ISLAMABAD ( BMZ REPORT )
The inaugural Commonwealth Domain Name System Forum took place on the 19-20 June 2014 at the Hilton Metropole London.This event is a joint initiative by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization, The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), Public Interest Registry (PIR) and Nominet and precedes the ICANN 50 Meeting in London.
Anusha Rahman Ahmad Kahn, Minster of State for Information Technology & Telecom, Pakistan, effectively set the scene and delivered an engaging keynote address, highlighting the importance of multi-stakeholder approach to Internet Governance issues and the critical role of infrastructure. The Honorable Minister specifically mentioned the pivotal role the CTO could play in Cyber governance, how they have taken a leading role in this initiative and how their work is also being recognized on a global platform. The Minister ended the keynote by urging countries to adopt the Commonwealth Cyber governance Model.
In addition to the keynote welcome address were given by Steve Crocker Chair of ICANN Board, Brian Cute Chief Executive Officer from PIR, and Baroness Fritchie Chair from Nominet, also welcomed delegates to London and to the first Commonwealth DNS Forum. The opening speech was followed by a panel discussion on the Commonwealth Cyber governance Model. Following the panel discussion on the Cyber governance Model, Honorable Phillip Paulwell, informed delegates about some of the key initiatives Jamaica has currently implemented and the importance of infrastructure sharing and child online protection.Jimson Olufuye commented on the role that could be played by market forces in the evolution of the Cyberspace and how the private sector could promote innovation.
Finally Carlton Samuels spoke about multi-stakeholder partnerships that are needed to strengthen Cyber governance and the need for all stakeholders to work collaboratively to achieve the greatest results. The event is being attended by around 200 participants from 35 countries, including ICT ministers and regulators, senior government advisors, diplomats, industry leaders, security experts, academia and civil society.