Carthage declaration - On the digital divide

Representatives of the engineering and technology community, gathered in Tunis October 14-16, 2003 as part of the preparatory process for the World Summit on the Information Society, agreed on the following principles. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) offer enormous potential to generate and distribute wealth, but it is essential that the digital gap between the "info rich" and the "info poor" be closed. The World Summit on the Information Society is seen as a forum for debating the issues and advancing viable solutions by engaging the public/private sector in partnerships. The proven ability of innovation and research-development to find solutions to problems generated by the new Information Society is emphasised, but the development of technology must not be guided solely by profit.