Strategic alliances between key stakeholders are a growing feature of both developed and emerging economies. They are necessary because it is increasingly clear that no one sector in society can deliver the complexities of sustainable development alone. Multi-stakeholder partnerships are generally directed at the problems and challenges of sustainable development, from environment protection and management, to social inclusion and sustainable economic growth. They are about sharing not shifting risks; finding innovative ways to pool resources and talents based on each parties’ core strengths; and designed and maintained over time in such as way as to deliver mutual benefits for all collaborating parties. They pursue a shared vision, maintain a presumption in favor of joint problem-solving, promote a work ethos that exploits mutual self-interest, and adds value beyond that achievable by the principal alternatives.

Creation of multi-stakeholder partnerships is recommended in many occasions in the Action Plan of the WSIS, for example: "All stakeholders have an important role to play in the Information Society, especially through partnerships" and in the Action Lines: "Each country is encouraged to establish at least one functioning Public/Private Partnership (PPP) or MultiSector Partnership (MSP), by 2005 as a showcase for future action" and in the conclusion: "Follow-up and implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action at national, regional and international levels, including the United Nations system, as part of an integrated and coordinated approach, calling upon the participation of all relevant  stakeholders. This should take place, inter alia, through partnerships among stakeholders."

The search for mechanisms allowing the creation of multi-stakeholder partnerships is also recommended in the Action Lines of the Action Plan of the WSIS: "Identify mechanisms, at the national, regional and international levels, for the initiation and promotion of partnerships among stakeholders of the Information Society".

Multi-stakeholder partnerships may provide a framework for:

• existing entities or new entities in the context of the governance of many domains of the Information Society;
• for existing entities or new entities that are gathering local authorities that are eager to contribute to the implementation of the WSIS action plan;
• for constructive, efficient, inclusive and transparent contributions from the Private Sector and the Civil Society;
• for existing entities or new entities that could contribute to implement much needed new financial mechanisms.

It is urgent that such mechanisms at international level be identified, discussed in an inclusive manner between all stakeholders, and finally be adopted by the WSIS, as a logical outcome. Such mechanisms must allow permanent, structured and constructive dialogs between all potential partners within the framework of assemblies, fora or conferences. New information and communication technologies will allow to establish multi-stakeholders dialogs and fora on a planetary scale.

Despite the importance of the phenomenon of multi-stakeholder partnerships for governance processes at all levels and despite the growing interest towards practical implementation of partnerships of this type among various sectors of society, from a theoretical point of view the concept MSPs is not well enough defined. Although general agreement exists among various authors regarding the essential components of MSP definition (voluntary and collaborative nature, involvement of various parties, common purpose, and sharing risks, responsibilities, resources, competencies and benefits), each of the existing definitions emphasizes different characteristics of the phenomenon. It should be noted, that a clear and unambiguous definition of an MSP is not only an issue of academic interest for social scientists, but has strong practical implications, for instance, for governments and international organizations such as the UN willing to engage in such partnerships.

The same applies to the task of developing a typology of MSPs. The diversity of partnerships dwarfs all attempts to categorize them based on one or even two criteria; hence, the typology of MSPs should be integral, combining several different criteria, but at the same time should avoid fracturing the phenomenon of MSP into several dozen narrow categories. Efforts are in place to create such a typology, but there’s still a way to go.

As regards the principles of MSPs and the partnering process, many important conclusions have already been reached, but there’s a need for constant monitoring of the growing body of MSP examples: both successful and unsuccessful - as well as developing ways to convert theoretical principles and values into practical steps of designing successful MSPs. In other words, the issues of MSP principles and partnering process should be approached simultaneously from two sides: by analyzing existing and emerging practice (“what MSPs are”), and by developing recommendations for creating partnerships based on such principles as inclusiveness, participation, accountability (“what MSPs should be”). We are in a position to actively shape the reality of this relatively new phenomenon as much as to study it.