WSIS Prizes Champions’ Ceremony

Summary

This transcript documents the WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony, celebrating outstanding digital projects making global impact in information and communication technology for development. The ceremony was hosted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), with Deputy Secretary General Tomas Lamanauskas and TSB Director Sejzo Noe presenting awards to champions across eleven WSIS action line categories. The WSIS prizes contest, established in 2012, serves as a key element of the WSIS stocktaking process, with ITU maintaining a database of over 15,000 entries since 2004. This year’s competition received 970 submissions, from which 360 were nominated for online voting that garnered 2 million votes, ultimately recognizing 90 champions and 18 winners.

The ceremony recognized projects spanning diverse areas including government ICT promotion, digital infrastructure, information access, capacity building, cybersecurity, e-government, e-business, e-learning, e-health, e-employment, environmental applications, agriculture, science, cultural diversity, media, ethics, and international cooperation. Champions represented countries from all continents, including projects from Uzbekistan’s IT Park development, Rwanda’s Digital Ambassador Program, China’s emergency communication technologies, and various AI-powered platforms for healthcare, agriculture, and education. Many awards were presented to ambassadors and government officials representing their nations’ digital initiatives. The ceremony highlighted the multi-stakeholder nature of digital development, featuring projects from governments, private sector, academia, and international organizations. The event concluded with an invitation for continued participation in future WSIS activities and the broader WSIS Plus 20 review process, emphasizing the ongoing importance of recognizing and sharing best practices in ICT for development globally.

Keypoints

**Major Discussion Points:**

– **WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony**: The main event celebrating outstanding digital projects making global impact, with 90 champions being recognized across multiple categories from the 970 submissions received this year

– **Multi-stakeholder ICT Development Recognition**: Awards presented across 11 different WSIS Action Line categories including e-government, e-health, e-learning, digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, and international cooperation projects

– **Global Digital Project Database**: Emphasis on the WSIS stocktaking database maintained by ITU since 2004, containing over 15,000 entries and serving as a key resource for digital development initiatives worldwide

– **International Representation and Collaboration**: Recognition of projects from dozens of countries across all continents, with ambassadors, ministers, and project representatives from various nations accepting awards on behalf of their digital initiatives

– **WSIS Plus 20 Review Preparation**: The ceremony serves as part of the broader WSIS Plus 20 High Level event, with the stocktaking database contributing to the upcoming December review of digital development progress

**Overall Purpose:**

The discussion serves as a formal awards ceremony to recognize and celebrate the most impactful digital development projects globally, while promoting the WSIS stocktaking process and encouraging continued international cooperation in ICT for development.

**Overall Tone:**

The tone throughout is consistently formal, celebratory, and diplomatic. It maintains a ceremonial atmosphere appropriate for an international awards event, with respectful acknowledgment of various countries’ achievements. The tone remains positive and encouraging throughout, emphasizing collaboration and shared success in digital development initiatives.

Speakers

– **Moderator**: Role – Event host/facilitator for the WSIS prizes 2025 champion ceremony

**Additional speakers:**

– **Mr. Tomas Lamanauskas**: Title – Deputy Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

– **His Excellency Mr. Eldior Toshmatov**: Title – Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Permanent Mission of Uzbekistan to the UN

– **His Excellency Urujeni Bakaramutsa**: Title – Ambassador of the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Rwanda

– **Mr. Ricardo Lopez**: Role – Representative from the Government of Mexico

– **His Excellency Mr. Brian Glover**: Title – Ambassador and Permanent Mission of Mauritius to the UN

– **Mr. Junjie Xia**: Role – Representative from China Unicom

– **Mr. Peletona**: Role – Representative from Orange Botswana

– **Dr. Adel Almociter**: Role – Representative from Saudi Telecom Company

– **Mr. Neil Souza**: Role – Representative from Get Set Up (USA)

– **Mr. Sourabh Agarwal**: Role – Representative from UNICEF

– **Mr. Mohamed Alfers**: Role – Representative from Palestine Monetary Authority

– **His Excellency Dr. Omer Fatih Sayan**: Title – Deputy Minister of Transport Infrastructure (Turkey)

– **Mr. Sejzo Noe**: Title – TSB Director

– **Dr. Cosmos Zawazava**: Title – Director TSB

– **Various other ambassadors, ministers, and organizational representatives** from multiple countries and institutions who received awards on behalf of their respective projects

# WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony: Summary Report

## Executive Overview

The WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony was held as part of the WSIS Plus 20 High Level event, celebrating outstanding projects that demonstrate the transformative power of information and communication technology for development. Hosted by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), this formal awards ceremony brought together ambassadors, ministers, and representatives from across the globe to honour champions across eleven distinct WSIS action line categories. The moderator announced that nineteen winners were celebrated in the morning session, with 60 champions receiving awards on site during this ceremony.

