Khaled Ahsan
Bangladesh Consultation on Fourth Annual Meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) held at Bangladesh Computer Council, Agargaon. The chief guest Mr. Hasanul Haque Inu, MP, Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee, Ministry of Post and Telecommunications, and the moderator Dr. Akram Hossain Chowdhury, MP, Naogaon-3, thanked the monthly technology magazine “Computer Jagat,” Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC), Center for e-Parliament Studies and J.A.N Associates Ltd. for organizing the event. This entire program was live casted through the website of Computer Jagat and facilitated online visitors to visit and post through online forum.
IGF was initiated under UN-Secretary General Kofi Annan to establish a dialogue among different stakeholders of Internet to solve the issues of “who will control Internet” and “who will fund it,” while since 1998, the global balance of power of Internet was provoked, as the US government holds unilateral control of internet resources through ‘Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Number- ICANN’, against the will of users and governments. IGF issues also include (a) critical Internet resources; (b) access; (c) diversity; (d) openness; and (e) security.
Three papers were presented to discuss the global, regional and national issues pertaining to IGF, to initiate discussion among civil society, government, technologists, research scientists, industry, media and academia. Mr. Md. Saifuddin Khalid, Lecturer, Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) presented focusing the global issue, Mr. Tarique M. Barkatullah, Senior Systems Analyst, Bangladesh Computer Council talked on national issues, and Mr. T. I. M. Nurul Kabir, CEO, Spinnovation Ltd. focused on the action plan for reaching national and international goals. Mr. Barkatullah in his concluding part expressed that the IGF goal and Digital Bangladesh goal is same. Mr. Kabir showed a development matrix and stressed that the action plan for reaching national goal is missing and referred to “false start.”
Mr. M. A. Haque. Anu, Secretary General, Bangladesh Working Group on Internet Governance Forum (IGF), Mr. A. H. M. Bazlur Rahman, CEO, BNNRC, A.K.M Shamsuddoha, president of Dohatec New Media; Afroza Haq Rina- Managing Director, Shom Computers Ltd; Kamal Arsalan, journalist, Bangladesh Observer; Md. Sabur Khan, MD, Daffodil Computers Ltd.; S.M. Altaf Hossain, CEO, Telnet Communication Ltd.; Mohammad Aminul Hakim, CEO, Dhakacom Ltd. and many others were present in the discussion.
In the open discussion session a significant number of action oriented suggestion were made to achieve national and IGF goals. The Bangladesh Working Group on IGF will be publishing report on the feedbacks from the Internet Stakeholders in Bangladesh.
