To mark the International Day for Universal Access to Information (IDUAI), the Ministry of Digital Infrastructure and UNESCO will co-organize a flagship event in Colombo, Sri Lanka, as part of world-wide commemorations. The UNESCO international event to be held on 28-29 September in Colombo will consist of international panels, expert workshops and other high-level events and commemorations.

Four half-a-day workshop will also be organized on themes such as Open Scholarship and Access; Free and Open Source Software, YouthMobile and Right to Information.

The inaugural IDUAI was first celebrated in 2016, following the UNESCO General Conference Resolution 38 C/70 calling for an annual commemoration of IDUAI each year on 28 September.

Since then, worldwide commemoration of 28 September IDUAI has reinforced UNESCO’s mission to support its 195 Member States to build Knowledge Societies upon four pillars: universal access to information and knowledge; respect for cultural and linguistic diversity; freedom of expression; and quality education for all.

The concept of Knowledge Societies was developed from a conviction that universal access to information is a key to building peace and achieving sustainable development. Commemoration of IDUAI is a way for governments and all other stakeholders around the world to reinforce efforts and awareness toward building inclusive Knowledge Societies in the service of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Four key areas will be addressed:
1. The state of the digital divide in Asia: persisting challenges and barriers to universal access
2. New technology opportunities and challenges in the service of Sustainable Development: including Artificial Intelligence, big data and the Internet of Things
3. Advancing the dividends of “opening up”: open solutions for universal access
4. “De-risking” Information Access: countering online challenges to individual rights and fundamental rights and freedoms.