The ceremony served as a component of the broader WSIS stocktaking process, which has been documenting digital development initiatives since 2004. Mr. Tomas Lamanauskas and TSB Director introduced the proceedings, with Dr. Cosmos Zava Zava later taking over moderation duties. The event highlighted the growth and global reach of ICT for development initiatives while preparing for the upcoming WSIS Plus 20 review scheduled for December.

## WSIS Stocktaking Database and Selection Process

The moderator emphasized that the WSIS stocktaking database has grown to encompass over 15,000 entries since its inception in 2004, representing one of the most comprehensive collections of digital development initiatives globally. More than 6,000 projects have been submitted to the WSIS prizes contest since its establishment in 2012, with 990 champions recognized historically.

This year’s competition received 970 submissions from which 360 were nominated for online voting. The selection process involved 2 million votes cast by the global community. The moderator noted that the database serves both as a recognition mechanism and a knowledge-sharing platform for best practices in ICT for development.

## Award Presentations and International Representation

The ceremony featured presentations to representatives from diverse countries and organizations. Notable presentations included:

**Government Representatives:**

– His Excellency Mr. Eldior Toshmatov, Ambassador of Uzbekistan, accepting for Uzbekistan’s IT Park development

– His Excellency Urujeni Bakaramutsa, Ambassador of Rwanda, for Rwanda’s Digital Ambassador Programme

– His Excellency Mr. Brian Glover, Ambassador of Mauritius

– His Excellency Dr. Omer Fatih Sayan, Deputy Minister of Transport Infrastructure from Turkey

– Mr. Ricardo Lopez from the Government of Mexico

**Private Sector and Organizations:**

– Mr. Junjie Xia from China Unicom for emergency communication technologies

– Mr. Peletona from Orange Botswana

– Dr. Adel Almociter from Saudi Telecom Company

– Mr. Neil Souza from Get Set Up (USA)

– Mr. Sourabh Agarwal from UNICEF

– Mr. Mohamed Alfers from the Palestine Monetary Authority

## Operational Challenges

Several award recipients were not present when called, with awards remaining for later collection. Organizations including UNESCO, Australia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, and Kyrgyzstan had representatives who were unavailable to receive their awards during the ceremony.

## Publications and Documentation

The moderator announced several publications planned for release during the week, including:

– The WSIS Stock Taking Database for 2025

– A special 20-year report documenting digital development progress

– A special report titled “WSIS Stock Taking Success Stories” celebrating all WSIS Prize champions and winners

These publications aim to preserve and disseminate the achievements recognized during the ceremony for broader learning and reference.

## Additional Activities

The ceremony concluded with announcements of related activities, including a yoga session at 6 PM organized by the Indian Mission. The moderator encouraged participants to use designated hashtags to celebrate and promote their achievements within their networks and communities.

## Connection to WSIS Plus 20 Review

Throughout the ceremony, the moderator emphasized the connection between the stocktaking database and the upcoming WSIS Plus 20 review in December. The database and recognized projects were positioned as contributing resources for this broader review of digital development progress over the past two decades.

## Conclusion

The WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony successfully recognized digital development excellence across diverse categories and geographical regions. The event served both as a recognition ceremony and as a component of the broader WSIS stocktaking process, contributing to the preparation for the WSIS Plus 20 review while celebrating innovation and collaboration in the ICT for development field.

