Austria's Commitment to the 2030 Agenda

ACTIVE ON
INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
footing for discussions on policy issues and
recommendations. It promotes a shared
understanding of how to maximise the
opportunities of the Internet and manage
emerging risks and challenges.
The IGF Leadership Panel consists of
ten high-level members appointed from
government, the private sector, the tech
community, and civil society by the United
Nations Secretary-General for two-year
terms. Of the two government representatives,
one is always from the Global South
and one from the Global North. Austria
currently holds the representation of the
Global North through Federal Minister
Karoline Edtstadler.
Rules for the digital world
At the invitation of Federal Minister Karoline
Edtstadler, the IGF Leadership Panel
met in Vienna from 6 th to 7 th March, 2023,
with the clear focus on the planned Global
Digital Compact. This is intended to be a
commitment by the United Nations to an
open, free, accessible and secure Internet
and will be adopted at the “Summit of the
Future” in September 2024. “In many cases,
the rules of the international community
only fit into the analog world and not into
the digital one. Effective regulations for the
digital space are therefore needed here,”
said Federal Minister Karoline Edtstadler.
The yardstick must always to be in compliance
with human rights. “Safeguarding
human rights on the Internet also means,
first and foremost, providing access to
the Internet for everyone, especially in
the global South” - keyword: “connect the
unconnected” - in order to ensure equal
access to information for all. On the other
hand, however, it also means spreading
the protective shield against the dark side
of the Internet as widely as possible,” she
added, referring to hate on the Internet,
which spreads much more quickly through
algorithms than in the analog world. It
was also important to protect people
from autocratic and dictatorial regimes,
deliberately using Internet shutdowns to
influence elections or to cover up human
rights violations.
Unique platform for stakeholders
At the invitation of Federal Minister Karoline
Edtstadler, the IGF Leadership Panel
met in Vienna from 6th to 7th March,
2023, with the clear focus on the planned
Global Digital Compact. This is intended
to be a commitment by the United
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