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Latin America and the Caribbean debated regional priorities for the Information Society

The International Forum " Latin America and the Caribbean in the Information Society" took place in Rio de Janeiro, on September 26th to 28th. More than 150 people from 21 countries in the region, representing the academic, public, private and civil sectors, got together to debate the priorities of the countries in Latin America and the Caribbean regarding national and regional integration and development in the Information Society. The meeting was jointly organized by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MCT), the Information Society Program (SocInfo), Unesco and the United Nations - through a Task Force for Information and Communication Technologies for Development (UN ICT Task Force).

Through the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Unesco and other agencies, the UNO is organizing the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). Two global rounds are predicted: in December 2003, in Geneva, Switzerland and in 2005, in Tunisia. Despite counting on Unesco's participation in its organization, the Forum in Rio was an extra-official event. However, for Gustavo Lopes, the representative of Unesco that accompanied the work, it was very productive.

- Since this event is extra-official, its result is uncommon, for it encompasses several levels - declared Gustavo during the closing of the Forum, on the 28th.

Among the people who attended the event, there were participants in programs and initiatives for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean, including those responsible for governmental programs, researchers with proven experience in the topics covered in the meeting, leaders of third sector organizations, representatives of programs and initiatives of the private sector in a regional and sub-regional level, and members of multilateral financing institutions. The people that participated in the 2nd Clara Meeting (Latin American Cooperation on Advanced Networks), which took place on the 25th, stayed in Rio de Janeiro a little longer and also participated in the activities of the Forum.

The final document listed the main challenges identified, the declared priorities and the proposals for concrete projects that resulted from the debates, which were organized around four general themes: infrastructure; open services; contents and applications; and strategic aspects. In order to deal with the themes, the participants got organized in four sub-regional blocks: Central America, Caribbean, Mercosul and Countries in the Andes.

The Forum also produced a declaration containing ten principles for the development of the Information Society, in the perspective of Latin America and the Caribbean. Among these principles, the concern about promoting individual well being, the reduction of poverty, the offer of more jobs, the free access to information and communication, and the transfer of knowledge are worth of note.

One of the final recommendations is that the definition of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) should include the radio and TV. For the region, adding these traditional means of communication to the set of ICT that make up the Information Society is a must. In the countries in the Andes, for instance, the majority of the population gets information through the radio.

The socioeconomic differences of the countries in the region were aspects present in all the discussions. Among the most common recommendations made by the sub-regional groups, there were: the creation of community telecenters to access the network, the creation of digital literacy programs and the valuation of open source software projects.

Above all, the Forum declared the importance of ensuring the right to access information as one of the main characteristics of a project for the Information Society in the AL&C region. The cultural, biological, climatic and human diversities are not regarded as difficulties. The AL&C block sees them as riches that must be strengthened.

The results of the International Forum Latin America and the Caribbean in the Information Society will serve as an aid to the Regional AL&C Conference in San Patricio, in the Dominican Republic, scheduled for January 2003, which is an official preparatory meeting for the WSIS in Geneva, in December 2003. Follow the updating on the site of the Information Society Program in order to get more information on the results of the Forum .

[RNP, 10.11.2002]