Welcoming addresses

• Anders Johnsson, Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
• Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations [view video]
• Anders Forsberg, President of the Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments

Keynote Address

• Stefano Rodotà, Professor of Law, University of Rome “La Sapienza”

Session 1: Leadership and vision for ICT in Parliament

• How can ICT increase effectiveness within the organization?
• How can political will and strategic vision be developed?
• What are the critical components of a strategic vision and plan?
• What kind of inter-institutional cooperation should there be?

Chair: Georgeta Ionescu, Secretary General, Chamber of Deputies of Romania

Interventions:

• Zingile A. Dingani, Secretary General of the Parliament of South Africa
• Alessandro Palanza, Deputy Secretary General of the Chamber of Deputies of Italy [view presentation]

Open discussion

Session 2: ICT in Parliament: organizational challenges

• What are the respective roles and responsibilities of the members, officials, and ICT staff?
• How can an adequate human resources and technical infrastructure be created and sustained?
• Who manages the process of organizational change and where are the priorities?

Chair: Albert Kushti, Secretary General, Parliament of Albania

Interventions:

• Joan Miller, Director of Parliamentary ICT, Parliament of the United Kingdom
• Roberto Reale, Advisor to the President and Coordinator of the Institutional Strengthening Programme, Senate of Argentina

Open discussion

Session 3: Parliamentary information systems: partnering to build high quality and sustainable information services

• What is the latest in terms of applications, approaches and collaborative efforts in parliaments around the world?
• What is the potential value of common objectives and standards?
• Are good practices available?
• What are the challenges to exchanges and information sharing?

Chair: Claressa Surtees, Deputy Serjeant-at-Arms, House of Representatives of Australia

Interventions:

• João Luiz Pereira Marciano, Advisor to the Head of the IT Department, Chamber of Deputies of Brazil
• Jeff Griffith, Senior Advisor, Global Centre for ICT in Parliament

Open discussion

Session 4: Challenges and opportunities of the Internet in enhancing the dialogue between parliaments and citizens

• What lessons have been learnt in the use of parliamentary web sites in the context of dialoguing with the electorate and the civil society?
• How can the expectations created by the Internet within and outside parliament best be addressed?
• How can Web 2.0 technologies enhance interaction with citizens?

Chair: Joseph Owona Kono, Member of Parliament, National Assembly of Cameroon

Interventions:

• Uwe Serdult, Managing Director of the Research Centre on Direct Democracy, University of Geneva
• Thomas Buchsbaum, Chair, Ad hoc Committee on e-Democracy, Council of Europe

Open discussion

Closing remarks

• Anders Johnsson, Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
• Anders Forsberg, President of the Association of Secretaries General of Parliaments
• Gherardo Casini, Executive Coordinator of the Global Centre for ICT in Parliament