The 16th UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF) opened in Katowice, Poland, on December 6, 2021. Over 5,000 people, who have registered for the five-day forum, will be able to take part in more than 300 sessions covering the main issues of internet development and the latest technologies. The forum’s theme this year is Internet United.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pointed out in his welcome address: “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the life-changing power of the Internet. But the pandemic has also magnified the digital divide and the dark side of technology: the lightning-fast spread of misinformation, the manipulation of people’s behavior and more. We can only address these challenges united, through strengthened cooperation… by establishing clear rules to safeguard human rights and fundamental freedoms [and] regaining control over our data.” Mr. Guterres added that the IGF has a crucial role in shaping the conversation on an open, free and secure digital space that is accessible to all.
Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki, who took part in the opening ceremony, noted that modern technologies are not only changing the world but are also shaping a whole new type of thinking. “That’s why I know that it is the young generations who are most competent to lead the process of digital development,” Morawiecki said.
The key topics discussed on the first day of the forum were the social and ethical implications of AI technologies, the smart cities concept, internet governance in the interests and with the participation of users, information safety and digital inequality. When asked about the possibility of accelerating digitalization in areas where at the moment there is no internet access, Janusz Cieszynski, Secretary of State for Digitization at the Chancellery of the Polish Prime Minister and Government Plenipotentiary for Cyber Security, noted that it would take 100 billion euros to provide access to the Internet for the three billion people in the world who currently do not enjoy it. “Looking back at the finances that have been allocated to fight the pandemic, the 100 billion euros seems something achievable for the global economy,” he said.
IGF 2021 will end on December 10.
