With its 14th staging is less than a month away, the Caribbean Internet Governance Forum (CIGF) is the oldest regional meeting of its kind worldwide. Nigel Cassimire, one of the key organisers of the CIGF, explains why it is important for all of us to take a greater interest in the ongoing Internet Governance discussions, and shares what he believes are the biggest issues that are being grappled with globally, plus  those to which the Caribbean should be paying greater attention.

 

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Although we may not readily think about, the Internet, as we know it, is continually changing and evolving. What the internet was, and how we used, it five years ago, will be different five years from now. To that end, the frameworks that govern all aspects of the Internet also needs to develop, which in a very basic sense, is termed Internet Governance.

Internet Governance is something every one of us, who at the very least are Internet users, ought to some have interest in. For many of us, the Internet has become integral to both our personal and work lives – to the point where some of us no longer remember how to function without it.

It was thus opportune to catch up with Nigel Cassimire, the Telecommunications Specialist of Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), to discuss Internet Governance and the upcoming Caribbean Internet Governance Forum, which will be held from 21 to 23 May 2018, in Paramaribo, Suriname. This meeting, which is in its 14th year, is the leading regional event on Internet Governance. It not only identifies priorities and policies that should be adopted across the region, it also facilitates consensus, resulting in regional positions that can be communicated in the global Internet Governance conversations that are also occurring.

However, as a first step, our conversation with Nigel touched on areas including:

  • Nigel’s role in the Caribbean’s Internet Governance conversation, and how the Caribbean Internet Governance Forum (CIGF) came into being
  • What does “Internet Governance” mean, and why is so important?
  • The extent to which Caribbean countries have been participating in the CIGF, and on Internet Governance issues generally
  • What are some of the biggest Internet Governance issues that are being grappled with globally?
  • To what issues Nigel thinks the Caribbean should be paying greater attention
  • How the public at large can become more aware of Caribbean Internet Governance issues, and more importantly, participate in or contribute to the discussions.

On a technical note, the Internet connection during the interview was not the best, so we apologise for the quality of audio.

Select links

Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that were mentioned:

 

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Image credit: TheAngryTeddy (Pixabay);  N Cassimire

Music credit:  Ray Holman