Brussels, 04/06/2004 (Agence Europe) - The Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU will take the initiative on a conference of high-ranking civil servants and experts from the Euromed countries relating to developments in cooperation in ICTs (information and communication technologies). The conference, which will take place on 8 and 9 June in Dublin will hinge on an examination of the current policies and regulations in this field in the different EU states and the Mediterranean periphery. “The rapid technological developments and increase in usage brings new challenges”, particularly concerning regulation, says the Irish Presidency. In addition to this, the contribution of ICTs to economic development is seen as potentially important, particularly to support sustainable growth in education programmes. Cooperation in ICTs is also seen as a “key element” in strengthening the Euromed partnership. The meeting in Dublin should allow for exploration of potential and to consider the possible creation of specific mechanisms to develop relations in this field. Among the actions envisaged is one on e-government, using the European experience.
The conference has been planned particularly with an eye to the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which is due to take place in Tunisia in November 2005. A preparatory meeting is due to be held on 24 and 26 June next year in Tunisia. It will deal with the means of implementing the Geneva action plan of December 2003, which concluded the first phase. An African regional conference has been announced for February 2005 in Accra (Ghana).