committee, and self-organizing mechanisms of civil society (including NGOs) and business sector entities (including ITU Sector Members).

8. The round tables will be held in a room where access is limited to only participants and their advisors. The proceedings of the round tables will be broadcast simultaneously through the Internet.

9. The report of round tables will be annexed to the final report of the Summit.

* The modalities of the round tables will be further elaborated by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with the Bureau of the Preparatory Committee and Regional groups.

Annex 3

Organization of High-Level Panels*

1. High-level panels will be organized to provide Summit participants, including observers, with a dynamic forum for discussion and debate on the future of the Information Society.

2. Each panel will be comprised of up to five eminent personalities with expertise in the topic of the panel.

3. Panelists will be nominated by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with Regional coordinators of States, the High Level Summit Organizing Committee, and self-organizing mechanisms of civil society (including NGOs) and business sector entities (including ITU Sector Members).

4. The number, schedule and themes of the panels will be identified by the Secretary-General of the Summit.

5. Each panel will be moderated by an eminent personality nominated by the Secretary-General of the Summit. The moderators will keep the discussions dynamic and interactive and will invite questions and comments from the audience.

6. The panels will be held in a room where the audience can observe and participate in the proceedings. The proceedings of the panels will be broadcast simultaneously through the Internet.

7. The reports of the panels will be annexed to the final report of the Summit.

* The modalities of the high-level panels will be further elaborated by the Secretary-General of the Summit, in consultation with the Bureau of the Preparatory Committee and Regional groups.