United Nations International Telecommunications Unions

Sponsor: China

Signatories: 

Free Trade on Intellectual Property

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Recognizing the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (or the TRIPS Agreement) that sets standards for intellectual property protection by the World Trade Organization,

Noting that the market for 3D printers is growing by 20% every year,

Aware of the uses 3D printing has on lifesaving medical technologies,

Having examined the case in Italy in which a hospital experienced a shortage of valves used in breathing machined needed by COVID-19 patients and used a 3D printer without the permission of the patent holder,

1. Calls for the formation of a non-profit NGO to ensure an information free trade platform;
   1. This will ensure that current trending technologies be made available for public domain, eliminating licensing fees and administrator rights;
   2. These technologies include 3D printing blueprints, coding materials, and software;
2. Note that such a committee would oversee all technologies being added, or awaiting addition to the public domain;
3. Invites telecommunication companies and patent holders to participate in the effort;
4. Underscores the intention of such information sharing should be conducted on a voluntary basis,  no nation-states and participant entities can be forced to enter such agreement. 

International Telecommunication Union 

Sponsors: Republic of Columbia 

Signatories: 

Equal Access to Telecommunication Infrastructure

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Affirming internet usage in Columbia has experience a steady rise since 2019, and current internet penetration has reached well over 60 percent, with more than half the total population accessing the internet through their mobile phones; whereas in 2015, less than 15 percent of the population had access to broadband internet, 

Noting with deep concern that the cost of going online is not truly reflected by aforementioned statistics. Internet costs is not cheap enough for everyone and on average remain high while compared to other OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries, with the root cause of high expenses being directly related to large part of Columbian internet traffic is directed through the United States, 

Conscious of the severe imbalance of internet access between urban and rural communities due to cost and lack of infrastructure; where on average in rural areas in order to access 1GB of data costs around $6.50 at a place where average income for a household is around $260, 

Acknowledging the tremendous effort made by local NGOs such as Makaia in Medellin and Colnodo in Bogota for their collaboration with the Colombian government in expanding internet access infrastructure within urban areas of Columbia, and call for further co-operation to further strength goals laid out to reach rural communities, 

1. Strongly encourages the United States of America and/or other OECD nations to arrange and attend a bilateral summit with the intention to clarify its/their stands on net neutrality in developing nations in Latin America;
   1. Dependency on large global telecommunication companies and softwares, such as Whatsapp and Facebook, significantly discourages local alternatives and slows down the development of national tech scenes;
   2. Penetrative, invasive data collection on individuals and government entities due to aforementioned reliance on tech giants create potential backdoors for privacy and security concerns;
   3. For rural communities, issues of lack of reliable access to internet further divides those underserved from future economic development should reliance on marketing and business operation on large social medias continue to expand; 
2. Declares accordingly that improving access in rural area should be recognized by the committee as one of the most important measures for developing nations in a digital world economy, with some notable measures such as;
   1. Making mobile services more customer-friendly, thus minimizing  the relatively complicated situation for developing communities to decide between mobile internet offers or cable internet offers due to lack of transparency on information;
   2. Calls for government entities to avoid relatively vague definitions on broadband internet access. The fact that a municipality government has its own webpage says relatively little about how many people truly have internet access in the region, 
   3. Establish incentives for local network providers to expand services and; infrastructure towards rural developments based of each participating state’s wants and needs;
3. Calls upon local and regional NGOs, such as Makaia in Medellin and Colnodo in Bogota, in each participating nation to further technical and community outreach supports;
   1. Encourage NGOs through internal financial incentives to create a more dynamic collaboration environment in order to bridge situation-on-the-ground and higher decision makers; 
   2. Ensures through NGOs participation, minimizing corruption and wasteful spendings within each bureaucracy thus create a more effective investment situation for both internal and external sources; 
   3. Protects national digital sovereignty by allowing pledging members to draft plans based on each nation’s unique economic and sociological situation. 

United Nations International Telecommunications Union

Sponsor: Republic of Hungary 

Signatories: 

Cyber Warfare

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Alarmed by by the use of cyberwarfare by countries with no oversight, 

Further alarmed by the 1,123 cyberattacks detected by Ukraine since 2022,

Taking into account the use of hackers in the Ukraine-Russian conflict that have been conducted by all participants and have caused physical and financial consequences,

Keeping in mind the 2015 electrical hack from Russia that knocked out electric power for 230,000 people in Western Ukraine,

1. Calls upon the formation of  International Conglomerate of Cyber Security (ICCS) committee to oversee and regulate the rampant use of cyber warfare by world powers;
2. Further calls upon the committee to set up regulations on cyber warfare;
   1. Clearly define military cyber infrastructure, civilian cyber infrastructure, and nation-state cyber infrastructure; 
   2. Limit any and all attacks dedicated at civilian cyber infrastructure;
   3. Upholds net neutrality in conflict regions;
3. Affirms that countries not using these regulations on cyber warfare will go through the International Criminal Court for its actions;
4. Further Proclaims that the international community acknowledges the often forgotten human tolls of cyberwarfare.

