Working Group on Emergency Telecommunications (WGET)
The 35th Working Group on Emergency Telecommunications (WGET): ICT Humanitarian Forum will be held April 29 - 30, 2015 in Dubai, UAE.
This years' forum will explore communicating with communities (CwC) from an operational perspective, addressing the need to know where populations are and looking at dimensions such as data standards, security (cyber/info),ethics, and protection. As part of the focus on CwC, we will consider how the humanitarian ICT community should adapt to manage the greater dependencies on technology created by the digital transformation of humanitarian action. How do we achieve conditions, such as reliable, secure and affordable connectivity, to realize the full potential of citizen driven aid? How do we mitigate risks? The aim within this digital vision is to develop strong strategic partnerships among industry, academia, governments and humanitarians to meet the needs of affected communities during crisis and support informed decision making.
The WGET is an open forum to facilitate the operational use of telecommunications in the service of humanitarian assistance. The forum seeks to increase the effectiveness of its participants related to regulatory, operational and technical aspects of telecommunications for disaster relief.
In 2015, the WGET will be held during Humanitarian ICT Week in partnership with International Humanitarian City and sponsored by Thuraya and Yahsat. The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) Plenary meeting will also be held during this week.
How to participateThe WGET - ICT Humanitarian Innovation Forum is open to organizations which have an interest in humanitarian and emergency relief within the remit of ICT. If you are interested in participating, complete the registration form. Deadline for registration: 15-Apr-15 | Additional InformationFor more information about the WGET:
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Agenda
Wednesday, 29 April 2015
| Time | Agenda Item | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 08:00 - 09:00 | Coffee and Registration | |
| 09:00 - 09:10 | Official Opening of the 36th WGET Forum | HE Abdullah Al Shibani Secretary General of the Executive Council & IHC Board Member |
| 09:10 - 09:20 | Serving Humanity through Space Development | Dr. Mohammed Al Ahbabi Director General of the UAE Space Agency |
| 09:20 - 09:40 | Digital Aid: Game-changing humanitarian transformation | Ms. Gwi-Yeop Son Director, Corporate Programmes, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) |
| 09:40 - 10:00 | ETC 2020: Today’s Partnerships for Tomorrow’s Life-Saving Digital Solutions | Mr. Jakob Kern CIO & Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) Chair, UN World Food Programme (WFP) |
| 10:00 - 10:10 | Satellite and the Transformation of the Humanitarian System | Mr. Samer Halawi CEO, Thuraya |
| 10:00 - 10:20 | Satellite, Critical Infrastructure for First Response | Mr. Masood M. Sharif Mahmood CEO, Yahsat |
| 10:20 - 11:00 | Coffee Break | |
| 11:00 - 11:40 | Connected Societies and the Digital Transformation: The Impact on Humanitarian Response | Mr. Rutger Reman President and Head of Customer Unit Industry and Society, Middle East and Africa Region, Ericsson |
11:40 - 12:20 | ||
Prepositioning Relationships and Technology to Better Communicate with Communities in Disaster Response | Ms. Angela Rouse, Senior Programme Manager, CDAC Network Secretariat Mr. Mike Adams, International Coordinator, First Response Radio Mr. Gil Arevalo, Communications with Communities Coordinator, UN OCHA | |
| 12:20 - 13:50 | Lunch | |
| 13:50 - 14:20 | Multi-channel Mobile Crisis Response Platforms: Lessons Learned in the Middle East | Mr. Yazeed Sheqem Director of Business Development, MENA & Africa, Souktel Inc. |
| 14:20 - 15:00 | Humanitarian Connectivity Charter: Mobile | Ms. Kyla Reid, Head, Disaster Response, GSMA Ms. Alexandra Sicotte-Levesque, CwC Coordinator, UN OCHA Mr. Karim Khoja, CEO, Roshan Telecom Mr. Ramon Isberto, Head, Public Affairs, PLDT and Smart Communications Mr. Abdulla Hassan, Public Relations & Communications Senior Manager, Asiacell |
| 15:00 - 15:30 | Coffee Break | |
| 15:30 - 16:30 | Communicating with Communities: Social Data and Predictives for Humanitarian Response | HMs. Heather Leson Program Manager, Social Innovation, Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI) |
| 16:30 - 17:10 | Partnerships: Achieving the ETC 2020 Strategy | Mr. Mark Banbury, Global CIO, Plan International Ms. Marianne Donven, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Luxembourg Ms. Najat Abdulrahman, Executive Director, Yahsat Mr. Edward Happ, Global CIO, International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) Mr. Brent Carbno, Program Director, Ericsson Response |
| 17:10 - 17:20 | Close of Day 1 | Patrick Gordon WGET Chair, UN OCHA |
| 17:30 | Group Photo and Reception hosted by Thuraya and Yahsat | |
Thursday, 30 April 2015
| Time | Agenda Item | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 09:00 - 09:10 | Welcome Day 2 | Mr. Patrick Gordon WGET Chair, UN OCHA |
| 09:10 - 09:40 | Designing Future Solutions, Listening to the Most Important Stakeholder | Ms. Abi Weaver Global Technology Project, American Red Cross |
| 09:40 - 10:40 | Digital Aid: Biometric Identity Management and Electronic Cash Transfer | Mr. Doug Greene, CIO, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Mr. Jakob Kern, CIO & ETC Chair, UN WFP Ms. Alexa Swift, Regional Economic Opportunities Advisor for the Middle East, Mercy Corps Mr. Jeremy Cole, Director, Red Rose Mr. Chris Dooley, Regional Technical Advisor for Payments, UNDP and UNCDF |
| 10:40 - 11:20 | Coffee break | |
| 11:20 - 11:50 | Panel Discussion on Digital Aid: Biometric Identity Management and Electronic Cash Transfer | |
| 11:50 - 12:20 | From Typhoon Haiyan to Typhoon Hagupit: Reflections on a Year of Building Data Preparedness and Resilience Networks in the Philippines | Mr. Andrew Schroeder, Director of Research and Analysis, Direct Relief Mr. Justin Richmond, Mission Specialist, Palantir Technologies |
| 12:20 - 13:30 | Lunch | |
| 13:30 - 14:00 | World Humanitarian Summit: Defining the Future Humanitarian Response | Mr. Matthew Hochbrueckner Business Partnership Adviser, UN OCHA |
14:00 - 14:30 | Communication Technology: Challenges and Opportunities for Humanitarian Security | Ms. Raquel Vazquez, Researcher, European Interagency Security Forum (EISF) Ms. Lisa Reilly, Executive Coordinator, EISF |
| 14:30 - 15:00 | Innovative Communication Systems for Situational Awareness during Crises | Mr. Hassan Abouwafia Senior Manager Wireless Business Development, Alcatel-Lucent |
| 15:00 - 15:40 | Coffee Break | |
| 15:40 - 16:10 | Citizen Engagement During a Crisis | Mr. Tom Malanfant CSR Product Manager, Motorola Solutions |
| 16:10 - 16:40 | Disruptive Innovation: Train Wrecks on the Right Track | Mr. Edward Happ Global CIO and Head of ISD, International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) |
| 16:40 - 16:50 | Wrap up | Ms. Gwi-Yeop Son Director, Corporate Programmes, UN OCHA |
| 16:50 - 17:00 | Closing | Mr. Patrick Gordon WGET Chair, UN OCHA |
| 17:00 | Refreshments and networking | |
For more information about the upcoming WGET ICT Humanitarion Innovation Forum, contact us.