Agenda | WSIS+20 High-Level Event 2025

Agenda and Programme

The WSIS+20 High-Level Event 2025 will take place from 7 to 11 July 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland, hosted by ITU and co-organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP, and UNCTAD. The Agenda and Programme for the Event are built based on official submissions received during the Open Consultation Process (OCP).

Webcast

Room E, Palexpo

Monday 7 July

374

Roundtable: Young Professionals-- Enhancing Your Career Skills in the Internet Governance Space

USCIB / ICANN

13:00 – 13:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

As the digital landscape evolves, the demand for skilled, informed, and agile professionals in Internet governance is greater than ever. This interactive roundtable brings together young and seasoned professionals, mentors, and stakeholders from…

Youth Interactive Session

254

Bridging Visions: Aligning the Global Digital Compact (GDC) and WSIS+20 Overall Review by the UN GA

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs / Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government

14:00 – 14:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Session Description (45 minutes): This session provides a strategic update for co-facilitators on developments in aligning Global Digital Compact (GDC) and WSIS+20. Participants will discuss synergies, identify gaps, and explore pathways toward…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

382

WSIS Action Line C7 E-learning

UNESCO

15:00 – 15:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

This session will share core UNESCO messages and recommendations related to technology and education broadly and digital learning specifically. It will overview positions and actions related to five main topics: (1) Open Educational Resources and the…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

277

Between free market and public digital infrastructure: intersections of media viability and public interest journalism

Global Forum for Media Development

16:00 – 16:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Media and journalism have always navigated the tension between free market forces and the public interest. Over the past two decades, the WSIS and the Internet Governance Process have played a pivotal role in strengthening media and journalism as…

Media Interactive Session

Tuesday 8 July

386

Action Line C9 Media: Towards a Resilient Information Ecosystem

UNESCO

09:00 – 09:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

The session will explore strategies for promoting an enabling environment for freedom of expression and access to information on digital platforms, with a particular focus on technology-driven solutions. It will notably explore the following topics:…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

246

The next decade of urban digitalisation: the paths to people-centred smart cities and the role of the mobile industry

GSMA

10:00 – 10:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

The future of urban growth is in African and Asian cities, to 2050 2.2 billion of the additional 2.5 billion urban residents will be in those regions. This session will explore the trends underpinning smart city adoption in MENA, Sub-Saharan Africa,…

Smart Sustainable Cities Interactive Session

380

WSIS Action Line C7 E-business: Building an inclusive digital economy

International Trade Centre, Universal Postal Union, UN Trade and Development, in collaboration with UN Industrial Development Organization

11:00 – 12:00 (UTC+02:00) Room E

For 20 years, the WSIS action line on e-business has been creating digital opportunities for businesses and development in areas that have also been covered by the Global Digital Compact (GDC) objectives: Objective 2 focuses on expanding inclusion in…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

316

WSIS Action Line C6: Digital Ecosystem Builders in action: Redefining the role of ICT regulators

ITU

14:00 – 14:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

This session contributed to the Global Symposium for Regulators (GSR-25) consultation on the Best Practice Guidelines exploring the new requirements for ICT regulators to become digital ecosystem builders. The BDT Director, Dr. Cosmas Luckyson…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

175

What Proliferation of Artificial Intelligence Means for Information Integrity?

Latvian Mission to UN

15:00 – 15:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

The Global Digital Compact introduces commitments on information integrity - access to relevant, reliable and accurate information and knowledge essential for an inclusive, open, safe and secure digital space. The Compact also encourages advancement…

Emerging Technologies Country's Insight

284

Leaving No One Behind in the Citiverse

International Telecommunication Union and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

16:00 – 16:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

The Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds and AI – Discovering the Citiverse, launched by ITU, Digital Dubai, and UNICC, is a global platform shaping policy innovation for safe, open, and interoperable AI-powered virtual worlds. It is also the avenue…

Smart Sustainable Cities Interactive Session

422

Multigenerational Collaboration: Rethinking Work, Learning and Inclusion in the Digital Age

Centre for Socio-Eco-Nomic Development

17:00 – 17:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Creating meaningful multigenerational partnerships remains a complex challenge. As explored in the recent special issue of Public Administration and Policy on “Ageing, Productivity and Socio-Economic Development: Policy Options,” institutional…

