WEBINAR SERIES
Digital Inclusion for Sustainable Development
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the ICT Association Suriname (ICT-AS) have taken the initiative to partner on a series of four webinars with the topic “Digital Inclusion for Sustainable Development” during the month of April 2021.
The webinars are meant to engage policy makers, business communities and other stakeholders within the ICT and related sectors in a dialogue on the role and importance of ICT in the current context of national development in Suriname.
ICT General & Policy
ICT Vision Government; Policy, regulations, strategy ICT & e-Readiness; Contribution ICT to development & innovation; Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples (ITPs) and Digital Inclusion.
ICT & SDGs
Current position and prioritizing the SDGs in Suriname; United Nations in the Urban Anthropocene & SDGs; SDGs and Suriname’s Development plan.
Education & ICT
Renewal education process through ICT; Education, ICT & Digital Skills; ICT in practice: curricula & adaption global developments; Research and & Development.
Private Sector Contribution to SDGs
Contribution ICT sector to SDGs; ICT in practice: facts & figures & facilitating the SDGs; Responsibility private sector to SDGs.
The objective of the webinars is to initiate a discussion on the important issue of digital inclusion and to contribute to the formulation of a national strategy and plan regarding “Digital Inclusion for Sustainable Development “.
The following topics will be addressed during the webinars:
- Enabling digital innovation in the telecommunications sector to support the development of Surinamese society (digital transformation).
- Bridging the digital divide and providing broadband “Access for All” in Suriname (“digital inclusion”).
- The importance of developing of digital literacy and skills in this modern and fast-moving digital era.
- Contribution of ICT in achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (the keystones of social- and economic development).
- Relation between the SDGs and the 7 targets of the Broadband Commission, initiated in 2010 by the UNESCO and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), (www.broadbandcommission.org).
During the webinars various stakeholders will give a brief presentation regarding selected topics. After the presentation there will be an opportunity for discussion with the presenters serving as panelists and the public will have the opportunity to raise questions by logging into the online platform. The webinars will be held in Dutch.
The time for each webinar is 19:30 – 21:00 hrs (-3:00 GMT).
The platform is Zoom.
You can also watch the webinars on our Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/ICTAssociationSuriname
Confirmed Speakers
Minister Albert Jubithana
Minister Transport, Communicatie & Toerisme (Government of Suriname)
Topic: ICT Vision Government
Minister Marie Levens
Minister of Education, Science & Culture
Topic: Renewal education process through ICT
Mike Antonius
CEO Telesur
Topic: ICT in practice: facts & figures & facilitating the SDGs.
Hank Stokbroekx
VP of Huawei Enterprise Services
Topic: Contribution ICT sector to SDGs
Mrs. Margaret Jones Williams
Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP
Topic: United Nations in the Urban Anthropocene & SDGs
Dhr. Bryan Renten
Chair Suriname Trade & Industry Association (VSB)
Topic: Responsibility private sector to SDGs
Anuskha Varsha Sonai
Chair ICT Association Suriname
Topic: Contribution ICT to Development & Innovation
Gerard den Dekker
Commissaris ICT Association Suriname
Topic: Contribution ICT sector to SDGs
Meredith Leter
Head of Legal and License Unit, Telecommunications Authority of Suriname (TAS)
Topic: Policy, Regulations & Strategy
Cylene France
Acting director of the Association of Indigenous Village Leaders in Suriname (VIDS).
Topic: Indigenous and Tribal Peoples (ITPs) and Digital Inclusion.
