In April 30, EISF Executive Coordinator Lisa Reilly and Researcher Raquel Vazquez Llorente presented the publication Communications Technology and Humanitarian Delivery at the 36th Forum of the Working Group for Emergency Telecommunications (WGET) in Dubai.
This was the first time the WGET included a session on humanitarian security, and it was a great opportunity to introduce GISF and our work to a new audience. The content of all presentations is available at the WGET’s website.
The Working Group for Emergency Telecommunications (WGET) was established in 1996 as a technical forum promoting collaboration on interagency telecommunications issues and later became integrated with the UN Interagency Standing Committee (IASC) system of working groups supporting humanitarian action, specifically providing support to the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC). Given the evolving nature of the humanitarian landscape and in order to better support the Humanitarian Community, the WGET was redefined in 2012, following the outcomes of the WGET Strategic Planning Workshop where key WGET stakeholders articulated the future role and vision of the WGET and identified the forum’s potential to envision the future and become a forum for collaboration and innovation on behalf of the members of the ETC.
The mission of the WGET forum is to increase the effectiveness of its participants in supporting the operational and technical aspects of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for Humanitarian and Disaster relief by assisting operational partners in envisioning the future technological requirements. This is undertaken through fostering innovation and promotion of partnerships where the forum brings together national Governments, United Nations entities, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Inter-Governmental Organizations, private sector and academia with shared interests related to regulatory, operational and technical aspects of ICT in disaster relief.
For more information on the WGET:
Visit our hub on comms tech for more material
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