·         The GCCS is taking place  outside OECD nations for the first time

·         The theme for the GCCS 2017 is ‘Cyber4All: An Inclusive, Sustainable, Developmental, Safe and Secure Cyberspace’

·         The conference to take place on 23^rd & 24^th of November 2017 in New Delhi

·         Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India to Inaugurate the conference

“India will be hosting the 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) in 2017, one of the world’s largest conference on Cyber Space and related issues” announced Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, Hon’ble Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology and Law & Justice, in the presence of Shri P.P. Chaudhary, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology and Law & Justice after chairing a High-Level Organizing Committee meeting here today.

Themed on Cyber4All: An Inclusive, Sustainable, Developmental, Safe and Secure Cyberspace, the GCCS 2017 will be inaugurated by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi. To be held in India for the first time, the two-day conference will see participation of around 2000 delegates from senior Government officials, industry leaders, academia and civil society from over 100 countries. GCCS will congregate and deliberate on issues relating to promotion of cooperation in cyberspace, norms for responsible behaviour in cyberspace and to enhance cyber capacity building. Many of these delegations will be headed at Ministerial level delegates thereby making it an important forum of global consultation of various issues of cyber space.

Addressing the media, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “We feel proud to host the 5^th of edition of the prestigious Global Conference on Cyber Space in 2017. The theme of this conference in a way reflect the changing architecture of India in the Digital space. Among the multiple transformative programmes under Digital India, the biggest thing that India brings about to the table is Digital Inclusion that makes it sustainable and developmental; which has been given utmost importance under the theme Cyber4All.”

“The Internet must be safe and secure, which necessitates a safe and secure digital space. This will remain a focal point throughout the conference. We are in consultation with the industry leaders, educational institutions and trade bodies to discuss the concerns related to cyber security and collectively works towards robust cyber security system. Through GCCS, we would like to show the international community how Indian digital ecosystem is becoming a beacon for development to the rest of the world.”  Added Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad.

The GCCS 2017 will take place on the 23^rd and 24^th of November, 2017 in Aero City, New Delhi. Multiple run-up events are planned across India and abroad to create awareness about GCCS 2017, along with 2 days of pre-event activities right before the conference.

GCCS is a prestigious international conference that aims at encouraging dialogue among stakeholders of cyberspace, which has been taking place since 2011. Incepted in 2011 in London, GCCS witnessed a participation of 700 global delegates. It helped in setting up rules and guidelines for the editions to follow. The second conference was held in 2012 in Budapest with focus on relationship between internet rights and internet security and was attended by 700 delegates from nearly 60 countries. The third edition of GCCS was held in 2013 in Seoul with participation from 1600 delegates. The conference built on the themes such as Economic Growth and Development, Social and Cultural Benefits, a Safe and Secure Cyberspace, Cybercrime and International Security.

The fourth version GCCS 2015 was held on April 16-17, 2015 in The Hague, Netherlands. Nearly 1800 members from nearly 100 countries participated in this conference and over 60 countries participated with delegations led at Ministerial level. The conference focused on Freedom, Security and Growth in cyber space. GCCS 2015 was a program designed as high level stock taking exercise and to generate input for other ongoing processes rather than an independent norm setting initiative. The launch of Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE) was main deliverable of the conference for capacity building in cyber space.

‘Goal of GCCS 2017 is to promote an inclusive Cyber Space with focus on policies and frameworks for inclusivity, sustainability, development, security, safety & freedom, technology and partnerships for upholding digital democracy, maximizing collaboration for strengthening security and safety and advocating dialogue for digital diplomacy’. It will be an opportunity to showcase the “Digital India” program as a positive, sustainable and scalable model for use of ICTs for addressing developmental challenges and growth opportunities. It can help provide vision of inclusive digital society for inclusive growth, education, healthcare especially for developing world. 

The plenary sessions and other activities during GCCS 2017 will be designed around the themes of Cyber4Inclusive Growth, Cyber4DigitalInclusion, Cyber4Security and Cyber4Diplomacy. During various sessions and activities focused around these themes, GCCS 2017 will bring forth the business, empowerment and developmental potential of Cyber space for realizing  the goals of sustainable development.

Cyber security will be one of the major focus areas in GCCS 2017 especially as the central government is in the process of setting up separate sector specific emergency response centres to ensure cyber security and strengthen technology infrastructure. The conference will be an ideal forum for the exchange of ideas with global think thanks and promote closer co-operation among the international community.

GCCS 2017 will be an excellent platform for Industry and its Associations, Civil Society, Academia, Governments and Think-tanks from across the world to deliberate on issues, opportunities and challenges faced in the cyber world and pave the way for a better digital future.  Indian start-ups will also get exposure to the global industry leaders and investors in GCCS 2017 to pitch their ideas through multiple seminars, side events and exhibitions.

NNK/MD