The ESCWA Cyber Legislation Digest Rabat, Morocco during 20-22 December 2011.15 A workshop in the Sultanate of Oman on Cyber Crime in 2012 A workshop with the Association of Arab Lawyers on ESCWA Cyber Legislation Directives in 2012 A thematic session on “Regional Integration through ICT and e-Governance in the ESCWA region” during the 6th International Conference on Theory and Practice on Electronic Governance (ICEGOV 2012). Albany, USA, 22-25 October 2012. 5. 6. 7. 5.13 2012 (March): Second Workshop on Cyber Legislation This workshop was conducted in Cairo during 14-15 March 201216. The workshop was called ‘Developing and Harmonizing Cyber Legislation in the Arab Region’. It was conducted in coordination with the League of Arab States and was geared towards a legal audience. The main topics included: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. A description of the ESCWA Harmonization Project. A brief look at the status of cyber legislation in the Arab region. A detailed description of the ESCWA cyber legislation directives. The application of the ESCWA cyber legislation directives at the national level. The guidelines for the enhancement and harmonization of cyber legislation at the regional level. The outcomes of the workshop provided: 1. The ability of Arab legislators to review and enhance their national cyber laws to cover all aspects of cyber legislation. 2. Increased awareness of the status of cyber legislation in the Arab region and the need for its continuous development. 3. Dissemination of the ESCWA cyber legislation directives. 4. Improved understanding of the importance of harmonizing cyber laws at the regional level. 5. A framework for improving cyber legislation in Arab countries. Several papers were presented in the workshop by ESCWA staff and legal experts. These are available on the dedicated web page for the workshop (see meeting footnote at the beginning of this section). 15 http://www.aidmo.org/aiinc5/ http://www.escwa.un.org/information/meetingdetails.asp?referenceNum=1785E 16 42