Moderator: The role of governments and other stakeholders in promoting the ICT for development to get ready to receive their award Champions in category C1. You are the first to go. Please be ready All right, so I would like to ask once again to please take your seats as we are about to start I see a lot of people in the central aisle Please take your seats All right, so we are about to start. Ladies and gentlemen Colleagues from the regime, you can lower the volume of the music, please Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the WSIS prizes 2025 champion ceremony We are truly delighted to have you with us to celebrate outstanding achievements of the digital projects making impact around the world The WSIS prize contest remains a key element of the WSIS stocktaking process in the entire WSIS process. ITU has been maintaining the WSIS stocktaking database since 2004, and since 2012, the WSIS prizes were established to contribute to the WSIS stocktaking database. There are more than 15,000 entries into the WSIS stocktaking database, and we would like to invite you to use it. It’s an amazing database that we would also like you to contribute to in the future. More than 6,000 projects have been submitted to the WSIS prizes contest since 2012. 960 winners and champions were awarded up to date. This year was no exception. We have received 970 submissions for the WSIS prizes contest, out of which 360 were nominated for the online voting, bringing it back to the global community. Following the 2 million votes cast, we have 90 champions recognized and celebrated since the last month and a half. And today, we are gathering here to continue celebrating the success of the WSIS prize champions. Before we begin, it is my pleasure to invite and welcome Mr. Tomas Lamanauskas, the Deputy Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union, to join us at the stage. Welcome. Without further ado, we are starting with the WSIS Action Line Category 1, the role of governments and all stakeholders in the promotion of ICTs for development. The champions are, and I’ll be inviting you to approach, Deputy Secretary General at the podium to receive your award, the Development of IT Infrastructure and IT Entrepreneurship by IT Park Uzbekistan from the Republic of Uzbekistan. We kindly invite to the stage His Excellency Mr. Eldior Toshmatov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Permanent Mission of Uzbekistan to the UN to receive the award. We invite the Ambassador of Uzbekistan to the UN, if in the room, to approach Secretary-General. And the next champion to come is His Excellency Urujeni Bakaramutsa, Ambassador of the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Rwanda, to also receive the award on behalf of the Project Digital Ambassador Program by Rwanda Information Society from Rwanda. Congratulations. The next champion in this category is Digital Transformation Labs by the Gobierno del Estado de Campeche from Mexico. We now invite Mr. Ricardo Lopez to the stage to accept the award. Representatives from the Government of Mexico are invited to receive the award. Congratulations to the champion from Mexico. We would also like to recognize the project Smart Integration of Police and Judicial Joint Operations by the Ministry of Interior from the United Arab Emirates. We would like to invite representatives from UAE to join Deputy Secretary-General at the podium to receive the award. While the champions from UAE are approaching the stage, We would like to invite and see whether His Excellency, the representative of Uzbekistan is in the room with us to receive the award. Congratulations, the champions from United Arab Emirates. Today we are celebrating the winners and champions at the international level. We do hope that you will continue to promote this success back at home at your communities and networks. We are now moving to the WSIS Action Line Category 2, Information and Communication Infrastructure, and we would like to invite the following champions to approach the Deputy Secretary General at the podium. The GIS Assets Management System for Local Authorities by Mauritius Digital Promotion Agency by the Republic of Mauritius. We welcome His Excellency, Mr. Brian Glover, Ambassador and Permanent Mission of Mauritius to the UN to receive the award. Congratulations. While His Excellency is approaching the stage to receive the award, we would like to invite the following champion to also get ready to receive the award. On behalf of the revolutionizing emergency communications, the power of integrated space air-ground technologies by China Unicom, we formally invite Mr. Junjie Xia and his delegation to the stage to accept your distinction. Congratulations. We would also like to invite the champions for the project School Connectivity Project by Mabucane Subdiscrete by Orange Botswana, Republic of Botswana. and welcome Mr. Peletona and his delegation to join us on the stage to receive the prize. Congratulations for the champions from Mauritius, China and Botswana. The following champion in category C2 for the project Technical Enablement Project by Saudi Telecom Company from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We invite Dr. Adel Almociter to receive this well-earned award. Congratulations. So as I mentioned, we are gathered here today to celebrate these achievements from our winners and champions and we’d love to hear more from you how you celebrate these achievements back home using this hashtag. We are now moving to the action line C3, access to information and knowledge and we would like to recognize the following champions. AI for Aging, solving 1.3 trillion challenge by Get Set Up from United States of America. Please join us Mr. Neil Souza on the stage to accept your award. Congratulations for the champion from USA. We would also like to invite on behalf of the champion project PEPO Digital Parenting Program by the United Nations Children Fund UNICEF to join us at the stage and receive the award. On behalf of UNICEF, Mr. Sourabh Agarwal to join the stage and receive the award. Congratulations. The next champion to be recognized on the main stage of the WSIS Plus 20 High Level event. comes on behalf of the Financial Inclusion Dashboard, empowering data-driven decisions for inclusive growth by the Palestine Monetary Authority from the State of Palestine. We call Mr. Mohamed Alfers to approach the stage and accept this prestigious distinction. Congratulations. The final champion in this category, C3, is on behalf of the project Tariff Comparison Services by Information Technology and Communication Authority from the Republic of Turkey. And we would like to invite His Excellency, Dr. Omer Fatih Sayan, Deputy Minister of Transport Infrastructure, and his delegation to the stage to receive this token of recognition. Congratulations. Congratulations to the champions in this section line C3, information and access to information and knowledge. We’re now moving to the capacity building action line. And the champions in the business action line category 4 capacity building are Artificial Intelligence Stars by Habitat Association from the Republic