Issued by: The South African Embassy in Vienna
SOUTH AFRICAN PARTICIPATION IN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION'S INFORMATION SOCIETY TECHNOLOGIES (IST) 1998 CONFERENCE: VIENNA: 30 NOVEMBER - 2 DECEMBER 1998
The Information Society Technologies 1998 (IST-98) Conference is the most important conference on information technology being held in Europe this year. The conference slogan is "Living and Working in the Information Society". The focus is on how Europe should refine its IT strategies, both internally in terms of European Union industrial policy and externally in terms of partnerships with other countries.
The Conference will be addressed by several Cabinet Ministers from European countries and high-ranking officials from the European Commission. These include Mr Heinz Fischer, President of the Austrian Parliament, Ms Barbara Prammer, Austrian Minister for Consumer Protection and Women's Affairs, Dr Martin Bangemann, Member of the European Commission responsible for industrial affairs and information and communication technologies and Mr Caspar Einem, Austrian Minister for Science and Transport and President of the European Union's Research Council. The prestigious 1998 European IT Prizes will be awarded by Mr Viktor Klima, Chancellor of Austria during the Conference.
South Africa will be represented in th Global Opportunities session of IST-98 by Dr Rob Adam, Deputy Director-General: Science and Technology. Dr Adam will present a paper entitled "Africa in the Global Information Society", which outlines Africa's (and particularly South Africa's) strategies for the information society. Dr Adam's paper also describes how the 5th Framework Programme of the European Commission may be used to facilitate cooperation in the fields of information and communication technology between South African and the European Union.
Dr Adam led the South African team which negotiated the Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement concluded between the European Union and South Africa in 1996. South Africa's scientific and technological partnership with the European Union, being constructed under this Agreement, is one of the most privileged the Union has entered into with any non-European country.
Dr Derrick Cogburn, Director of the CSIR's Centre for Information Society Development in Africa (CISDA), is also participating in the Conference. There is also a South African Information Booth as part of the Conference Exhibition, to promote South African participation in the European Union's research and technological development programmes.
Released by the South African Embassy in Vienna
Vienna 30 November 1998