Western Asia Preparatory Conference for the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Beirut, UN-House

The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) will be held this month gathering high-level officials from different countries, under the patronage of Kofi Annan, the United Nations Secretary-General. The WSIS is derived from the UN General Assembly Resolution (A/RES/56/183)), adopted in 2001, which endorsed the creation of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) proposal to hold the Summit. The Main objective of WSIS is to develop a common vision and understanding of the Information Society, adopt a declaration of principles, and create a plan of action to be implemented by governments, international institutions and all sectors of civil society.

The Summit will be organized across several phases. The first phase shall be conducted in Geneva during 10 ? 12 December 2003. The second phase shall be held in Tunisia in 2005.

The Western Asia Preparatory Conference for the WSIS is one of several regional preparatory conferences organized to review the regional status and harmonize the direction and views of the countries involved. At the same time, it will seek to develop specific proposals to support and develop the nascent information society in the region. The conference will be held in Beirut, Lebanon between 4-6 of February 2003. The Meeting will be at the UN House, and will be hosted by the Lebanese Government, which will be represented by the Lebanese Ministry of Post and Telecommunications. Also on the roster are ESCWA, the Cairo UNESCO office and the ITU. The World Bank InfoDev Program and the UN ICT Task Force have also extended their cooperation and support for the upcoming Conference.

The Conference shall consist of plenary and parallel sessions. The plenary sessions, scheduled during the first and last days, will include the following:

• First day:
  - The opening session
  - Election of officers and adoption of the Agenda
  - Overview of the information society in the ESCWA / Arab Region
  - Ministerial debate
   
• Last day:
  - Submission of the sessions reports
  - Discussion and adoption of the final conference document

The Western Asia Preparatory Conference for WSIS Conference will be attended on the ministerial level. High-level decision makers from the ESCWA member states, who are engaged in building the information society, will be present as well. Prominent experts in ICT policies, applications and services will also participate, as well as NGOs / civil society institutions, regional and international organizations, and private establishments involved in the building of the information society.