Some IFIP Councils and General Assemblies (GAs) are notable for the major actions taken (e.g., the admission of two Member societies from the US last September), and other meetings are notable for their inaction. In the eyes of this observer, the most recent Council and related meetings, held in Goa, India, were marked by solid progress and fine-tuning of IFIP procedures, while few outstanding new measures were taken. Most significant of the new measures were a system of financial incentives to encourage Member societies in developing countries to participate in IFIP to a greater extent and the intention to facilitate membership in IFIP Working Groups (WGs) by representatives of a Japanese trade association. Another important action was the establishment of the position of Event Facilitator/Activity Manager. Major reports concerned the very healthy financial state of IFIP, the problems experienced during the transfer of responsibility as IFIP publisher to Kluwer Academic Publishers and the actions taken to remedy them, and progress made in the development of a university informatics curriculum, sponsored by UNESCO.
The Council itself, which opened 3 March, was preceded by two days of committee meetings. This time, the schedule seemed to provide too little time to discuss all the necessary topics. Unfortunately, only half of the twelve Technical Committee (TC) chairs were present (and one of them had to leave early), which further impeded progress. There was not even a written report from TC5. Also, one vice-president and two trustees were absent, in addition to a vice-president (Mr. Christopher Guy [ZA]) and a trustee (Prof. X. Yan [CN]) who have resigned.
At the opening session, Dr. S. Ramani, the representative to IFIP of the Computer Society of India (CSI) and an IFIP trustee, welcomed the Council to Goa. He suggested that the participants, realizing how lovely Goa is, might wish to recommend Goa or Bangalore as the sites of future IFIP meetings. After describing the CSI he pointed out that many senior leaders of India are regular users of information technology, heavily employing notebook computers and video conferencing to ensure the effectiveness of government.
Technical Activities
Dir. Peter Bollerslev (DK), the president of IFIP, reported that the federation held 71 events in 1998, of which it was the full sponsor or main sponsor (i.e., responsible for the technical content) of 45. These numbers are approximately the same as those for 1997. So far, the number of events approved for 1999 indicates that there are likely to be fewer events this year than last.
The project on Harmonization of Professional Standards, an activity run under the auspices of TC3 (Education), is an attempt
"...to clearly set out an international standard for professional practice in information technology....The standard is primarily focused on practitioners involved in the development of software-based systems and related services....Harmonization means that the standards of different countries would be brought together to be substantially the same. Any extremes from the commonality of these standards would gradually be pruned away until each country has the same standard by mutual consent....This definition is focused on practitioners, persons who actually develop, maintain and operate software systems for commercial or governmental purposes. Standards are clear statements that reflect the minimum qualifications for mastery and knowledge of processes, skills and practice that a professional should have before undertaking work which may put an employer or client at risk, either physical or financial."
The initial report of the group preparing this standard was presented to Council and caused concern among some members because it should be more specific. With virtually no change, it could be applied to a variety of professions - from chemical engineer to accountant or physical therapist, for example. Nonetheless, the majority of Council members favored the continuation of the activity. The project group has been working with the International Standards Organization (ISO) to establish a cooperative venture. Originally, the World Trade Organization (WTO) had expressed interest in the project, but this has not developed.
The work of the IFIP TCs and WGs was discussed in some detail. A new WG, Theoretical Foundations of Security Analysis and Design (WG1.7), was approved by the Technical Assembly (TA); its Aims and Scope, as well as those of WG13.5, can be found here. WG12.2 (Machine Learning) was suspended because of inactivity. That leaves only two of the six WGs in TC12 (Artificial Intelligence) still active, which is the source of some concern. Despite this unsatisfactory situation, the consensus of the Council was that the TC12 chair should be given more time to energize it.
Other technical activities include the following:
Congresses
The sixteenth World Computer Congress, IFIP Congress 2000, was at the forefront of Council discussion of IFIP Congresses. Basically, plans are progressing smoothly. The Congress logo was revealed. The organizers expect an attendance of at least 2000. It is hoped that the disparity between the common 80% acceptance rate for submitted papers at Chinese conferences and the much lower number typical of IFIP Congresses will not create problems with regard to attendance. Unfortunately, the chair of the International Program Committee (IPC) was not present at Council, and no information was available about keynote speakers planned. Neither was a written report presented for either the IPC or Organizing Committee (OC); however, a verbal report by Prof. Xiaoming Li (CN), the assistant to a co-chair of the IPC, supported by computer slides, was delivered for both the IPC and the OC. One potential problem was considered in India: namely, whether the proceedings will be published by the IFIP publisher, in order to ensure widespread availability, advertising, and distribution. This was not the case with respect to the 1998 Congress, the proceedings of which were published by the Austrian Computer Society. Also, it was decided to include a conference on security (IFIP/Sec 2000) in the Congress. Further information is on the Congress Web site at http://www.wcc2000.org.
The final report by the OC for Congress '98 in Vienna and Budapest indicated that there will be virtually no income to IFIP beyond the minimum guarantee of 40 000 Swiss francs (CHF) already paid. The report also gave the distribution of the registrations for the individual conferences:
Teleteaching '98 28% SEC '98 17% Telecooperation 11% ICCHP '98 10% IT&KNOWS 10% KnowRight '98 7% Fundamentals 4% undeclared 13%
Of the total revenue of 1.2 million Swiss francs (CHF), subsidies from Austrian and Hungarian governmental units and corporations accounted for approximately 41%, while registration fees accounted for 52%, the balance coming from other participant fees and exhibition income.
With regard to Congress 2002, to be held in Montreal, President Bollerslev pronounced everything to be "perfect." Mr. George Boynton, representative to IFIP of the Canadian Member society, was appointed as chair of the OC by President Bollerslev. An IPC chair has yet to be named.