of Turkey. You are invited, Mr. Mayor Nemrutu and her delegation to cordially join us at the stage and receive this distinguished award. Congratulations. The following champion to be recognized on behalf of the project Capacity Building for Elderly and Disabled Persons by Eswatini Communication Commission from the Kingdom of Eswatini. We now invite Mr. Mubageni Mutsali and his delegation to receive this symbol of appreciation. Congratulations. The following champion is on behalf of the project PAG-ASA, Beyond Bars Unlocking Opportunities through Digital Skills Training by the Department of Information and Communication Technology, MIMAROPA, from the Philippines. And we invite Ms. Emi Low Delphine to again take the stage as she did this morning at the winner’s ceremony and receive the award by the Deputy Secretary General. Congratulations. The last champion in this category, Tawar Gayar, Development Change by the Minister of Education and Technical Education from Egypt. It is a privilege to request the presence of Mr. Ahmed Saeed on stage to receive the award. Congratulations. And before we continue with the category C5, we have the champion from Uzbekistan. On behalf of the winning project, His Excellency Eldior Toshmatov will receive the award. Congratulations and welcome. Nineteen winners were celebrated this morning and today in this ceremony for the champions, 60 champions will be receiving the award on site. That’s a great number. Thank you all for coming and for recognizing Mrs. Price’s contest. We look forward to next year as well. In the next action line, C5, building confidence and security in the use of ICTs, the champions are A theatrical journey into cyber safety by National Telecommunication Agency Anatel from the Republic of Brazil, Federative Republic of Brazil. We invite Mr. Alexandre Freire on the stage to receive the award, congratulations. We now invite Mr. Ramon Munoz to the stage to receive the recognition on behalf of the project Hacker Girls by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies from the Republic of Colombia. Congratulations. Congratulations to champions in Action Line C5. The following champions are rewarded for their outstanding work in the VISIS Action Line C6 enabling environment. The champions are as following, Lighting Digital Capacity Building Drive by ICT Agency of Sri Lanka. We welcome His Excellency Ms. Himale Arunathilaka, Ambassador of the Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to UN to receive this award on behalf. Congratulations for the champion from Sri Lanka. The champion from the Dominican Republic for their project Puntos. GOB by the Government Office of Information and Communication Technologies from the Dominican Republic. And on behalf of this champion, Mr. Edgar Batista and his delegation are invited to the stage to receive the award. Congratulations to the Dominican Republic representatives. Congratulations. The next champion in this action line is the project Social Tariff for Mobile Voice and Data for Beneficiaries of Human Development Transfers by the National Agency for Regulation and Control of Telecommunications from Ecuador. Congratulations. We are honored to invite Mr. Jorge Hoyos to accept this award. Please, Mr. Hoyos, join the Deputy Secretary General on the podium, if in the room. Maybe Mr. Hoyos will join us later. We are moving ahead with the following business action line, e-Government. We kindly invite Ms. Mirlinda Kartsanaj, General Director of the National Agency of Information Society, on behalf of the Champion Project AI-Driven Harmonization of Albanian Legislation with the EU AQI, by the National Agency of Information Society, to join the Deputy Secretary General on the podium to receive this award. Congratulations, Albania. The following champion comes from Tanzania. On behalf of the Champion Project AI-Powered Emergential Platform by the President’s Office, e-Government Authority from the United Republic of Tanzania, we invite Honorable Jerry Sila, Minister of High Cities of Tanzania, and his delegation to join the Deputy Secretary General and receive the prize. Congratulations. It comes from Portugal and on behalf of the Champion Project app by the Government of Portugal, Administrative Modernization Agency, we invite Mr. André Ortega Costa to come and receive the award on behalf of the Champion. Congratulations Portugal! The Champion Project Damani platform by the Financial Service Authority from the Sultanate of Oman is next to receive the prize. And on behalf of the Champion, Dr. Hatim Davud Alavati and his delegation are invited to the stage to receive the award from the Deputy Secretary General. Congratulations! Thank you very much! The next action line we will be awarding the Champions for is the business action line category C7 e-business. I would like to invite the Champion from Lithuania for the project Cityfy, your city of tomorrow. From the Republic of Lithuania, we respectfully invite Mr. Vitalius Gailus from the Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the stage to receive the award on behalf of the Champion. Congratulations Lithuania! On behalf of the Iran Digital National Plan, we would like to invite Mr. Mohamed Mohsen Sader and his delegation to the stage to receive the Champion Award. from the Islamic Republic of Iran. The next champion. Comes from Laos, People’s Democratic Republic for the champion project M-Money Next by the financial inclusion for the unbanked in the Laos. On behalf of the champion, Mr. Supho Chantavikhekse and his delegation are invited to the podium to receive this prestigious honor. Congratulations, Laos. We’d also like to recognize the champion in this category coming from Belize, online business register system. And we’d like to invite the representatives of the champion project to receive this award by the deputy secretary general. Congratulations, Belize. We would like to also recognize the champion in the enabling environment. Let’s see if they’re with us in the room. Arab digital inclusion platform by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia. Do we have representatives from UNESCO? Thank you, we are moving on to the next business action line category. The next business action line category is e-learning. The champions that we would like to recognize today are the following. Connected North, by taking IT Global from Canada. We would like to invite Ms. Jennifer Corriero and her delegation to the stage to receive the award by the Deputy Secretary General. Congratulations, Canada. The next champion to be recognized is the project Dubai Skills by the Digital Dubai Authority from the United Arab Emirates. We invite Mr. Khalifa Al Mari and his delegation to the stage to receive the award. Congratulations, UAE. The next champion to be recognized in the category e-learning is the Digital Infrastructure Program by Lighthouse International from Australia. Mr. Jack Groudon and his delegation are invited to join the Deputy Secretary General’s stage and receive the award. Representatives from Australia, congratulations. We don’t have the champions from Australia in the room with us, perhaps not as of