Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The 217th session of the UNESCO Executive Board, which took place on 4-18 October in Paris, unanimously approved the resolution initiated by Uzbekistan “Tashkent Declaration on the occasion of the International Day of Universal Access to Information,” Dunyo news agency reported.

The Tashkent Declaration was adopted following the results of the International Conference “Artificial Intelligence, Electronic Government and Access to Information” held in Tashkent on 28-29 September 2022, dedicated to the celebration together with UNESCO of the International Day of Universal Access to Information (IDAI).

(IDAI was celebrated at the global level for the first time after the UN General Assembly declared September 28 as the International Day for Universal Access to Information in 2019.

The draft resolution was one of the main documents introduced by member countries as new items on the agenda of the 217th session of the Executive Council. The document was co-authored by 20 countries: Andorra, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kuwait, Egypt, Morocco, Syria, Sudan, Tunisia, Palestine, Palau, Sri Lanka, Hungary, Lebanon, Liberia, Zimbabwe and Chile.

The resolution expresses gratitude to the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan for organizing a number of events in Tashkent dedicated to the celebration of the International Day of Universal Access to Information.

The document also calls on the Director-General to support activities that will promote access to information for the promotion of human rights and sustainable development, incl. set out in the Tashkent Declaration.

The document decides to include this item on the agenda of the 42nd session of the General Conference (on 7-22 November 2023, Paris) for the approval of the “Tashkent Declaration on Universal Access to Information”.

It is expected that the resolution of the Executive Board will also be adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO by acclamation (universal approval).