ICANN urges WSIS+20 to reinforce multistakeholder governance and protect the Internet’s global interoperability
In its submission to the WSIS+20 Elements Paper, ICANN highlights progress made since the original World Summit on the Information Society, warns against renewed fragmentation risks and calls for a Zero Draft that strengthens the multistakeholder model, the Internet Governance Forum and global coordination on emerging digital issues.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has submitted detailed input to the WSIS+20 Elements Paper, outlining its assessment of progress since the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and identifying priorities for the upcoming Zero Draft. The contribution emphasises the importance of protecting the internet’s technical stability, strengthening multistakeholder governance and ensuring that the WSIS+20 review reflects the current reality of global digital cooperation.
ICANN identifies several achievements of the WSIS process that it believes should be clearly reflected in the Zero Draft. These include the mainstreaming of the multistakeholder model, significant progress in multilingual digital inclusion and the rapid expansion of global internet access. ICANN notes that multilingual participation has improved through efforts to develop Internationalized Domain Names and Universal Acceptance, enabling users to access the internet in native languages and scripts. With over 67 percent of the world’s population now online, ICANN argues that WSIS has helped lay the foundations for wider connectivity, improved security protocols and a more inclusive global digital environment.
At the same time, ICANN warns that persistent and emerging challenges threaten the integrity of the internet’s technical layer. The submission highlights geopolitical tensions, inconsistent national policies and technically misaligned regulations as drivers of potential internet fragmentation. ICANN argues that maintaining a secure, interoperable and globally unified internet requires continued collaboration among governments, civil society, the private sector, academia and the technical community. Because the technical community performs functions that cannot be replicated by other groups, ICANN stresses that its role must remain clearly recognised in all WSIS+20 deliberations.
Looking ahead, ICANN identifies several priorities for strengthening the WSIS vision of a ‘people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society.’ These include enhancing the effectiveness of the multistakeholder model; improving coordination across governance spaces; ensuring more agile decision-making; and recognising the foundational role of technical infrastructure in supporting emerging technologies. ICANN points to the experience of its own community-driven processes, which manage critical internet resources such as the Domain Name System and IP address allocation, as evidence of the model’s durability.
The submission also proposes areas for improvement in the structure of the Elements Paper. ICANN notes inconsistencies in how issues are presented and encourages a clearer, standardised format that maintains space for stakeholder input across all sections. It calls for the Zero Draft to recognise progress made since WSIS+10 and the Global Digital Compact, cautioning against language that could inadvertently revive outdated debates. ICANN argues that internet governance should be presented as an evolving system that has matured significantly over two decades.
On institutional coordination, ICANN emphasises that the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) remains the primary global platform where all stakeholders engage as peers and should be strengthened accordingly. The submission urges the Zero Draft to support the IGF’s mandate, expand its ability to address cross-cutting digital issues and ensure stable long-term resourcing. ICANN also suggests that the WSIS+20 review recognise complementary roles played by other UN mechanisms, including the WSIS Forum High-Level Event and the UN Group on the Information Society.
In concluding remarks, ICANN reiterates that the future of the internet depends on maintaining an open, global and interoperable technical architecture, supported by inclusive governance processes. The organisation expresses support for the creation of an Informal Multistakeholder Sounding Board for WSIS+20 and urges co-facilitators to ensure that all relevant stakeholders are meaningfully involved as the Zero Draft is developed.
