IGF 2021 WS #190
Cybersecurity from the Global South perspective

Organizer 1: Andrea Calderaro, Cardiff University
Organizer 2: Luca Belli, Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) Law School

Speaker 1: Victoria Panova, Civil Society, Eastern European Group
Speaker 2: Colm Murphy, Private Sector, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 3: Anja Kovacs, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 4: Cristine Hoepers, Technical Community, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)

Moderator

Andrea Calderaro, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)

Online Moderator

Luca Belli, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)

Rapporteur

Yasmin Curzi de Mendonça, Private Sector, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)

Format

Round Table - Circle - 90 Min

Policy Question(s)

Digital sovereignty: What is meant by digital sovereignty? What implications does it have for the global nature of the Internet, for Internet governance itself, and the effectiveness of the multistakeholder approach? From an opposite angle, what are the implications of the Internet and digitalisation for national sovereignty?
Advancing global digital cooperation: What opportunities are provided by the current focus on digital cooperation resulting from the UN Secretary-General's Roadmap for digital cooperation? What role should the IGF play (and how) in advancing global digital cooperation?

Given the emerging priority to enhance an effective transparent and inclusive transnational governance approach to cybersecurity, this workshop addresses how countries in the Global South could provide an active and meaningful contribution to international debates and cooperation in the cyber domain according to their own perspective and priorities.

SDGs

9.a


Targets: This panel will directly relate to SDG 9.a as it will explore how the involvement of the global South perspectives into cybersecurity discussion can positively contribute to the enhancement of sustainable, secure and resilient infrastructure development

Description:

This workshop aims at strengthening the debate of cyber norms, approaches and tools beyond the Global North, with the ambition to explore the perspective of Global South stakeholders. Cybersecurity is central in international cooperation in the cyber domain, however, in order to strengthen a coherent and inclusive transnational governance approach in this field, particular attention should be paid to the fast-changing internet geography. Given that most internet users are now located in the Global South, it is crucial to enhance a dialogue beyond Western-centric perspectives, and empower governments, industry and civil society actors from the Global South to play a key role in this debate. This workshop aims at exploring cybersecurity from a global south perspective, giving prominence to ideas, concerns and solutions from a Global South perspective.

While stakeholder balance and gender balance will be prime concerns for the workshop, the debate will feature primarily Global South stakeholders, not merely for the sake of inclusivity, but to give such voices prominence. By focusing mainly on low-income and middle-income-country perspectives, the workshop will aim at distilling relevant teachings and policy suggestions that may be useful for all stakeholders alike, regardless of their country of origin.

Expected Outcomes

The workshop organisers expect to consolidate the workshop outcomes into a policy paper or academic publication or both. Such publication(s) will draw upon the workshop discussion, including both the perspective of the panellists and the feedback of the participants. To collect participants feedback, workshop organisers will create a dedicated mailing list enabling a collaborative elaboration of the outcome paper.

In addition to an initial round of inputs offered by panel speakers (60 min), chairs and moderator will ensure the livelinesses, diversity, and inclusiveness of the discussion by stimulating interaction (30 min) with the onsite and remote participants, ensuring gender and geographical diversity. Given the COVID19 imposed restrictions, social media platforms will also be used to engage with additional stakeholders in addition to IGF remote conference facilities.

Online Participation



Usage of IGF Official Tool. Additional Tools proposed: Zoom and social media platforms (Twitter and Facebook)