The Observatory on Digital Communication, in Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC
XXIII INFOPOVERTY WORLD CONFERENCE
"A.I. turmoils digital processes: how to act to ensure human rights
and provide e-welfare for all?"
April 12, 2024
UNHQ (CR 11) - New York
online on UN Webcast.
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IWC23 ON THE NEWS
9th April 2024
Università degli Studi dell'Insubria
COMMUNICATION PORTFOLIO
IWC23 SPONSORS
SESSIONS OF THE CONFERENCE
EWABELT
PANEL
BROCHURE
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
PRESS
RELEASE
TELEMEDICINE PANEL
FLYER
SPEAKERS'
BIOs
OPENING SESSION
Institutional Greetings
SPEAKERS
H. E. MARCO ROMITI, Minister Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Italy to the United Nations
H.E. ALBERTO BARACHINI, Undersecretary of State, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Italy
NAVID HANIF, Assistant Secretary-General, UN Economic Development in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), Pakistan
ERNESTO OTTONE R., Assistant Director-General Culture Sector, UNESCO, France
General Introduction
PIERPAOLO SAPORITO, President, OCCAM and Infopoverty Program, Italy
FIRST SESSION
How could a holistic approach based on AI be functional to SDGs achievement?
ABOUT THE SESSION
AI presents both risks and opportunities for human well-being. While it holds promise for societal progress and poverty alleviation, its predominant use in warfare and surveillance poses concerns. To prevent past catastrophic outcomes, AI-powered technologies should pivot toward socially beneficial applications, addressing global societal needs, especially for marginalized communities. Ethical testing and application are pivotal for ICTs and AI to effectively address contemporary challenges and meet fundamental human needs. Stakeholders and scientists’ collaboration with governmental representatives is crucial to integrate these tools into global policies, aiming for universal e-welfare.
SPEAKERS
Chair: PATRIZIO CIVILI, Special Advisor to the Director General, IDLO; Former UN Assistant Secretary General, Italy
BELINDA BISCOE, Senior Associate Vice President, The University of Oklahoma, USA
NICCOLÒ RINALDI, Head of Unit Asia, Australia and New Zealand, European Parliament, Italy
HOSSAM BADRAWI, Chairman, Nile Badrawi Foundation for Education & Development, Egypt
REMY SIETCHIPING, Chief, Policy, Legislation and Governance Section, UN-Habitat, Kenya
LIBERATO BAUTISTA, President, CoNGO, the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations, The Philippines
SECOND SESSION
Poverty eradication and hunger: a first challenging priority for AI
SPEAKERS
Chair: MELCHIADE BUKURU, Former Director, UNCCD Liaison Office in New York
GUANGZHOU QU, Director, FAO Liaison Office in New York, USA
GIOVANNA SEDDAIU, Professor in Agronomics and EWA-BELT Project Coordinator, Università di Sassari, Desertification Research Centre, Italy
YOUSSEF BRAHIMI, Member of the EWABELT Scientific Advisory Board, Founding member, Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS), France
FRANÇOIS TAPSOBA, Member of the EWABELT Scientific Advisory Board, Burkina Faso
PlantHead Platform in action from villages in Kenya
operated by OCCAM (Giovanni Zanoni & Martina Baldessin), Italy
Lab testing of qPCR device for DNA detection
by STMicroelectronics (Marco Cereda, Researcher) with University of Sassari (Quirico Migheli, Director NRD) and University of Nairobi (Abigael Ouko, Lecturer)
Focus on biopesticides: Cassia Nigricans study case in Burkina Faso
NICOLA MORGANTI, President, ACRA Foundation, Italy
Neglected Underutilized Crop Species (NUS): the case of Fonio value chain in Ghana
JOHN BIDZAKIN, Research Fellow, Cranfield University, UK
ABOUT THE SESSION
With poverty levels expanding across the globe, raising concerns about a potential recurrence of the 1929 crisis – stemmed from oversaturated production and a shortage of buyers – must be addressed. It thus becomes imperative to craft comprehensive policies aimed at fostering development among the most impoverished populations. The Conference's historical mission lies in highlighting exemplary practices, such as the EU H2020 EWABELT Project (GA 862848), executed across villages in 30 sub-Saharan regions by 20 partners among universities, research centers and Businesses, showcases how the integration of AI-empowered digital technologies into agriculture fosters tangible development within Africa's most underserved communities. This approach mirrors the successful model of ICT Villages, endorsed by the WSIS since 2005, concurrently addressing the migration phenomenon.
