Invitation to the Ninth Meeting of the Internet Governance Forum

On behalf of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, I have the honour to invite you to the ninth Annual Meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which will be hosted by the Government of Turkey. The meeting will be held in Istanbul from 2 to 5 September 2014.

As underlined in the Tunis Agenda, the IGF is a multistakeholder, democratic and transparent forum which facilitates discussions on public policy issues related to key elements of Internet governance. Given its inclusive nature, the Forum welcomes the participation of all stakeholders in the Internet governance ecosystem, including all entities accredited by the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), as well as other institutions and individuals with proven expertise and experience in all matters related to Internet governance.  

The main theme of the ninth IGF is "Connecting Continents for Enhanced Multi-stakeholder Internet Governance" – a theme inspired by the location of the meeting itself and agreed upon after wide consultation among stakeholders. 

Discussions during the four-day meeting will address a wide range of Internet governance issues, grouped in the following sub-themes: Policies Enabling Access; Content Creation, Dissemination and Use; Internet as an Engine for Growth & Development; IGF & The Future of the Internet Ecosystem; Enhancing Digital Trust; Internet and Human Rights; Critical Internet Resources and Emerging issues. More than 100 different sessions are expected to be held, allowing for comprehensive debates reflecting the voices of various stakeholders from different parts of the world and building upon the discussions and outcomes of other Internet governance meetings, fora and organisations. The ninth IGF will also actively respond to the outcomes of the NETmundial by taking forward the issues discussed there in a variety of ways.  The programme will also include orientation sessions and capacity building opportunities for those interested, as well as the possibility for national and regional IGF initiatives to share their respective work and experiences.

This year’s IGF will build upon past achievements of being a ‘router’ of knowledge on Internet governance issues within the wider ecosystem.  It will aim at improving the outputs of the meeting and increasing the linkages between the discussions, recommendations and possible solutions coming from the various IGF sessions and the rest of the Internet governance ecosystem.  As in previous years, relevant Internet governance bodies, institutions and organizations are encouraged to take forward the key ideas raised during the IGF discussions.

I expect the IGF to continue to be as open and inclusive as possible. I would therefore like to strongly encourage all stakeholders -- representing Governments, private sector, civil society and the technical community -- who have not participated in past IGFs to join us in Turkey to bring new voices and ideas to our annual discussions. Those who are unable to be present in Istanbul can join us through remote participation.

Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to the Government of Turkey for hosting the ninth Annual Meeting of the IGF.

The IGF looks forward to seeing and hearing from all of you in September, either in person or remotely.

Wu Hongbo

Under-Secretary-General

Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)