yet. We are moving to the next champion. The champion project Money Management Academy by CITSA Works PTA Ltd. from the Republic of Singapore. And we would like to invite on behalf of the champion project Ms. Sue Limon and her delegation on the stage to receive the award. Congratulations, Singapore. Now, before we go to the next action line categories, we would like to thank Deputy Secretary General Mr. Tomas Lamanouskas for being with us today. Thank you very much. And before we continue with the ceremony, we’re taking a small break by introducing to you some of the important stats and data on behalf of the business stock taking and the business prizes. As I mentioned, we have received 970 submissions this year, out of which 360 were nominated, 2 million votes cast and 90 champions recognized. Out of these 90 champions, 18 were announced today as winners. All these years, we have been working with this multi-stakeholder community, hand in hand, to really recognize the best ICT practices around the world. Business prizes being an integral part of the business stock taking database has been detrimental in the success of one of the most major databases recognizing digital projects for development. ITU has been maintaining this database since 2004 and continues to maintain it. As we are approaching the WSIS Plus 20 review in December, this database will be contributing to the review enormously. And this is all thanks to those who have been submitting their projects to the WSIS stock taking database and the WSIS prizes. We will be issuing publications for the WSIS Stock Taking Database for 2025 and also of the 20 years report during this week. And we do invite you to take a good use of it. Besides that, we will also be issuing a special report called WSIS Stock Taking Success Stories that will be celebrating all the WSIS Prize champions and winners. We also invite you to take a good use of that. It’s a digital publication, so if you would like us to change something, an update, please come back to the WSIS team and we’ll be glad to do so. So we are now ready to continue with the next WSIS Action Line, e-Health. We would like to invite Deputy Secretary General back to the podium. We cannot go without Thomas. Thanks for being back with us. The champions in the e-Health category that we will be recognizing now are the following. Medical Data Transfer by Civil Defense Public Security Directorate from Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. We respectfully call Mr. Anwar Mustafa Al-Shudaifa to stage to receive the award. Congratulations, Jordan. Thank you. The next champion to be recognized in e-Health category is MyHeart, AI-powered predictive system for cardiovascular health by the University of Technology Mara and University of Malaya from Malaysia. Please, Professor Dr. Sazli Qasim, come forward and receive the award. Congratulations, Malaysia. We also have the champion Public Health Update. by the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, do we have representatives from Nepal to receive the award? Anyone from Nepal? We’re continuing with recognizing the WSIS Prize 2025 champions. The champions in category E-Employment are Cabo Verde Digital by Pro Empresa from Republic of Cabo Verde. Let’s welcome Her Excellency Ambassador Clara Delgado to the stage to collect the award. Congratulations, Cabo Verde. Congratulations. We also recognize the champion project Digital Employee Experience by Federal Authority for Government Human Resources from United Arab Emirates. And we would like to invite representatives from the United Arab Emirates to receive the award on behalf. We’re moving on with the next champion, Mansa CV by Mansa Talents from Republic of Guinea. Please, we invite Tamba Emmanuel Milimono to approach the stage and receive the award from the Deputy Secretary General. Congratulations, Republic of Guinea. Thank you. Congratulations. The final champion in this category is Project General by the Ministry of Economic and Telecommunications from Senegal. Please join us on stage. We invite Mr. Roger Thiam to receive the award. Congratulations Senegal. Before we move on to the next action line, we would also like to invite the champion in the business action line, eHELP, called Telepresence Suite for Metaverse Interconnection by the Bong Bruevich St. Petersburg State University from Russian Federation and invite Dr. Andrei Koucherivi and his delegation to the stage to receive the award. Thank you. The next business action line that we will be moving ahead with is the business action line eEnvironment and we would like to invite the following champions to the stage. The champion, Caribbean Climate Innovation Center from Jamaica, congratulations. Representatives from the Caribbean Climate Innovation Center not with us today, we are moving on to the next champion. Contributions to the fight against the throwdown of groundwater in the Algerian arid regions by Geophysics and ICT, by the Center for Scientific and Technical Research on Arid Regions, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, Mr. Noui Abderrahman, we invite you to join Deputy Secretary General on the podium to receive your award. Congratulations, Algeria. You don’t have it. Congratulations. And this is the second time we are thanking Deputy Secretary General for being with us today. Thank you very much, Mr. Lamanouskas, for your presence. And we would now like to invite TSB Director Sejzo Noe to join us at the podium and continue with the handover ceremony for the WSIS Prize Champions 2025. The following champion we would like to recognize is Machine Learning Platform, NASA AI Research and Development Center from the Kingdom of Bahrain. Congratulations. On behalf of the Kingdom of Bahrain’s champion project, Machine Learning Platform, we had Dr. Abdullah Alnoaimi with us today. Thank you very much and congratulations, Bahrain. We are now moving to WSIS Action Line e-Agriculture, and we would like to recognize the following champions. Supporting Farmer Resilience through Digital Weather and Extension Services in Senegal by Ignitia from Sweden. It is our privilege to welcome Mr. Andreas Waldgren and his delegation to the stage to receive the award. Congratulations, Sweden. Congratulations, Senegal. Congratulations. Congratulations. The following action line champion in agriculture is FAO for the project FAO food loss app. We congratulate our colleagues from FAO, invite miss Agustina Grossi and her delegation to the stage to receive the award by the director, TSB director. Congratulations. The next champion is Greenleaf AI by Greenleaf AI from Morocco. We invite Dr. Guzaifi, Isaka, Budbane. Please come and receive your award. Congratulations Morocco. Congratulations Morocco. And the final champion in the action line e-agriculture is Livestock Health AI Platform, Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Congratulations. We would like to invite His Excellency Engineer Mansour Hilai Al Mushait, Vice Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture to receive the award from the TSB director. Congratulations. Congratulations. Thank you very much. We are moving to the