United Nations International Telecommunications Union

Sponsor: Nigeria

Signatories: 

Internet Fraud

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Noting with concern the rise of internet scams, also called money transfer fraud, that has increased by 186% from 16,128 in 2019 to 46,126 in 2020,

Acknowledging that the emergence of internet scams have gradually altered the cyber platform and its confidence and trust, increasing the security risk therein,

Alarmed by the $5.8 billion lost to fraud in 2021 in the United States, a rise of 70% the previous year,

Having examined the current response to internet scams in the United States and other western countries as insufficient to protect its citizens,

Recognizing the Nigerian Cybercrimes (prohibition and prevention) Act of 2015 has created a comprehensive legal, regulatory, and institutional framework in Nigeria to prohibit, prevent, detect, prosecute, and punish cybercrime, including internet scams,

1. Calls upon the western countries to mandate a program that would educate all citizens on internet fraud by 2024;
2. Recommends that stricter cybercrime laws be put in place;
3. Further calls upon the governments to closely monitor its citizens internet usage to protect against internet scams;
   1. Affirms that an oversight committee, made up of Nigerian representatives, will be made to ensure the follow through with internet monitoring.

United Nations International Telecommunications Union

Sponsor: South Africa

Signatories: 

African Cybersecurity 

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Recognizing that in a globally-integrated financial market, cybersecurity is a non-negotiable prerequisite for investment across the world,

Noting with concern that effective cybersecurity remains a challenge across Africa, with $4 billion lost annually to cybercrime,

Alarmed by the 90% of African businesses operating without the necessary cybersecurity protocols and are exposed to cyberattacks,

Supporting efforts to improve cybersecurity to build resilient organizations people want to invest in,

Acknowledging the 29 African countries that already have cybersecurity protections,

1. Calls upon the 25 African countries without cybersecurity legislation to produce cybersecurity laws;
   1. Encourages laws against piracy and other cybersecurity threats;
2. Notes that this will allow businesses in Africa to grow by allowing privacy protection to investors;
3. Further calls upon the African continent to develop a harmonious response to cybersecurity;
4. Further asserts the need to develop a cyber-security training program to develop the necessary skills for the facilitation of any cybersecurity legislation;
   1. Calls upon Western nations to help with this training program.

International Telecommunication Union

Sponsor: Ukraine

Signatories: The United States of America, Colombia

Prioritizing Wide-Spread Internet Accessibility and Affordability

The United Nations International Telecommunications Union,

Reaffirming the 2016 changes to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which incorporated internet access as a human right,

Emphasizing the need for internet access around the world and that at least one third of the world’s population has never utilized the internet and remain offline,

Recognizing that the affordability and wide-spread accessibility constitutes two of the largest barriers to this human right,

Aware of the success of Elon Musk and SpaceX’s Starlink in overcoming these barriers through its over 2,300 satellites in low earth orbit (LEO) which has provided affordable internet service in areas and regions that have traditionally struggled with providing reliable and adequate service,

Acknowledges Starlink’s robustness in providing Ukraine and its people this human right despite Russia’s attempts to stifle such rights through its acts of war and crime,

Recognizing Starlink’s importance in promoting freedom, prosperity, and advancement of people across the globe,

1. Calls upon ITU to prioritize approval of future launches of Starlink satellites;
2. Invites SpaceX to collaborate with the ITU in creating strategies to develop and enhance coverage of Starlink across the world;
3. Strongly encourages the creation of a special rapporteur on the human right of internet access;
   1. Endorses Elon Musk as an honorary special rapporteur;
4. Authorizes the ITU to create monetary subsidy programs towards the purchase of Starlink service for communities and nations most lacking in internet service;
5. Affirms that the body will be given freedom in determining the needs based criteria to determine priority of need;
   1. Affirms that in areas not included in Starlink’s existing coverage, alternative internet infrastructure and service solutions will be explored;
6. Proclaims that SpaceX’s Starlink upholds the highest standard in cybersecurity and poses no risk from outside threats;
7. Requests $20 million from BRAC and their expertise in providing equipment and systems for communities that lack complete connectivity to the internet.