The Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC)’s two projects have been recognized as the Champions of the prestigious UN World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prizes contest 2019. Projects are;
- Climate justice and resilience through Community Radio at coastal areas of the Bay of Bengal in Bangladesh, Supported by the COAST Trust, Bangladesh. https://bnnrc.net/climate-justice-resilience/
- Creating Awareness on Right to Information (RTI) through Community Radio, Supported by Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), https://bnnrc.net/creating-awareness-on-rti/
have won the UN World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prize 2019 as the champion for the implementation of the WSIS Action Line.
WSIS Prizes 2019 with more than two million votes cast by WSIS Stakeholders’ community. Out of 1064 nominated ICT success stories from around the world, following a comprehensive review by the Expert Group, of 1140 projects submitted by the WSIS Stakeholders’ community.
BNNRC will be awarded the Champion’s certificates from the ITU Secretary-General during the special event dedicated to achievement, the WSIS Prizes 2019 Ceremony, on Tuesday, 9 April 2019 during the WSIS Forum 2019 (8-12 April 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland)
The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum is a global United Nations (UN) multistakeholder platform facilitating the implementation of the WSIS Action Lines for advancing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is co-organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP and UNCTAD, in close collaboration with all WSIS Action Line co-/facilitators and other UN organizations (UNDESA, FAO, UNEP, WHO, UN Women, WIPO, WFP, ILO, WMO, ITC, UPU, UNODC, UNITAR, UNICEF and UN Regional Commissions). It represents the world’s largest annual gathering of the ‘ICT for development’ community. It provides an opportunity for information exchange, knowledge creation and sharing of best practices while identifying emerging trends and fostering partnerships, taking into account the evolving Information and Knowledge Societies. In follow up to the outcomes of the UN General Assembly Overall Review of the Implementation of WSIS Outcomes (Res. A/70/125) and with the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (Res. A/70/1), the WSIS Forum is constantly evolving and strengthening the alignment between the WSIS Action Lines and the Sustainable Development Goals.
In 2019, WSIS will celebrate its 10th anniversary of the establishment of WSIS Forum from April 8 to 12, under the theme “Information and Communication Technologies for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals”. WSIS Forum thereby continues to provide a platform for a “just and equal information society” for all WSIS Stakeholders as set by the Geneva Plan of Action.
It would be mentioned that BNNRC won the WSIS Award in 2016 as the winner, supported by Free Press Unlimited, The Netherlands and champion of 2017. BNNRC has been chosen for this award on account of its creative thinking, critical analysis, strong leadership and exceptional innovation of community media sector contributing towards voices of the voiceless people in rural Bangladesh. – Press release
