The Chamber of Deputies of Uruguay and the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF), as part of its Parliamentary Track programme, organized the fourth regional Parliamentary Summit on “Anticipating the Digital Future: Strengthening Parliamentary Governance and Democratic Innovation”, held on 24 March 2026 at the Chamber of Deputies in Montevideo, Uruguay, and online.
Since the emergence of the Internet and its applications, societies have experienced systemic and profound technological, environmental, and cultural transformations. With the regulation of emerging technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), blockchain technologies or quantum computing, Parliaments should further anticipate new legal frameworks, dynamics, and responsibilities as their regulations unfold. Based on anticipatory practices, Parliaments, as law-making bodies, can steer responsible technological transformation across all policy areas.
Key Topics
This edition of the regional Summit explored how responsible anticipation can enhance digital governance in line with democratic principles. It draws from the pioneering work of the Special Commission on the Future of the Parliament of Uruguay, in collaboration with other Parliaments and parliamentary bodies. It aims to introduce anticipatory governance through future-oriented thinking within all institutional and legislative practices.
The regional Summit addressed how Parliaments - in particular in the Americas - can play a leading role in shaping anticipatory approaches to digital transformation, ensuring that governance anticipates future developments instead of being reactionary.
The regional Parliamentary Summit gathered parliamentarians from the Americas and beyond, to:
- Present existing or upcoming legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks related to digital governance in their respective countries,
- Concretize anticipatory practices to support Parliaments in moving beyond reactive regulation toward more generative, inclusive, and context-aware policy-making,
- Solicit perspectives from a diverse set of actors, and
- Connect Parliamentarians with existing regional and global initiatives.
To foster sustained collaboration and dialogue within the IGF community, the event launched a formal cooperation platform of parliamentarians and parliamentary staff from the Americas.
Participation and Registration
The Summit is open to parliamentarians, parliamentary staff, other government actors and representatives from the industry, civil society, technical community and intergovernmental organizations, interested in contributing to digital public policy discussions.
Registration for onsite or online participation is available here and to be completed by Friday, 20 March, 12:00 UTC.
Output and Recording
The Summit generated a set of concrete, action-oriented outputs that strengthen parliamentary capacity for responsible anticipation practices in digital-related governance processes. These include consolidated key messages and practical insights drawn from plenary discussions and workgroup sessions, aimed at informing ongoing parliamentary debates on technology governance and supporting the development of coherent, long-term State policies:
- The outcomes were synthesized into the Montevideo Declaration and a summary document, including reference materials and examples of introduced or proposed legislative and policy initiatives.
- In addition, the LAC Parliamentary Cooperation Platform on Digital Governance (website | mailing list) emerged from the Summit, providing a sustained platform for peer exchange, collaboration, and engagement with regional and global initiatives.
The outputs will be presented at the global annual meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF 2026) and was shared with the Inter-Parliamentary Union during its 152nd Assembly.
The recording of the Summit is available here and pictures of the event are available here on Flickr.
Programme
A final programme, including speakers, will be made available shortly before the regional Parliamentary Summit.
The Spanish version of the Summit's programme is available here.
| Time (UTC-3) | Focus |
|---|---|
| 08:30 - 09:15 | Registration and Welcome Coffee |
| 09:15 - 09:30 | Welcome Remarks
|
| 09:30 - 10:45 | [Introductory Session] A Parliamentary Introduction to the Digital Ecosystem This session will introduce participants to the Internet ecosystem, the IGF and its Parliamentary Track, and will further explore how Internet governance intersects with the governance of emerging technologies. This serves as an orientation to Members of Parliament on how they can leverage digital governance processes, including the IGF, to inform national policymaking and elevate regional discussions to global governance debates.
How the Internet Works
Moderator:
|
| 10:45 - 11:15 | Coffee Break |
| 11:15 - 12:45 | [Case Study Session] From Regulation to Practice: Digital Governance Initiatives Across Latin America This interactive case-study session will feature Members of Parliament and Senators presenting digital regulatory frameworks, current legislative initiatives and their implementation across countries. The session will encourage peer learning by:
Contributions will be referenced in more detail in the Summit’s outcome document. Speakers:
Moderator:
|
| 12:45 - 14:00 | Lunch Break |
| 14:00 - 15:15 | [Panel Discussion 1] A Multistakeholder Dialogue on Governing What Comes Next: Anticipatory Approaches to Emerging Technologies Bringing together diverse expertise from the technical community, civil society, academia, private sector and intergovernmental organizations, participants will explore what governance models help address uncertainty around emerging technologies. More concretely, this session will provide practical examples on anticipatory policymaking and showcase how multistakeholder perspectives can help parliaments move beyond reactive policymaking. Speakers:
Moderator:
|
| 15:15 - 15:45 | Coffee Break |
| 15:45 - 17:00 | [Panel Discussion 2] Innovative and Anticipatory Approaches to Digital Regulation: Impacts on the Real Economy This session will explore the economic implications of emerging technologies, bringing together startups, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and major technology companies to discuss innovation and regulatory frameworks. Parliamentarians will engage directly with industry perspectives on enabling innovation in line with the public interest. Speakers:
Moderator:
|
| 17:00 - 18:00 | [Workshop] Launch of a Regional Parliamentary Network This interactive session will facilitate the co-creation of a Network of Parliamentarians from the Americas within IGF processes. Through guided discussions, MPs will identify shared priorities, collaboration mechanisms, and activities leading up to IGF 2026.
Contributions from:
|
| 19:00 | Networking Reception hosted by the Technical Community at Casa de Internet (by invitation) |
