The “Digital Opportunity
for e-Inclusion” international conference was organized
on 20-21 of March 2006 under the patronage of the Ministry
of Informatics and Communications (IHM) with the professional
leadership and supervision of the European Union of Telecottage
Associations (EUTA) and the Hungarian Telecentre Association,
having as organizer the Central- European Center for Communication
Consultation and Land Issues (4CLI).
March 20th, the first
day of the Conference, was a special networking day for
a limited number of invited participants. The scope of
this meeting was to share information about providing
e-Inclusion opportunities for the civil society, to collect
information about organizations which can deal with these
tasks, and to provide intense discussion and networking
opportunities in order to enhance connections among the
relevant European organizations, and discover world-wide
cooperation possibilities.
The participants had the possibility to share their experiences,
discuss the common issues and establish intense communication
with other experts working in the field. They also had
the chance to meet representatives from the European Union
of Telecottage Associations (EUTA), and the International
Development Research Centre (IDRC).
EUTA’s main goal
during the event was to make as widely known and accepted
as possible that the telecottage based community access
and service system is an important and essential element
in the development of local societies, economies, and
the countryside; especially regarding underdeveloped regions,
communities and groups.
IDRC’s main aim was to emphasize the importance
of telecentres, the usage of telecentre services all around
the world, and assist projects that are under way in the
Middle East and Eastern Europe.
The national participants had the possibility to present
the main principles of their organisations.
The second day –
the 21st of March – brought together 130 international
and national participants. The invited guests included
experts from relevant international organizations, and
representatives of ministries, civil organizations (NGOs)
and interested participants from the private sector.
The major aim of the
conference was to share best practices on well-working
solutions, use and terms of distribution of digital opportunities
with the national and international experts. A further
goal was to present as many best practices/ solutions
as possible in order to raise the awareness and commitment
of the participants.
The conference wished to supply answers to the following
questions:
· Does informatics offer an actual possibility
of digital opportunity for all groups of society, including
the disadvantaged?
· How can best practices be turned into widely
useable institutionalized and sustainable services?
The conjectures were
approached through the clarification of a few further
questions:
· What are the most efficient solutions of digital
opportunities for the different target groups?
· Is the configuration of the telecentre systems
the best way for the effective enabling and sustainability
of e-availability?
· Which working examples from around the world
confirm the above named assumptions?
· Are these universally applicable solutions, if
so, under what conditions?
· How can these solutions and models be institutionalized
and how can their sustainability be achieved?
· How can the governmental, civil and commercial
spheres contribute to the realization and sustainability
of these models and solutions? What is the totality of
the contributions and expectations apropos the drafted
model?
There have been separate
sessions on four topics with the participation of highly
qualified presenters in order to enable the exposition
of all standpoints. The individual sessions provided space
for comprehensive answers to the targeted questions in
order to receive an accurate picture of the possibilities.
The debates aroused by the most important questions offered
the possibility of the compliance of a summary with the
standing points and expectations of the various groups.
This summary will be published in forthcoming period.
The topics covered
by the individual sessions:
International session:
· Which are the most important/ successful international
best practices?
· When examining the different examples, which
elements refer to a particular country and which are constants
and refer to all countries?
· According to international experiences which
solutions are the most effective for the accomplishment
of the sustainability of the telecentres?
Governmental session:
· The accessibility of information is guaranteed
for every individual by constitutional rights. To what
extent are governments obliged to ensure this right to
their citizens? What instruments might be of help in its
accomplishment?
· From the point of view of the innovation of society,
how important is e-accessibility and the assistance of
the government in the development of public solutions?
· What results have been achieved, and what are
the problems and challenges to be faced?
Session for the civil
organizations (NGOs):
· What roles do NGOs assign to themselves in the
process of building and sustaining digital opportunity
for e-inclusion?
· What motivates these groups to help with their
work the accomplishment of accessibility?
· What instruments can they employ in the process
of digital opportunity for e-inclusion?
· What results have they achieved, and what problems
and challenges do they have to face?
Economic Session:
· How do the representatives of the economic sphere
evaluate their role in the process of building and sustaining
digital opportunity for e-inclusion?
· What particular services can they provide for
the different groups of society, including the disadvantaged,
minorities etc.?
· What advantages do they expect in return for
the configuration of these services?
· What are the specific target groups of the different
market sectors?
· What results have they achieved, and what problems
and challenges do they have to face?
