Excellencies,
Distinguished participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I'm pleased to deliver this closing statement on behalf of the United Nations.
The past five days of the 17th annual meeting of the Internet Governance Forum have been very intensive, but also inspiring, motivating and fruitful.
I hope all of you have found this Forum an incredible experience, with the active contributions from several thousands of stakeholders coming from across the world, and from diverse disciplines and backgrounds.
This is what is unique about the IGF.
It is a vibrant participatory space, multi-stakeholder platform and multilateral process, involving inputs from over 170 countries.
It gives us hope that working together, we can meet the challenges and seize the opportunities created by the Internet and digital transformation.
nspired by the UN Secretary-General, we must ensure that the digital future puts people first.
Myriads of issues have been spotlighted in this forum this past week.
Through the IGF’s main themes, you have addressed the specifics of major digital policy areas, ranging from connectivity and human rights to Internet fragmentation and emerging technologies.
And all of you, as the Forum’s participants, have demonstrated to the world that if we cooperate, we can harness the true power of digital technologies, changing lives for better.
Your outputs are consolidated in the IGF Messages from Addis Ababa.
Let us now embark on a mission to ensure these messages reach everyone and inform decision-makers.
I call upon all stakeholders present to disseminate the Messages from Addis Ababa to your networks.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Allow me now, on behalf of the United Nations, to thank the government of Ethiopia for its generous and warm hospitalities as host to the 17th IGF. Thank you also to our colleagues of the UN Economic Commission for Africa for their outstanding support.
Thank you also to all participants, here in Addis Ababa or virtually across the world.
The IGF is a success first and foremost because of your support and commitment to the multistakeholder model.
Remember, the IGF is not just a standalone yearly meeting.
It is a year-long cyclic process, with rich intersessional workstreams. I am hopeful that you will continue to engage as we work towards the 18th Session of the IGF, next year in Japan. We are looking forward to working closely with our Japanese hosts.
I thank you again for your rich contributions. And for those of you present in Addis Ababa, have a safe journey back home.