09 July, 2024, New York, United States – The Women in Cyber Fellowship, an innovative initiative by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York Office in partnership with the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office, and the United States Department of State held its seventh fellowship convening at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. This fellowship ran from July 1-5 wherein they welcomed 34 fellows from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and regions in developing countries, introducing them to critical United Nations and Cyber issues.

The fellowship aimed to prepare participants for the eighth substantive session of the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG). Established in 2020 by the General Assembly through resolution 75/240, the OEWG is a five-year initiative dedicated to addressing the security of and the use of information and communications technologies. The training comprised several sessions focused on capacity building, multilateral negotiations, and international law, with numerous experts and officials from the United Nations sharing their knowledge, experience, and expertise.

 

The second day began with admirable remarks by H.E. Mr. Burhan Gafoor, OEWG Chair and Permanent Representative of Singapore to the UN. 

 

The third day featured a workshop on Coding Equality: A gender-sensitive approach to AI in International Peace and Security by Dr Heather N. Frase, Senior Research Fellow of Standards and Testing at the Center for Security and Emerging Technologies (CSET), Ms Shimona Mohan, Associate Researcher on Gender & Disarmament and Security & Technology at the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) in Geneva, and Ms Beyza Unal, Head of Science and Technology Unit at UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), equipping Fellows with tools to participate in discussions on AI, gender perspectives, and cybersecurity.

Ms. Emmanuella Darkwah, Senior Manager, International Cooperation, at the Cyber Security Authority (CSA), Ghana and Ms. Corina Moroi First Secretary to the Permanent Mission of Moldova, led a session on Regional Initiatives on Cyberspace Security wherein they shared personal experiences on cyberspace security initiatives.

To close the day, an update on the Ad Hoc Committee on Cybercrime was provided by Mr Gilberto Duarte, Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Officer at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and Ms Refilwe Mthimunye, Assistant Director at the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) within the Global Governance and Continental Agenda branch, offering technical and regional perspectives on the AHC and the convention on countering ICT use for criminal purposes.

For the last day of the week-long fellowship, Ms. Jimena Lieva-Roesch, a Fellow at the International Peace Institute, led a session on Cross-cultural Communication Skills, enhancing soft-diplomacy skills for effective cross-cultural communication and collaboration. An exciting panel discussion on Proliferation Threats featured experts like Ms Jen Ellis, Founder of NextJenSecurity, Dr Aude Géry, Senior Researcher at GEODE (French Institute of Geopolitics, the University of Paris 8, and Ms. Louise Marie Hurel, Research Fellow at RUSI’s Cyber Team, facilitated by Mr. David Britain (FCDO), exploring the impact of the cyber intrusion market on future cyber threats and government engagement strategies. The session on Expected outcomes of the OEWG 8th Session, with Ms. Katherine Prizeman, Political Affairs Officer with the Science, Technology and International Security Unit of the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, covered the state-of-play of the OEWG Annual Progress Report negotiations.