2.2. Why is capacity building important in the global context?

Capacity building is inherently linked to the current debates taking place in international forums when it comes to stability and peace in cyberspace.

In the outcome documents of the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) (2003/2005), capacity development is underscored as a priority for developing countries. Likewise, the outcome document of the high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on the overall review of the implementation of the outcomes of WSIS calls for further investments into capacity development. More recently, the importance of capacity development has been raised in the report of the UN High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation.

Capacity development in the area of ICTs has also featured highly on the agenda of the UNGA. At the 74th session of the UNGA, ICT capacity building was addressed mainly by national delegates from developing countries who stressed the importance of international support and partnerships, investment in human capital, and adequate training.

The United Nations Open-ended Working Group and the United Nations Group of Governmental Experts also have useful principles on capacity development. See more. 

The shift towards a more mature phase of digital policy would require a stronger focus on organisational development by ensuring sustained participation in policy processes. This includes developing the organisational capacities of governments, civil society, businesses, and academia. Organisational and system-level capacity development is becoming particularly relevant in dealing with issues such as cybersecurity.

Research on capacity development in general and past experience highlights the following:

• While the internet is a global facility, internet policy is often very local. It is shaped by local cultural and social specificities (e.g. cultural sensitivity to content, relevance of privacy protection). Therefore, capacity development should follow local dynamics, taking into consideration local political, social, cultural, and other specific conditions in developing and implementing capacity development programmes and activities.
• The urgency for capacity development could be addressed by providing just-in-time learning as part of policy processes.
• The growing need for capacity in the digital policy field has to be addressed at a more systemic level, by including internet governance, cybersecurity, and related topics in the curriculum of academic postgraduate studies.

Genuine and sustainable empowerment can be achieved through holistic capacity development at the individual, organisational, system, and network levels, as visualised in the capacity development butterfly below.

Generally, the lack of sufficient resources, political will, and the limited sustainability of initiatives remain the main challenges for capacity development. 

Another challenge lies in the delicate line between neutral capacity development and advocacy, as capacity development activities do not aim to influence political decisions.