champions for WSIS action line category 7, e-science. We would like to invite the International Artificial Intelligence Olympiad by Saudi Data and AI Authority, SADAYA from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Please miss Ashfaq Al-Tubait and her delegation, we request you to please be here and get the award from UNO-ISAN. Thank you very much, we move on to the next champion, Internet Community Networks in Haiti by Internet Society, ISOC Haiti from the Republic of Haiti, we invite Ms. Sally Wentworth to the stage to please receive the award as a mark of recognition and appreciation. Next champion’s award goes to COBO Toolbox by COBO, ILC from United States of America. Dr. Anand, you’re warmly welcome to please come to the stage and accept your award. And the final champion in this category, STEM for All by St. Joseph’s University in Tanzania, from the United Republic of Tanzania, please Dr. Thompson Xavier Anthony, and Mr. Ruben, please join us on stage. Thank you very much. Congratulations. We’d like to invite you to step down and we’d like to invite Mr. Cosmos Zava Zava, Director TSB to please take your place to continue with the awards. Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Anu Esad. The next champion’s category is WSIS Action 9 C8, Cultural Diversity and Identity, Linguistic Diversity and Local Content. Champion in this category, the first one goes to Cosmos, please take the stage there. Development of the Lakmian State Administration Language Technology Platform Hugo by Cultural Information Center, Republic of Latvia, Mr. Yanis Zaidan, you’re cordially invited to please take the trophy. Is Latvia here? Yes, sir. You’re invited to take the trophy. Thank you so much. Next champion, Meri Panchayat, the M Governance Platform for Panchayats of India by National Informatics Center Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Government of India from the Republic of India. Please, Mr. N.K. Goyal to join us on stage to collect the award. Thank you. Congratulations, Signal Reach Program in Africa, ZTE is dedicated to connect the unconnected, partnering with ZTE Corporation from People’s Republic of China. Let us know, recognize your achievements. Ms. Zipping Samar Shen, please join us on stage. The Pan-African Youth Ambassadors for Internet Governance by Cyber Czar from South Africa, may we please formally welcome Ms. Soren Assefa to the stage for this commemoration. Soren, are you in the room? Thank you, Dr. Zawa Zawa. We are moving on to Action Line C9, Media. And the champions for WSIS Action Line C9 Media are Migration of Small Islands Developing States into Metaverse as Climate Adaptation Strategy by SNOB Consultancy from Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea, do we have you here? AgroSpace Platform by AgroInform Asia from Kyrgyzstan. Do we have Kyrgyzstan colleagues? Oh, I see that South Africa is here. Jim, are you collecting your award? OK. Constructive Journalism on the Road Safety for Media Professionals using Digital Platforms by Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication from Bangladesh. Mr. Balzoor Rahman, we welcome you to the stage to receive your prize. How are you? How are you? Thank you so much. Congratulations. KOSMOS, we have the delegation from South Africa would like to invite the DG to please collect the award. Please, Jim and DG, please do collect the award. Good job. Pan-African Youth Ambassadors for the Internet Governance. And the final champion for this category, ASEAN Guideline on Management of Government Information in Combating Fake News and Disinformation in the Media, Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr. Matmur Nastunian. Excellency Asanul Habib, Ambassador of the Permanent Mission, are here to get the award. We were informed that the Ambassador of Oman is here with us and he had missed his category. So, Excellency, we’d like to invite you to please collect your award from Dr. Cosmos Zawazawa on behalf of the winners. Sir, we welcome you on the stage. Thank you. Thank you, Excellency. Thank you, Dr. Cosmos Zawazawa. We move on to the category number 10, Ethical Dimensions of the Information Society. The first champion is Seoul Safety Project Against Digital Sexual Crime Using AI to Prevent, Respond, Erase and Educate by Seoul Foundation of Women and Family. Ms. Zaw, you enjoy. Kindly please come to the stage to receive the award. The next champion is Penang Stop Violence Application by Penang State Secretariat Office from Malaysia. His Excellency Lim Kim and her delegation, we now welcome you to stage to collect the award. Thank you. Congratulations, Malaysia. The next champion in this category is Young Digital Volunteer Ambassadors by Ekol Multinational Superior Depots from Kotewar. Mr. Narkes, kindly please proceed to the stage to accept this recognition. Kotewar. Congratulations. Thank you, Madam Assistant. Congratulations. We are moving to the last champion of this category, Amplifying the Voice of the Global South for Ethical Knowledge and Education in the Information Society by Global Ethics from Switzerland, Mr. Fadi. Let us welcome you on stage to collect the award. Congratulations. We are now moving to the champions for WSIS Action Line Category 11, International and Regional Cooperation. The first champion in this category is EmpowerHer Digital Women’s ICT and Innovation Program by African Advanced Level Telecommunication Institute from the Republic of Kenya. Mr. William Barraza, let us welcome you to the stage to celebrate this achievement. Mr. William Barraza, are you here? Congratulations. Stingray 2, Catalyzing Digital Transformation in Palau. Ketam, Ketam Islands by Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission from Malaysia. We invite His Excellency, Fadzal, Minister of Communication to accept this award. Please, sir, we welcome you here. Congratulations, Malaysia. The third champion in this category is Centre for Advanced Studies in Broadband for Development by Centre for Advanced Studies in Broadband Development from Nicaragua, Ms. Rosalie Borque, Ambassador to the Permanent Mission of Nicaragua to the UN. We are honoured to invite you to stage to accept the award. The last champion in this category is Africa UN Knowledge Management Hub by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, is the Regional Commission for Africa. Mactar, are you in the room? Thank you. Congratulations, Makhtar. We are just checking if UN Esquire is in the room, because you missed your trophy. Is Ayman in the room, UN Esquire? Okay, so with that, Vladimir? With that, we would like to thank the Ability Director, Dr. Kosmas Zavazava, and everyone else today that were with us. Congratulations to all WSYS Prize champions. We see you next year. Enjoy the rest of the WSYS Plus 20 High Level event. Today, there are sessions ongoing in other rooms, and of course, the next four days. At 6 o’clock, in this room, on this stage, we do invite you to refresh and give some time back to you and join us for the yoga sessions. 6 to 6.30 p.m., we’ll have yoga instructors by the Indian Mission, and we look forward to seeing you back here. Thank you very much.

