2021 May 7

Ghent Goes for Fair ICT: The City of Ghent and Ghent University Join Electronics Watch

The City of Ghent in Belgium, with their ICT partner District09, and Ghent University, are the latest public sector bodies to join the rapidly expanding Electronics Watch network. These organisations have worked on sustainable procurement for some time. Now they intend to delve deeper into ICT.

"What we buy here in Ghent has an impact on lives elsewhere. We are aware of this as a public purchaser. So not only do we emphasize ecological criteria in our purchasing policy, but we also want what we procure to be made under the right conditions. Electronics Watch will guide us in this story." --Mieke Van Herreweghe, Vice-Rector UGent, Chair of the Committee on Sustainability Policy and Committee on Human Rights Policy and Dual Use Research.

"As a City, we have the ambition to become a technology capital. This also includes fair ICT. By joining the Electronics Watch network, we want to play a pioneering role in this." --Sofie Bracke, Alderman for Digitization, Chair of the Board of Directors District09.

"We are proud to have District09 (the City of Ghent) and the University of Ghent on board. They are the first local authority and university in the region of Flanders to affiliate. We are happy to be working with them and the regional government of Flanders." --Björn Claeson, Electronics Watch.