The Data Protection Executive Trainings for Resident Coordinators (RCs) and UN Country Teams (UNCTs) in Europe and Central Asia were organized by the International Telecommunication Union, with the support of the United Nations Development Coordination Office (UN DCO), within the framework of the UN Digital Transformation Group for Europe and Central Asia (UNDTG4ECA).
The training sessions were held virtually on the 26 and 28 of October and 2 and 4 of November. Overall, more than 60 UN Resident Coordinators, UN Resident Coordinators Staff Office, UN Country Teams members as well as UN System Staff at the regional level participated in the training sessions. Among others, countries covered included: Albania, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Russia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
The one-hour executive trainings targeted RCs and RC Office staff of the Europe and Central Asia regions. These trainings were proposed in a short format and were a condensed version of the two hours trainings. The two hours executive trainings targeted UN Country Teams of the Europe and Central Asia regions and provided more in-depth information to provide the knowledge basis for fit-for-purpose engagement with national and international stakeholders.
Overall, these trainings aimed at raising awareness on/ and provide elementary understanding of data protection , challenges and opportunities. It further aimed at providing relevant resources for future work and engagement related to data protection issues. In concrete, the workshop addressed and provided an overview of the following: practical examples of the application of data protection in everyday life; a brief history of the subject; the institutionalization of data protection; the main definitions related to this topic, with a focus on sensitive personal data and data subject and processor; the fundamental principles of data protection; individual rights; consent and interest and finally; notification requirements.
The underlying objective of the Data Protection Executive Trainings was to share expert guidance on data protection, provide guidelines, and showcase regulatory frameworks of reference, including the GDPR, to ensure appropriate data protection and minimize unlawful exchange and use of personal information across countries of Europe and Central Asia. The trainings also constituted a valuable platform to share good practices and seek guidance towards a safer and more productive management of citizens, customers, institutions and companies' data at the national and regional levels.
Access the recorded lecture for online self-paced training purposes on YouTube here.