Agreement points

WSIS Prize Contest as Essential Framework for Digital Development Recognition

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony Overview and Process

Summary

There is clear institutional consensus that the WSIS prize contest serves as a fundamental and systematic approach to recognizing global digital development initiatives, with the comprehensive database maintained by ITU since 2004 providing crucial documentation for the field.

Topics

Development | Digital access | Capacity development

Comprehensive Multi-Sectoral Approach to ICT Solutions

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

Recognition of Digital Innovation Projects Across Multiple Categories

Summary

There is agreement that digital innovation must span multiple sectors and categories to effectively address development challenges, as demonstrated by the 11 WSIS Action Line categories covering everything from basic infrastructure to advanced AI applications.

Topics

Development | Digital access | Sustainable development | Online education

Importance of Knowledge Documentation and Sharing for Future Development

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

WSIS Stocktaking Database and Future Publications

Summary

There is consensus on the critical value of systematically documenting and sharing digital development progress through comprehensive databases and publications, particularly for informing future initiatives and the WSIS Plus 20 review process.

Topics

Development | Capacity development | Digital access

Similar viewpoints

All arguments share a common perspective that systematic, comprehensive, and multi-stakeholder approaches are essential for advancing global digital development, whether through prize recognition, project categorization, or knowledge documentation.

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony Overview and Process

Recognition of Digital Innovation Projects Across Multiple Categories

WSIS Stocktaking Database and Future Publications

Topics

Development | Digital access | Capacity development | Sustainable development

Unexpected consensus

Scale and Global Participation in Digital Development Recognition

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony Overview and Process

Explanation

The unexpected level of global engagement is demonstrated by 2 million votes cast and 970 submissions from diverse countries, indicating remarkable international consensus on the value of recognizing digital development initiatives through a unified framework.

Topics

Development | Digital access | Capacity development

Overall assessment

Summary

The transcript reveals strong institutional and procedural consensus around the WSIS framework as the primary mechanism for recognizing, documenting, and promoting global digital development initiatives across multiple sectors and stakeholder groups.

Consensus level

High level of consensus with significant implications for establishing WSIS as the authoritative global framework for digital development recognition, suggesting strong international alignment on the importance of systematic approaches to ICT for development and the value of comprehensive documentation for future policy and program development.

Different viewpoints

Unexpected differences

Overall assessment

Summary

No areas of disagreement identified in the transcript

Disagreement level

Zero disagreement level – this was a ceremonial award presentation rather than a debate or discussion format. The transcript consists entirely of a moderator presenting awards to various champions and winners of the WSIS Prizes 2025, with no opposing viewpoints, debates, or conflicting arguments presented. All speakers (moderator and officials) were aligned in celebrating and recognizing digital development achievements across multiple categories and countries.

