CoR believes i2010 will improve citizens' lives provided certain conditions are met
The Committee of the Regions (CoR) has adopted a position on the Commission's i2010 strategy for the Information Society, saying that the initiative can promote social inclusion and improve citizens' quality of life as long as certain guarantees are provided. Before the opinion was adopted during a CoR plenary session on 16 February, Greek rapporteur Theodoros Georgakis said that it was necessary to find a balance between the positive economic effects of information and communication technologies (ICT) and the likely social, legal and cultural consequences of their introduction for the lives of Europe's citizens. 'It is therefore essential for ICT strategies to be linked with policies on youth and education,' said Mr Georgakis. The CoR believes that the i2010 initiative will probably promote social inclusion and improve the lives of Europeans, provided guarantees can be given on consumer protection, personal data protection and the security of transactions, and that products and services are offered at affordable prices. 'There is also a need to clarify the funding of the initiative and to guarantee broadband access (which will benefit remote regions in particular), rich digital content and [inter]operability,' adds the CoR. Ensuring a sufficient level of security for transactions is important to secure the allocation of resources from the Structural Funds and EU research framework programmes, concludes the opinion, while policies, programmes and financial resources must be managed at local and regional level to ensure that infrastructure and services are geared to the needs of citizens.