UNESCO shapes inclusive, multilingual and human-centered digital futures at WSIS Forum 2026

Governance plays a critical role in shaping whether digital and emerging technologies contribute to inclusive societies, respect for human rights and public interests. In the session dedicated to ethics of the information society, UNESCO reaffirmed that ethics must remain a foundational and cross-cutting pillar of digital transformation.

Through the Information for All Programme (IFAP), UNESCO has supported the WSIS Action Line C10 by strengthening capacities and fostering international policy dialogue on the ethical, legal and human rights implications of frontier technologies. 

As quantum technologies develop rapidly, quantum-safe transitions are becoming an urgent policy priority for protecting digital trust, security and resilience. This work was further reflected in the session, Advancing Quantum Safe Transitions: Ethical, Legal, Social and Policy Dimensions, where UNESCO brought into the discussion the IFAP issue brief, Human Rights-Centered Global Governance of Quantum Technologies.

The session underscored a shared understanding that safe transitions should go beyond technical preparedness: they should be transparent, inclusive and guided by the public interest, enabling stakeholders and the wider public to understand the risks, benefits and safeguards involved.