Mediterranean Breakfast Meetings : Mediterranean digital society : the role played by ICT in the Arab revolutions

Around Pierre Musso, Professor in sciences of the information and the communication at Telecom Paris Tech
Nassim Kerdjoudj, CEO of Netskills (Algeria)
Bouchra Boulouiz, researcher, writer, President of Forcom (Morocco)
And Laurent Gille, professor and research at the Department of economic and social sciences of Telecom Paris Tech.

 
Important places will stay in people’s memories as symbols of the Arab Spring. One shall remember the Egyptian crowd hurrying up to the Tahrir square or still Tunisians chanting "Ben Ali go away" in front of the Ministry of Internal affairs. But it is also within the virtual space, on "the Web", that key moments of these popular uprisings took place.

Triggers or simple modern means of protest : what role ICT played in the Arabic revolts? The role played by new technologies of information and communication in the Arab Spring, even if it raises several questions, cannot be ignored. Internet appeared as a real platform of resistance. Blogs and social networks, initially used for individual expression, became a bridge to pass on information and a mean of coordination of the population so allowing the transformation of a virtual cohesion and solidarity into a very real protest.

The digitalisation of the Mediterranean society is an essential stake for regional integration. The Mediterranean region is far from being a homogeneous zone regarding access, use, production or mastering these technologies. By facilitating dialogue, business and exchanges, ICT are vector of co-development and bring closer together both shores of the Mediterranean.