Although it is based in the Netherlands, IICD’s activities play out on the international stage. This is clearly evident in the fact that it gets funding from several different European development agencies: that support makes IICD directly accountable to a number of other governments and international stakeholders. A national Board of Trustees and an International Advisory Board work alongside IICD to help the organisation follow the right strategic course. The Managing Director of IICD acts as the main point of contact for both Boards.

Since 2000, IICD’s international secretariat had been led by Mr Jac Stienen, who acted as the main point of contact for donors, the Board of Trustees and the International Advisory Board. He was also a member of several national and international associations: the Partnership for ICTs in Africa; the Building Communication Opportunities (BCO) Alliance, an international donor and civil society learning partnership; Partos, an association for managers from public and private development organisations; Panorama Haaglanden, an association of civil society organisations in and around The Hague; and the Dutch Association for International Affairs. In the course of 2007, Mr Stienen announced that he would be retiring as of January 2008.

Board of Trustees

IICD is governed by a Board of Trustees made up of seven members, all of whom are senior representatives from the Dutch private, public and non-profit sectors. The constitutionally independent Board meets every quarter with the Managing Director and sometimes also other staff members and must give its formal approval to any strategic and organisational decisions taken at IICD. The Board must also review the organisation’s financial results and approve any budgets and annual plans. For these services, the Board members receive a small expense allowance.

Any new trustees are appointed by the Board. The Minister for Development Cooperation in the Netherlands is informed in writing of the appointment of a new Trustee within two weeks of the decision being taken. If the Minister does not raise any formal objections to the appointment within four weeks, the appointment of the new Trustee is final. Should the Minister have any objections, these will be conveyed to the Board in writing. Trustees are appointed for a period of three years, after which point they can be re-appointed for a further three-year period, if so requested. In 2007, the Statutes were adapted to make it possible to re-appoint members for another period of three years. Trustees step down according to a timetable drafted by the Board. A decision to discharge a member can only be taken at an assembly of the Board in which all remaining members are present or represented by fellow Board members.

In 2007, the Board of Trustees consisted of the following members:

• Ms Hella Voûte-Droste (Chairperson)
• Mr Johan Piet (Secretary/Treasurer)
• Ms Grace Boldewijn
• Mr Henny Helmich
• Mr Paul 't Hoen
• Mr Gerd Junne
• Mr Bernhard van Oranje.

As mentioned above, it was announced that Jac Stienen would retire as Managing Director, effective from January 2008. One of the core responsibilities of the Board of Trustees is to oversee the appointment of a new Managing Director. Consequently, over the past year, all Board members were actively engaged in finding a replacement. It was announced in October that a successor had finally been found in Ms Caroline Figuères, whose appointment would commence in January 2008.

International Advisory Board

Complementing the Dutch perspective given through the Board of Trustees, IICD’s International Advisory Board (IAB) consists of senior ICT4D specialists from a diverse range of countries. IAB members act as IICD’s ambassadors internationally, and the IAB also plays a strong role in formulating IICD’s strategy, in giving regular advice to the Managing Director on proposed strategic development, and in reviewing existing approaches. A discussion on how to further enhance the strategic value of the IAB in relation to IICD will be organised for 2008.

In 2007, the International Advisory Board consisted of the following members:

• Mr Rob van den Dool (Chairperson, the Netherlands)
• Mr Subbiah Arunachalam (India)
• Ms Anne-Rachel Inné (Niger)
• Mr Mike Jensen (South Africa)
• Mr Kerry McNamara (USA)
• Mr Eduardo Monge (Costa Rica)
• Mr Johnson Nkuuhe (Uganda)
• Ms Aida Opoku-Mensah (Ethiopia)
• Mr Jan Pronk (the Netherlands)
• Ms Ingrid Hagen (the Netherlands)
• Mr Koos Andriessen (the Netherlands).

There were also a few changes in the composition of the IAB in 2007. In March, Mr Koos Andriessen, who was also formerly President of the Board of Trustees, stepped down from the International Advisory Board and was replaced by Ms Ingrid Hagen. As of 1 June 2007, Ms Aida Opoku-Mensah also resigned.

In 2007, IAB members participated in two of IICD’s strategic workshops: ‘Scenarios for the Future of IICD Demand for ICT4D in developing countries’ and ‘The influence of new technologies on development’. The results of these workshops will contribute to a further strategic workshop, which is currently planned for the spring of 2008 and intended to feed directly into the new strategic framework for 2010–2015.