At the 2026 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum held in Geneva, a landmark recognition was awarded to cross-regional digital governance efforts that are reshaping public sector innovation across the Americas. The Inter-American Digital Government Network (GEALC), currently chaired by the Dominican Republic via the nation’s Government Office of Information and Communication Technologies (OGTIC), has been named the 2026 WSIS Prize winner in the International and Regional Cooperation category.
The honor, conferred by WSIS forum organizers, celebrates GEALC’s years of consistent work to deepen collaborative ties across member states, expand accessible knowledge sharing between public sector digital leaders, and accelerate inclusive digital transformation initiatives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Accepting the award on behalf of the entire GEALC network was Iván Ogando, the Dominican Republic’s ambassador to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations agency that co-organizes the annual WSIS Forum.
Under the current leadership of OGTIC Director Edgar Batista, who leads GEALC alongside the Dominican Republic’s administration, the network has prioritized targeted initiatives to advance digital government infrastructure, cross-system interoperability, people-centered public innovation, and peer-to-peer collaboration between national governments. Batista emphasized that the international award serves as a powerful reaffirmation of the Dominican Republic’s longstanding commitment to fostering multilateral cooperation and advancing digital transformation that prioritizes the needs of ordinary citizens.
Per an official statement from OGTIC, the recognition also brings global attention to the Dominican Republic’s own domestic work to modernize public administration and upgrade core government services through strategic digital innovation. A core function of GEALC is to create structured spaces for member states to exchange tested best practices across a range of high-priority digital governance areas. These include cybersecurity frameworks, trusted digital identity systems, comprehensive data protection regulation, secure electronic signature infrastructure, cross-agency interoperability standards, and guidelines for the ethical and responsible deployment of emerging technologies across the public sector.
The WSIS Prizes, established to highlight outstanding projects and initiatives that advance inclusive information and communication technology (ICT) development around the world, have become a leading global benchmark for impactful digital cooperation. GEALC’s win underscores the growing importance of regional collaboration in addressing shared digital governance challenges and ensuring that digital transformation delivers broad public benefits across the Latin American and Caribbean region.