IGF 2018 WS #346 Refugee Rights and Emerging Technologies: Building Digital Futures for all?
Format:
Round Table - 60 Min
Theme:
Human Rights, Gender & Youth
Subtheme:
REFUGEES
Additional Speakers:
SPEAKERS:
Astri Kimball​
(Google), private sector
Andrew Toft
(Department for International Development, UK), government
Eimear Farrell
(Amnesty International), civil society
Jean Guo
(Konexio), civil society
Valentina Pellizzer
(APC Women), civil society
Relevance:
It is estimated that today over "65 million people – the largest number since the Second World War – are refugees or internally displaced people" (United Nations High Commission for Refugees ). A recent report from the UNHCR: "Connecting Refugees: How Internet and Mobile Connectivity Can Improve Refugee Well-being and Transform Humanitarian Action," found that Internet access has become "as vital to them as food, water, or shelter". Internet access and mobile phones play a pivotal role in providing vital information, helping families to stay connected and giving newcomers the necessary tools to being able to start a new life in another part of the world. However, large numbers of the refugee population lack digital networks and infrastructure, face unaffordable connectivity or imposed restrictions to their fully participation in the online environment.The “Refugee crisis” highlighted connectivity and accountability issues and over the last few years we have seen international organisations, civil society, private sector and members of the technical community working on refugee camps developing digital tools (blockchain technologies, biometric records, etc) that collect Refugees data to help respond to the daily needs of the growing community.
These tools, which may lead to positive outcomes on the life of refugees also impose new challenges and risks as the digital storage of private information brings the responsibility of ensuring the rights to privacy and data protection, otherwise risking the exposure of the most vulnerable populations. As we look into connecting the next billion (UN SDGs) it is imperative that we take an inclusive approach to ensure refugees' rights to access and protection in the online environment. This session will be a follow up on the discussion initiated at EuroDIG 16 ("Confronting the Digital Divide" Workshop Sessions:
http://eurodigwiki.org/wiki/Category:Accessibility_2016
), the IRPC's Lightning Session in IGF16 (
http://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/index.php?q=filedepot_download/4183/391
)
Session Content:
The session will discuss what has been done to ensure equal access and full participation in the online environment for this large community of over 65 millions os refugees, whether the technologies used to collect data are following the necessary steps to ensure that the rights of refugees are protected online and offline. By the end of the session we hope that this enriched discussion will lead for a series of recommendations and best practices which can help not only the refugees and displaced people but also the different stakeholders who work with or are directly involved with this community.
Background links:
EuroDIG 2016: Workshops 2 and 10:
http://eurodigwiki.org/wiki/Category:Accessibility_2016
IOM Publications:
https://publications.iom.int/books/world-migration-report-2018-chapter-6-mobility-migration-and-transnational-connectivity
UNHCR Report on Connectivity for Refugees:
http://www.unhcr.org/innovation/connectivity-for-refugees/
Interventions:
The onsite moderator will initiate the debate by posing a few questions to the discussants and encouraging interactive discussion. The questions draw on work and views of each one of the speakers and will aim to a) identify discriminatory structures that prevent refugees to fully participate in the online environment, 2) discuss the work that has been done on the field to allow connectivity for refugees 3) address concerns on the way currently personal information is digitally gathered and stored in refugee and issues on data protection and privacy in light of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The onsite moderator will keep track of time and content and the first discussion will be followed by an engagement with session participants onsite and online. The discussants will also have the opportunity to leave their final remarks and recommendations, before the onsite moderator concludes the session
Diversity:
The IRPC is bringing together a group of discussants from different stakeholders and is actively seeking for diversity in terms of gender, geography and policy perspectives. We made sure that both genders are represented and that speakers and organisers are representing different stakeholders: civil society, the technical community, international organisations and the private sector. We are also bringing proposed discussants who will be first time IGF speakers.
Online Participation:
Online attendees will be encouraged and able to participate in the roundtable discussion. They will have a separate queue and microphone, which will rotate equally with the mics in the room to ensure that online attendees will have equally opportunities to engage in the discussion. The workshop will take comments submitted via phone, chat and social media platforms. The session moderator the online moderator, who will have been IGF trained, will work closely together to make sure that the workshop is open and inclusive.
Discussion Facilitation:
The roundtable will start with a brief introduction of the theme and followed by a couple of introductory questions which will be the result of previously held discussions among the IRPC members and the speakers and that the group will address. Each discussant will speak for a maximum of 3 minutes. The discussion will then be open to the wider audience and both participants and speakers will be able to engage on an in-depth conversation on the theme for 20 minutes. A final 10-minute round will allow panelists to share their recommendations and the onsite moderator will use the last 5 minutes for conclusion and session wrap up.
Onsite Moderator:
Marianne Franklin
Online Moderator:
Hanane Boujemi
Rapporteur:
Minda Moreira
Agenda:
Onsite Moderator Introduction: 5 minutes
Introductory questions to discussants Roundtable discussion: 20 minutes
Open discussion: 20 minutes
OnSite Moderator to address the discussants with a last question:
Final round: recommendations: 10 minutes
On-site moderator closing remarks: 5 minutes
igf18_final.pdf
Session Time:
Wednesday, 14 November, 2018 -
09:00
to
10:00
Room:
Salle VIII