Interactive Session

Thursday 10 July

388

WSIS Action Line: C3 Access to information and knowledge: “Investing in Equitable Knowledge Access: Diamond Open Access”

UNESCO

09:00 – 09:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Access to scientific knowledge is essential for sustainable development, innovation, and global collaboration. However, high publication costs, fragmented digital infrastructures, and limited regional capacities continue to impede equitable…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

398

WSIS Action Line C5: Building Trust in Cyberspace

ITU

10:00 – 10:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

WSIS Action Line C5 was established as part of the Geneva Plan of Action in 2003 to address growing global concerns regarding the confidence and security of information and communication technologies (ICTs), particularly in ways that could undermine…

Interactive Action Line Facilitation Meeting

234

Pushing the limits of the internet

AFNIC

11:00 – 11:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

With technological progress and the ubiquitous digitization of society, the Internet has become both a critical infrastructure and an essential driver of society. While the Internet has shown its resilience, it is still under construction, and its…

Supporting Partner Partner's Insight

548

Inter-regional Dialogue: AI and Emerging Technologies; Public Policies Issues in Different Regions

ESCWA in collaboration with the UN Regional Commissions

12:00 – 12:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

As we mark two decades since the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), artificial intelligence has emerged as a transformative force reshaping economies, governance, public services, and human development. The Global Digital Compact (GDC),…

Interactive Session

498

Data first in the AI era

UNCTAD

13:00 – 13:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Data have become a cornerstone of development and the lifeblood of the digital economy. They fuel algorithms and artificial intelligence, drives international trade in services, informs logistics, and shapes markets, communication, and politics. The…

Interactive Session

263

Digital Transformation for all: An Information Society that respects and protects human rights

African Union, European Union and UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

14:00 – 14:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

The international community is increasingly grappling with digital technologies and their impacts on people and planet. The Geneva Declaration of Principles declared the common desire and commitment to building a people-centred, inclusive and…

Interactive Session

189

Global adoption, global progress: Managing the challenges of AI inclusion

International Chamber of Commerce

15:00 – 15:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

As AI reshapes economies and societies, there is a growing urgency to ensure its benefits are accessible to all. This session will explore what inclusive AI means in practice, and the actions needed to achieve it, focusing on issues including…

Emerging Technologies Interactive Session

179

Embedding Human Rights in AI Standards: From Principles to Practice

Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) - International Telecommunication Union (ITU) - Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights…

16:00 – 16:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) are transforming societies at an unprecedented pace. While they offer vast opportunities, they also pose risks to the enjoyment of human rights. Technical standards, as foundational elements…

Emerging Technologies Interactive Session

181

International Artificial Intelligence Frameworks for Safeguarding Human Rights and Dignity

Globethics

17:00 – 17:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

As artificial intelligence (AI) systems continue to advance and permeate key aspects of social, economic, and political life, the urgency to ensure they are developed and deployed in ways that respect human rights and protect human dignity has never…

Emerging Technologies Interactive Session

Friday 11 July

543

South Africa 20-Year Country Report

South Africa

09:00 – 09:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

During the session, the Government of the Republic of South Africa will launch South Africa's 20-year country report on the implementation of the WSIS Action Line, highlighting progress and challenges, and sharing best practices to achieve the SDGs…

Strategic Partner: Gold Partner's Insight

479

Digital Cooperation for Inclusive Development: Brazil–South Africa Synergies in the G20 and the WSIS Framework

South Africa/Brazil

10:00 – 10:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

As two leading nations of the Global South and members of the G20, Brazil and South Africa play pivotal roles in shaping inclusive global digital policy agendas. In 2024, Brazil chaired the G20, and in 2025, South Africa is in charge of it. This…

Interactive Session

413

Bridging the Digital Divide: Inclusive ICT Policies for Sustainable Development

International Standard University/City University Bangladesh

11:00 – 11:45 (UTC+02:00) Room E

This session, titled “Inclusive and Ethical ICT Policies for a Sustainable and Equitable Digital Future,” seeks to foster a critical dialogue on the urgent need to design, implement, and monitor ICT policies that leave no one behind. As we mark 20…

Interactive Session

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