The Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) 2017 is getting bigger and better. The 5^th edition, being hosted by India is to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi on November 23, 2017. It will see participation of ministers, officials, industry leaders and academia engaged in the global cyber ecosystem.

The world’s who’s who in the field of cyber space will congregate in India’s capital city. Over 3500 participants will take part in the weeklong event directly and millions virtually from India and abroad through video conference, webinars and webcast. For those who are not travelling to Delhi, about 800 locations around the world will be connected to GCCS 2017 (www.gccs2017.in) through video conference and 2000 locations through webinars.

 More than 40 events and sessions are being organized by the Ministry of Electronics and IT, Government of India, in partnership with the Industry, International Organizations, Academia and Think Tanks. Over 3 dozen events have been held in leading institutions in India and abroad over the last 7 months, involving the participation of more than 3000 experts in the field as a run up to the GCCS 2017. More than 3500 personsare expected to participate in the Curtain Raiser and Main Events. Various activities and events during the GCCS 2017 will expound on how cyberspace is transforming our lives -how we live, govern and create value. There is a lot of excitement around the world with a large number of pre-registrations seeking invitation for this event as either delegate or speaker.

The host of the 5^th GCCS, Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad, Hon’ble Minister for Electronics & IT and Law & Justice, has said “As we approach November, I look forward to warmly welcome 3000+ delegates at GCCS 2017, New Delhi.”

‘Cyber4All’ will be the main theme of this largest ever event of its kind with  four sub-themes - Cyber4InclusiveGrowth, Cyber4Digitalinclusion, Cyber4Security and Cyber4Diplomacy for the 3-4 plenary and 12-16 parallel sessions, which will see deliberations on various issues of cyber space over a period of 2 days. An action packed week will start with a 2 day Curtain Raiser on November 20, 2017 in the Aerocity. The Curtain Raiser will also have 12 events where approximately 1400 stakeholders are expected to participate. Besides this, there will be multiple side events in the backdrop of GCCS 2017 that will present a unique opportunity for people to engage with delegates present in the conference, particularly on niche topics such as Blockchain technology, Internet of Things, Proliferation of Indic languages and Smart Cities. The rising ESDM sector in India, National Software Policy India, and Cyber Policy will be some of the key focus sessions. Each of these events will be available on Webcast besides interactive Video Conference and Webinars so as to benefit millions of stakeholders across the world.

A unique initiative at the 5^th GCCS is the Global Cyber Challenge called Peace-a-thon. The open challenge to computer wizards will be hosted by top Universities worldwide for competing in a Hackathon and an Appathon. The 15 top winning teams and the CTF winners will then compete further in a 36-hour challenge in the Grand Finale being held in New Delhi on November 20 & 21. The open Cyber Challenge is expected to attract millions of registered users of MyGov, professionals and tens of thousands of scholars/students from Premier Institutions.

Digital Exhibition and Technical Poster Competition are the other special attractions of the 5th GCCS. Till now, some of  the eminent speakers at the conference who have already confirmed participation include Ministers from various countries such as France, the Netherlands, Israel, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Portugal, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom; Mr. Houlin Zhao (Secretary General, International Telecommunication Union); Mr. Mukesh Ambani (Chairman, MD, RIL); Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal (Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises); Mr. Tarek Kamel (Senior Advisor to President & SPV, Government And IGO Engagement, ICANN); Ms. Marina Kalijurand (Chair, Global Commission on Stability of Cyber Space, Estonia); Mr. Jonathan Reiber (Senior Fellow and Writer, University of Berkley); Mr. David Martinon(Ambassador for Cyber Diplomacy and the Digital Economy, France); Mr. Uriël "Uri" Rosenthal (Ex- Foreign Minister, The Netherlands); Mr. Lalitesh Katragadda (Founder, Google Map Maker);  Mr. Veni Markovski (Bulgarian Internet pioneer, Co-founder and CEO of bol.bg); Ms. Emma Smith (Group Tech Security Director, Vodafone); Mr. Brad Smith (President and Chief Legal Officer, Microsoft).

GCCS 2017 will give the world’s cyber community a unique opportunity to learn from global experience and expert insight, and discover more about the technology led transformation being engineered in India. GCCS 2017 is expected to reinforce India’s pioneering position in cyberspace.

NNK/MD