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As part of the United States efforts to ensure a continued open, interoperable, and secure Internet through global, multistakeholder participation, the State Department’s Bureau of International Organization Affairs is providing $350,000 as a one-time contribution for the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) from its 2012 International Organizations and Programs (IO&P) budget. This funding goes to the trust fund for the IGF Secretariat based in Geneva for its operational expenses.

The IGF was established by the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) as a global forum for a multistakeholder dialogue on public policy issues related to Internet governance. It is an extra-budgetary project and is funded solely by voluntary contributions, including those from other countries, industry, and other stakeholders.

This is the first time the United States is providing this funding as part of an interagency effort to support the IGF and its contributions to multistakeholder Internet governance.

For press inquiries, contact Megan Mattson at 202-647-6393 or MattsonMM2@state.gov.