Council also discussed the frequency of Congresses as well as the desirability of continuing to hold Congresses. (See the article of the March IFIP Newsletter.) The Executive Board is in favor of continuing on a biennial basis and will prepare a position paper for discussion at the September GA in Kuala Lumpur.
Membership
The IFIP secretary, Mr. Graham Morris (GB), reported that there are now 37 Members with full voting rights, three members without voting rights because of late payment of dues (the societies from Belgium, Brazil, and France), and four suspended because of back dues owed for three years (from Albania, Greece, Ireland, and Russia). These four are not permitted to be represented in the GA or TCs. Also, IFIP events should not be organized in conjunction with suspended or terminated Member societies. They will be expelled at the end of 1999 if their dues are not paid. In addition, the offer of Membership to Belarus has been withdrawn because the candidate society has failed to meet the admission criteria. Because of financial problems, the Computer Society of Zimbabwe has requested to change its status to Corresponding Member, which will be considered by the GA. As reported previously, the French Member society will now be Societe des Electriciens et des Electroniciens (SEE), which has assumed the membership of the former French Member society, AFCET, which was dissolved.
Financial Matters
Prof. Dipak Khakhar (SE), IFIP's treasurer, had good news to report with regard to the 1998 financial result, which was a surplus of 240 K CHF of income over expenses, approximately the same as for 1997. The assets of IFIP now amount to over two million CHF, which equals more than five years of operating expenses. The income was significantly greater than the budgeted amount, while expenses were significantly below budget. Royalties were less than in 1997, although above budget. TC6 had the largest TC fund balance as well as the largest amount of royalties and event proceeds. TC3 had by far the greatest expenses of all TCs in both 1997 and 1998 and a TC-fund balance of 0, although special circumstances may justify this situation.
Mr. Jose Granado (PT), chair of the Finance Committee, reported that the income on investments (primarily bonds) had increased significantly because of improved management. The total return (income + appreciation) was approximately 5%, which is satisfactory for conservative investments. The plan to keep only the minimum amount necessary in IFIP checking accounts had not been implemented in a timely manner, resulting in the failure to earn approximately 10 K CHF. This situation, however has been remedied. Also, cash flow management will soon be initiated. The IFIP portfolio and some accounts have been "re-denominated" from CHF to euros, and, from the beginning of the year 2000, all remaining IFIP accounts will be maintained in euros. (The investments were made in Swiss currency when IFIP headquarters were physically located in Switzerland. Officially, the IFIP "seat" is still in Switzerland.) For countries wishing to avoid the perils of currency fluctuation, IFIP will accept advance payment of up to three years' dues, with no extra payment necessary if dues are increased.
Organizational Issues
The TC Forum called the attention of Council to the perception that
"IFIP will not financially support its own events or those it runs jointly with others. IFIP acts more as an endorser than an organizer of events. This situation generates problems, especially for co-organized events with other societies. The consequences are missed opportunities, from both the scientific and financial viewpoints."
The TA then proposed that:
"IFIP introduces standard procedures to allow IFIP TCs and WGs to provide financial support to their own events and, in particular, those organized co-jointly with other societies. The proposal is aimed at clarifying the current situation, facilitating the organization of co-sponsored events, and giving tangible evidence of IFIP's willingness to provide real support to its activities. The outcome we expect will be an increase in IFIP-related activities and an increase in IFIP revenue."
A task group was formed to make a concrete proposal based on the recommendation. In addition, the group will consider how to make the IFIP nomenclature concerning events ("sponsor," "organizer," etc.) consistent with other organizations' nomenclatures.
Dr. Takeo Miura (JP), a trustee, proposed to the Council that some sort of arrangement be made for the Japan Electronic Industry Development Association (JEIDA), an influential nonprofit organization representing the electronics and information industry in Japan, as well as similar organizations in other countries, to have membership in IFIP WGs. This was seen as a means of forging links between IFIP and industry. Dr. Miura said that "JEIDA wants to grasp market needs and [leading technology developments] through the 'give and take' activities of IFIP." The consensus of Council was to move forward rapidly with WG memberships for JEIDA. Since membership in a WG is by invitation from the WG, this requires no change in IFIP statutes. The Executive Board will consider the wider implications, including financial considerations.
The outcome of a long strategic-planning process was unveiled at this Council. That process began at the 1995 GA, in Calgary, where a task force was formed to consider an optimum way to restructure the TA in order to eliminate duplication of reports and encourage consideration of strategic issues. During the 1996 GA in Canberra, a "brainstorming" session of all GA participants resulted in a list of "visions" of the future of IFIP, and a Strategic Planning Committee was formed to make proposals concerning the strategic direction of the Federation. That committee subsequently proposed that one vision be adopted: that IFIP become the most desirable global body for all national computer societies. The result of all this deliberation is the formation of two two-man teams - one "devoted to rethinking IFIP's current working processes; another devoted to evaluating new ways of cooperation between IFIP and its Member societies." As part of the process changes, two procedural measures will be instituted at the 1999 GA in Kuala Lumpur: a Member Society Forum to be held during the GA will air problems and issues of mutual interest to Member societies, and a preliminary session comprising briefings by the president and major committee chairs summarizing significant developments since the March Council meeting will start off the four days of GA and committee meetings. Also, the position of Event Facilitator/Activity Manager is another outcome of the strategic-planning process.
Other Matters
Other developments at the Council include the following:
President Bollerslev thanked the Computer Society of India, a very active participant in IFIP, for the fine facilities provided, the extensive social program, and the very friendly support during the meetings, and adjourned the Council.