When talking of international cooperation in order to avoid problems or to minimize them, I think there are two ways. The vertical cooperation means that all the Y2K conversion efforts be made in a sectorial approach. For example, one country should internally complete Y2K conversion measures at the different levels of the national banks from small to medium sized ones. This will make the financial sector entirely Y2K free. I believe that this vertical cooperation is being done in all the important sectors such as financial services, telecommunication, transportation, energy, health and so on.
Horizontal cooperation means a regional cooperation and a bilateral initiative.
Each country will use its own efforts for tackling the Y2K problems. It is essential that they collaborate at the regional level since the computer systems are linked to each other. These two ways of cooperation must link together as effectively as two threads that weave together to make a textile, so that they create a complete network of international cooperation. This network then will develop itself into 3 or 4 dimensions. For, Y2K itself has such a complicated structure that a tiny embedded chip in a small industry can shake the entire world.