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Translation Programme Put Out for Community Review | ICANN unveils multi-language approach for organisation

13 February 2008

English

The draft translation programme that will be used by ICANN to communicate and interact with non-English speakers has been put out for community comment today. You can review the programme below. The public comment period will be open until 14 March.

Español

El borrador del programa de traducción que será usado por ICANN para comunicar e interactuar con todos aquellos que no son anglo-parlantes, estará a disposición de la comunidad para comentarios a partir de hoy. Puedes revisar el programa (ver abajo). El período para recibir comentarios cerrará el 14 de marzo.

العربية

مشروع برنامج الترجمة التي ستستخدم من قبل هيئة الأيكان للاتصال والتفاعل مع غير الناطقين باللغه الإنجليزيه تم الإعلان عنه اليوم وتقديمه لمجتمع الإنترنت للتعليق العام. يمكنك مراجعة البرنامج أدناه. تعليق الجمهور سيكون . متاحا حتى 14 مارس 2008.

Русский

Сегодня ICANN опубликовала для комментария сообщества программу перевода, которая будет использована для общения и взаимодействия с не-англоязычными спикерами. Ниже вы можете рассмотреть эту программу. Период общественного комментария будет открыт до 14 марта.

中文

“ICANN 用於與非英語使用者交流的翻譯計畫草案,已於今天公開發布征求大眾反饋。您可以参閱以下草案。公眾反饋將於三月十四日截止。”


The draft translation programme that will be used by ICANN to communicate and interact with non-English speakers has been put out for community comment today.

The programme has two main aims: to inform people about ICANN as an organisation, including its history, processes, component parts and evolution; and to allow people to participate effectively in the organisation's ongoing decision-making and policy work.

The mission of the programme is to provide those who are not fluent English speakers with an equal level of access to influence and participate in the work of the organisation.

العربية | 中文 | Français | English | Español | Русский

A 27-page report, put together by independent expert and localization specialist Bert Esselink, and overseen by ex-head of translation at the United Nations, Omar Abou-Zahr, in consultation with the community and ICANN staff, makes a series of recommendations.

They include that:

  • ICANN divide its documents into four types: Outreach information (including factsheets, FAQs, glossaries, brochures); Strategic documents (including the Strategic Plan, Operating Plan, Budget, Annual Report); Policy documents (including issue papers, preliminary and final reports, SSAC papers, IDN status reports); and Other documents (including announcement, forms, contracts, and web pages).
  • Outreach information is translated into 10 languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian; Strategic information is translated into five languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish and Russian; Policy documents to be translated as a default into five languages with variation depending on circumstances, and Other documents translated into languages defined by translation guidelines and in consultation with the relevant body in each case.
  • The ICANN community is integrated into the translation programme to act as expert reviewers
  • A dedicated translation coordinator is hired to help create standardized processes for translation
  • The translation service is outsourced to a third-party/parties
  • Interpretation during ICANN meetings is provided in the national language of the country where the meeting is organized, as well as the most relevant languages for the region.

On the issue of languages, the "five languages" serve as the most effective balance of resources for ICANN to achieve participation in its processes. The "ten languages" allow for 85 percent of the online world to be kept in contact with what ICANN is, and does in its global coordination role.

Top 10 Languages Pie Chart

The programme has been put out for public comment until 14 March, and a special meeting will be held at the ICANN meeting in Delhi, Wednesday 13 February 3.30 to 4.30pm.

Following community input, the programme will be redrafted as necessary and put into a Final Report. The intention at this stage is to send the programme to the Board for review and/or approval at the Paris meeting in June.

You can view the Draft Translation Programme in full here: http://www.icann.org/translations/draft-translation-programme-v2.2-13feb08-en_EN.pdf [PDF, 128K]. Comments should be sent to translation-programme@icann.org. All comments can be viewed at: http://forum.icann.org/lists/translation-programme.