Renatha Simson
Stichting KAMPOS-Samenwerkingsverband van Tribale Volken in Suriname
Topic: Indigenous and Tribal Peoples (ITPs) and Digital Inclusion
Danny Lachman
Planning Office Government of Suriname
Topic: Appearance of SDGs in Development Plan 2021-2026
Robby Holband
Director Polytechnic College Suriname
Topic: ICT in practice: curricula & adaption global developments
Malty Dwarkasing
Director Suriname Trade & Industry Association Suriname (VSB)
Topic: Responsibility private sector to SDGs
Prewien Ramadhin
Onderdirecteur eGov (Government of Suriname)
Topic: ICT & e-Readiness
Mr Vincentius Kenswil
Lead Education Committee ICT Association Suriname
Topic: Education, ICT & Digital Skills
Shanti Venetiaan
Chair of the board of the Anton De Kom University of Suriname
Topic: ICT in practice: curricula & adaption global developments
Ambassador Miriam Mac Intosh
Permanent Secretary Geopolitical Affairs and International Development Cooperation Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Business and International Cooperation of the Republic of Suriname
Topic: Current position and prioritizing the SDGs in Suriname
Organizing Partners
UNDP – United Nations Development Programme
UNDP is the UN’s global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experiences and resources to help people build a better life. We are on the ground in some 170 countries and territories, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. We support countries in achieving the SDGs through integrated solutions. Today’s complex challenges—stemming from the spread of disease to preventing conflict—cannot be tackled neatly in isolation. For UNDP, this means focusing on systems, root causes and connections between challenges—not just thematic sectors—to build solutions that respond to people’s daily realities.
Achieving the SDGs requires the partnership of governments, private sector, civil society and citizens alike to make sure we leave a better planet for future generations. UNDP has been operating in Suriname since 1994 supporting the Government of Suriname and the people to achieve national goals.
ICT-AS – ICT Associatie Suriname
The ICT Association focuses on supporting the Surinamese society & economy to accelerate and facilitate the development of Suriname with and through ICT. Our vision is to create a digitally enabled information society empowered by the interconnected world of social, political, economic and environmental issues, through innovative information and communication technologies. This, to accelerate sustainable growth and inclusive development for and by every Surinamese.
ICT & SDGs (ICT4SDG)
Information and communication technologies (ICTs) can help accelerate progress towards every single one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The videos below highlight one example per SDG. These videos are created by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies – ICTs. More info about ICT4SDG.
About the SDGs – 17 Goals To Transform Our World
The Sustainable Development Goals are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet. They recognize that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection. More important than ever, the goals provide a critical framework for COVID-19 recovery.
COVID-19 is spreading human suffering, destabilizing the global economy and upending the lives of billions of people around the globe.
The pandemic is an unprecedented wake-up call, laying bare deep inequalities and exposing precisely the failures that are addressed in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change.
Leveraging this moment of crisis, when usual policies and social norms have been disrupted, bold steps can steer the world back on track towards the Sustainable Development Goals. This is the time for change, for a profound systemic shift to a more sustainable economy that works for both people and the planet.
The Sustainable Development Goals are vital for a recovery that leads to greener, more inclusive economies, and stronger, more resilient societies. Read more on the UN website.
“We need to turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres
Do you know all 17 SDGs?
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity.
De relatie tussen ICT en de Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s)
Op welke manier kan ICT en de ICT-sector de ontwikkeling van de Surinaamse samenleving en economie faciliteren, ondersteunen, laten groeien en diversificeren? Deze vraag kunnen wij koppelen aan de 17 SDG’s die gezien kunnen worden als de “bouwstenen” van duurzame economische en sociaal-maatschappelijke ontwikkeling. De vervolgvraag is hoe ICT en de ICT-sector kan bijdragen aan de realisatie van deze ontwikkeling en op welke manier ICT gerelateerd is aan de 17 verschillende duurzame ontwikkelingsdoelen (SDG’s) en de onderliggende 169 targets en 247 indicatoren.
ICT is een belangrijke randvoorwaarde voor de ontwikkeling van alle sectoren van de Surinaamse economie. Essentieel hiervoor is de toegang tot betrouwbaar, kwalitatief en betaalbaar internet. Iedere burger heeft recht op toegang tot internet, ook wel genoemd “digitale inclusiviteit”.