Partial agreements

Similar viewpoints

All arguments share a common perspective that systematic, comprehensive, and multi-stakeholder approaches are essential for advancing global digital development, whether through prize recognition, project categorization, or knowledge documentation.

Speakers

– Moderator

Arguments

WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony Overview and Process

Recognition of Digital Innovation Projects Across Multiple Categories

WSIS Stocktaking Database and Future Publications

Topics

Development | Digital access | Capacity development | Sustainable development

Key takeaways

The WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Ceremony successfully recognized 90 champions across 11 action line categories, with 18 announced as winners, representing outstanding digital projects making global impact

The WSIS stocktaking database has grown significantly with over 15,000 entries and 6,000+ prize submissions since 2012, demonstrating the global reach and importance of ICT for development initiatives

This year’s contest received 970 submissions with 360 nominated for online voting, generating 2 million votes from the global community, showing strong international engagement

Digital innovation projects span diverse areas including government digitization, AI-powered health systems, emergency communications, agriculture, education, and digital inclusion programs across multiple countries and regions

The ceremony highlighted the multi-stakeholder approach to recognizing ICT best practices, with participation from government officials, ambassadors, international organizations, and private sector representatives

The WSIS stocktaking database will play a crucial role in the upcoming WSIS Plus 20 review in December, providing comprehensive documentation of 20 years of digital development progress

Resolutions and action items

Publications for the WSIS Stock Taking Database for 2025 and a special 20-year report will be issued during the week

A special report called ‘WSIS Stock Taking Success Stories’ will be published as a digital publication celebrating all WSIS Prize champions and winners

The community is invited to continue contributing to and utilizing the WSIS stocktaking database for future submissions

Champions are encouraged to promote their success back home in their communities and networks using designated hashtags

A yoga session was scheduled for 6:00-6:30 PM in the same room, hosted by the Indian Mission

Unresolved issues

Several award recipients were not present in the room when called, with their awards remaining uncollected during the ceremony

Some representatives from organizations like UNESCO, Australia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, and Kyrgyzstan were not available to receive their awards

The ceremony had to accommodate missed award presentations, indicating coordination challenges with international participants

Suggested compromises

None identified

ITU has been maintaining the WSIS stocktaking database since 2004, and since 2012, the WSIS prizes were established to contribute to the WSIS stocktaking database. There are more than 15,000 entries into the WSIS stocktaking database, and we would like to invite you to use it. It’s an amazing database that we would also like you to contribute to in the future.

Speaker

Moderator

Reason

This comment is insightful because it highlights the long-term institutional memory and knowledge accumulation aspect of digital development work. It transforms what could be seen as merely an awards ceremony into a broader conversation about collaborative knowledge building and the importance of documenting and sharing digital development practices globally.

Impact

This comment established the foundational context for the entire ceremony, shifting it from a simple recognition event to a celebration of collective knowledge building. It encouraged participants to view their projects not just as individual achievements but as contributions to a larger global repository of digital development solutions.

As we are approaching the WSIS Plus 20 review in December, this database will be contributing to the review enormously. And this is all thanks to those who have been submitting their projects to the WSIS stock taking database and the WSIS prizes.

Speaker

Moderator

Reason

This comment is thought-provoking because it connects current project achievements to future policy and strategic planning. It demonstrates how grassroots digital initiatives feed into global governance discussions and policy formation, showing the practical impact of local projects on international digital development frameworks.

Impact

This comment elevated the significance of each project being recognized, helping participants understand that their work contributes to shaping global digital policy. It created a sense of urgency and importance around documentation and knowledge sharing, as these projects would inform major international reviews and future strategies.

We will be issuing publications for the WSIS Stock Taking Database for 2025 and also of the 20 years report during this week. And we do invite you to take a good use of it. Besides that, we will also be issuing a special report called WSIS Stock Taking Success Stories that will be celebrating all the WSIS Prize champions and winners.

Speaker

Moderator

Reason

This comment is insightful as it emphasizes the importance of knowledge dissemination and learning from successful practices. It suggests that the real value of these projects lies not just in their individual impact but in their potential to inspire and inform similar initiatives globally through systematic documentation and sharing.

Impact

This comment reinforced the collaborative and learning-oriented nature of the event, encouraging participants to think beyond their immediate achievements to consider how their experiences could benefit others. It also established expectations for continued engagement and knowledge sharing beyond the ceremony itself.

Overall assessment

While this transcript primarily documents an awards ceremony rather than a traditional discussion, the most impactful comments came from the moderator’s contextualizing remarks that transformed the event from a simple recognition ceremony into a celebration of collective knowledge building and global collaboration. These comments successfully elevated the significance of individual projects by connecting them to broader themes of institutional memory, policy influence, and knowledge sharing. The moderator’s emphasis on the WSIS database as a living repository of digital development solutions and its connection to the upcoming 20-year review helped participants understand their role in a larger ecosystem of global digital governance. However, the formal nature of the ceremony limited deeper discussion or participant interaction, making the moderator’s framing comments the primary drivers of conceptual depth in the conversation.