UN-ESCWA is pursing activities related to the Development Account project on “Capacity-Building for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy-Making”‌ that aims to provide technical assistance and advisory services to decision makers in order to develop comprehensive and sustainable ICT-for-development policies and effectively integrate them into overall national development programmes and strategies. The project is a collaborative effort by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), UN regional commissions, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

 

Within the framework of this project, and following the workshop held in Beirut on ICT Policy Making in UN-ESCWA Member Countries from 2 to 4 May 2006, a network of ICT stakeholders and policy-makers for knowledge sharing on ICT policy-related issues was established. UN-ESCWA has launched two online workshops, the first on E-government development in the UN-ESCWA region, and the second on promoting the digital Arabic content industry in the region. The two online workshops are being held over the period of January-February 2007.