Session Report

Report of 33rd Session (1-2 October 2019, tHE HAGUE)

The 33rd session of the DTN was hosted by the ICC-CPI in The Hague and was chaired by Mr. Erzen Ilijazi (UN Secretariat, standing-in for CITO) and Mr. Jeff Modell (IAEA). Mr. Modell finished his two-year term as Co-Chair and the DTN selected Ms. Ingrid Regien (UNESCO) as his replacement. Attendance was high: 50 participants from 25 CEB member organizations and an additional 10 from both UN affiliated organizations and the private sector (Dataminr, Microsoft, Vodafone & the IEEE). The Chairs welcomed new members and participants from WIPO, ICAO, UPU, UNU, OPCW, UNOPS, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the Green Climate Fund. Engagement with other HLCM Networks included plenary discussions on areas of potential collaboration with the Human Resources Network, Finance & Budget Network and the Procurement Network. The agenda focused on several aspects of AI including human-centred AI design, AI ethics and the demonstration of RPA solutions deployed within the UN system. For the first time, the DTN received updates from the Chairs of each of its five (now operational) sub-groups. The general theme of inter-agency coordination emerged during various discussions and helped establish the need to maintain close coordination with other business networks.