This month APCICT will be holding four back-to-back events during 9-14 November in Incheon, Republic of Korea. They include, in chronological order: 1) a Regional Workshop on Funding Options for ICT for Development; 2) a Breakout Session at the Asia Economic Community Forum on ICTs as a Transformative Enabler of Economic Growth; 3) the Fourth Session of the Governing Council of APCICT; and 4) the APCICT Partners Meeting of the Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders.
Regional Workshop on Funding Options for ICT for Development (9-10 November)
In the face of the triple crises of finance, food-fuel and climate change, APCICT will organize the Regional Workshop on Funding Options for ICT for Development (ICTD) on 9-10 November at Songdo Metro Hotel, Incheon, Republic of Korea.
The workshop aims to provide practical guidelines and exchange best practices among countries of Asia and the Pacific on effective strategies and processes for identifying and securing funds for ICTD interventions. Target audiences of this workshop are senior level government officials of national budgetary and planning bodies, and ministries of ICTs.
At the workshop, there will be a special session on Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) with speakers from the private sector and government agencies invited to present their perspectives and experience in PPPs for ICTD.
This is a pre-conference workshop of the Asia Economic Community Forum (AECF). The deliberation and recommendations of the workshop will feed into APCICT’s Breakout Session at AECF entitled “ICTs as a Transformative Enabler of Economic Growth,” and incorporated as part of the final policy recommendations of the AECF (see below for more information on the AECF).
The workshop will be based on Module 8 of APCICT’s “Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders” (Academy) entitled, Options for Funding ICT for Development. The author of this module – Richard Labelle, will serve as the primary resource person of this workshop.
The Academy is a comprehensive ICTD curriculum for policymakers to fully leverage opportunities presented by ICTs to achieve national development goals and bridge the digital divide. Since its launch in June 2008, the Academy has been adopted, localized and rolled out in several countries in close collaboration with government ministries, national training institutes and universities. For more information on the Academy visit http://www.unapcict.org/academy.
The Asia Economic Community Forum and APCICT’s Session on ICTs as a Transformative Enabler of Economic Growth (11-13 November 2009)
Asia Economic Community Forum
The Asia Economic Community Forum (AECF) will be a gathering of leaders from Asia and the world in the fields of academia, politics and business with aims to explore the identity of Asia and the direction for its future development while discussing cooperative measures within the region to form an economic community.
This forum, taking place on 11-13 November at Songdo ConvensiA, Incheon, Republic of Korea, is led by the AEC Foundation, which is chaired by Dr. Kim Hak-su, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
As a guiding framework, the Forum has three grand agendas: 1) the Grand Economic Debate on global capitalism in the 21st century; 2) the Grand Political Compromise among USA, China and Europe; and 3) the Grand Cultural Dialogue between Asia and the West. Having prominent scholars and well-known experts, this Forum will be a place to explore solutions and visions regarding Asian issues under the global crisis. The outcome of this Forum will be published in periodicals and books.
APCICT’s Session on ICTs as a Transformative Enabler of Economic Growth
Amidst discussions on economic recovery, there is global consensus that ICTs present transformational opportunities. World leaders from government, industry and civil society have agreed during the 2009 World Economic Forum in Davos that ICTs are critical tools for economic recovery.
APCICT’s session on ICTs as a Transformative Enabler of Economic Growth on 11 November aims to bring together experts from the region to exchange ideas, experiences and practices and make recommendations to stimulate innovation, and green and sustainable growth through the use of ICTs.
Discussions will revolve around three key pillars: 1) investment in ICTs as a component of a stimulus package; 2) Public-Private Partnership as an alternative funding source for ICTD; and 3) ICT-enabled Green Growth. Based on these discussions, lessons and recommendations for policies and actions directed at national, regional and international levels will be incorporated as part of AECF’s overall policy recommendations.
To provide participants with balanced viewpoints, the session will bring together experts from intergovernmental organizations, multinational ICT and management consulting firms, government agencies, and academia from emerging economies in Asia, to present and discuss ICTs’ role in this economic downturn. Participating institutions include Accenture, National Information Society Agency of the Republic of Korea, Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd. (India) and OECD.
The Fourth Session of the Governing Council of APCICT (13 November)
The Fourth Session of the Governing Council of APCICT will be held in Incheon, Republic of Korea on 13 November. Elected representatives from Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Thailand will review the Centre’s work programme and achievements, as well as discuss the way forward.
At this Fourth Session, APCICT will report on its administration and financial status, and present the Centre’s work programme and achievements since the Third Session of the Governing Council. This Fourth Session will also discuss APCICT’s Strategy Plan 2010.
The Governing Council members have been invited to participate in the series of events organized by APCICT during the week.
APCICT Partners Meeting of the Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders (14 November)
The “Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders Programme” (Academy) is APCICT’s flagship programme that includes a comprehensive ICTD curriculum with eight core modules, and over a dozen partners that are working with APCICT to roll out the Academy at the national level.
For the first time, APCICT is bringing together partners of the Academy to Incheon, Republic of Korea on 14 November, to share and exchange the strategies used and progress made in rolling out the Academy nationally. Challenges, lessons and solutions in the roll-out process will also be discussed.
Generally, the national roll out process involves working closely with partners in:
- Customizing and translating the Academy content to better meet country-specific training needs;
- Organizing regular Academy workshops at national and local levels; and
- Institutionalizing the Academy into national ICT human capacity building frameworks.
APCICT’s partners are at different stages of Academy roll out. Partners in Afghanistan, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Philippines, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste and the Pacific Islands have adapted the Academy and conducted at least one training workshop. Depending on the national context and the nature of the partner organization, different strategies have been used by the national partners. They have produced positive outcomes and a number of notable spin-off activities. At this meeting, these partners will be given an opportunity to present their strategies, achievements and next steps.
Also at the meeting are partners who are at the planning stage and would benefit from the lessons learned and good practices that have emerged in the roll out process. A consultative session for Academy partners with roll-out plans has been arranged. These partners are from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam.
Towards the end of the meeting, a roundtable on the future direction of the Academy has been scheduled, and this will include discussions on the development and implementation of two new modules on disaster risk reduction and climate change, and the enhancement of the APCICT Virtual Academy (AVA), an online distance learning platform, launched in June 2009.
On AVA, the eight initial Academy modules, a module on instructional design, and all accompanying materials including case studies and presentation slides are made freely available. AVA also enables learners to take self-paced courses online. These courses are based on the Academy modules and incorporate virtual lectures and quick quizzes. Registered learners are rewarded with APCICT’s certificate of participation upon successful completion of courses. For users with no or limited Internet connection, a DVD version of AVA is available.
