16-18 November 2005
Tunis, Tunisia
Mr. Chairman, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen.
It
is indeed a great honour for me to speak at this auspicious event where
Heads of States, Heads of Governments, Ministers, Officials and Civil
Society, come together to carry forward the decision and resolve
achieved during WSIS I in 2003. Our intention here today will contribute
to the future and shapes the environment where the next generation work
and live.
Distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,
The
issue of Information Society is indeed near and dear to our heart. It
has undeniably taken a significant position in our agenda, a position
that it certainly deserves. With the creation of an Information Society,
we envisaged a society where everyone is able to access, gain, share
and exploit knowledge and information in order to maximize their
potential and improve their quality of life. This society will live in
an environment which is people-centered, development-oriented, and built
upon the partnership and cooperation between all the
multi-stakeholders, the government, private sector, non-government
organizations, and the civil society.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
During
the first phase of WSIS in Geneva back in 2003, we agreed on the
Declaration of Principles, whereby we agreed on the key principles upon
which a sustainable and feasible Information Society can be based on.
From these key principles, we further recognized the coming challenges
and vowed to meet those challenges with a concrete Plan of Action. The
Plan of Action has set indicative targets to be achieved by 2015, and
Brunei Darussalam is committed to meet these targets.
Ladies and gentlemen,
As
our follow-up to WSIS I, Brunei Darussalam held the National Summit on
Information Society (NASIS) on 7-8 September 2005, and it was launched
by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam.
NASIS was in fact an unprecedented event in Brunei Darussalam. It has
gathered people from all walks of life, the government, non-government
organizations, business entities, civil societies and the private
sector, including students, in Brunei Darussalam to discuss issues
related to the establishment of an Information Society, their importance
and how they shall be addressed in Brunei context. NASIS was also the
channel for dissemination of knowledge and information on Information
Society. Also on the agenda was to agree on a strategy, comprising of
specific realistic, achievable and sustainable targets and action lines
at the national level that leads towards the establishment of an
Information Society in Brunei Darussalam.
These
targets and action lines are embodied in the "Brunei Darussalam
Information Society : Strategy Paper", which is the key deliverable of
NASIS. This document sets out core strategies in realizing the vision
towards an Information Society in Brunei Darussalam, which includes,
promoting a competitive-driven environment, encouraging business/private
sector investment and participation as well as to narrow the
infrastructure gap between the least developed areas and most developed
areas. It also highlights several focus areas that are crucial in the
creation of an Information Society, such as e-Education, e-Government
and e-Society.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let
me share with you the ‘position’ where Brunei Darussalam is at the
moment. Our internet penetration rate has increased from 6% in 2000 to
30% in 2004. 92% of the schools nationwide are now connected to the
Internet. However, our broadband penetration is still quite low at 7%.
Thus we see the need for ubiquitous and affordable access, capacity
building to enhance ICT literacy among the Bruneians.
While
encouraging the adoption of ICT usage among our society, we also
recognize the need to address the important aspect of increasing user’s
confidence in using ICT in their daily lives. I feel that this is where
the issue of Internet Governance which covers a wide area, such as spam,
cybersecurity, domain names and many others.
Mr Chairman, Distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,
I
am deeply grateful that WSIS II is highlighting this very important
issue today. Indeed, this sentiment is shared by the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) Telecommunications & IT Ministers
during our 5th meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, as embodied in our statement which is an input to WSIS II, here in Tunis.
With
the rapid growth of Internet users around the world and the speed at
which information are disseminated world wide via the Internet, together
we, ASEAN Ministers believed that any approach to Internet Governance
must be done in a multi-stakeholders environment with the full,
inclusive and appropriate participation of all stakeholders, government,
private sector and civil society. We must also recognize that
governments have a leading role to play on Internet Governance. With the
growing global Internet community, we should be able to develop
solutions which will serve all stakeholders while considering the local
culture, language issues that different and various among us
particularly in developing countries. Undoubtedly, I believe WSIS II is
the best forum to do so.
Thank You.
