Meridian and its aims

The Meridian process aims to provide Governments worldwide with a means by which they can discuss how to work together at the policy level on critical information infrastructure protection (CIIP). An annual conference and interim activities is held each year to help build trust and establish international relations within the membership to facilitate sharing of experiences and good practices on CIIP from around the world. Participation in the Meridian process is open to all countries and aimed at senior government policy-makers. The Meridian process is founded on the G8 principles that provide a basic framework for understanding and implementing CIIP measures. As new challenges of connectivity and dependencies arise beyond national borders, Meridian enables Governments to explore the benefits and opportunities of cooperation with the private sector, and exchange of information and good practices in CIIP between governments internationally. Tools to raise awareness and share information include the CIIP Directory to facilitate intergovernmental contacts and the Traffic Light Protocol to facilitate distribution of information.

The Meridian process began to be formalized after the first Meridian conference in 2005 launched by the UK’s CPNI and was further strengthened after Meridian 2006 held in Budapest, and Meridian 2007 held in Stockholm. Meridian has a Programme Committee (PC) to assist the forthcoming host country in developing the annual conference. Membership in the Meridian PC is intended to be diverse to obtain a mix of expertise and regional coverage of CIIP interest. The PC for the impending conference in Singapore 2008 consists of Australia (AG), Germany (BMI), UK (CPNI), Singapore (IDA), Sweden (SEMA), USA (DHS), Switzerland (MELANI), Malaysia (SKMM), Japan (NISC) and The Netherlands (NICC).  

A Presidency fosters and develops initiatives between Meridian conferences and provides guidelines for forthcoming events and publications. The Presidency, currently led by Sweden having hosted Meridian 2007, also comprises current and next conference hosts, Singapore and USA. Hungary’s Presidency activities included setting up the Meridian newsletter CIIP Matters, and promoting bilateral cooperation or ‘twinning’ processes on CIIP issues. An Editorial Committee is responsible for producing the quarterly CIIP Matters, and overseeing other publication and website output. Its current membership includes Hungary, Singapore, Switzerland and the UK.