Mr Narendra Modi announces completion of Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository

Country is a mix of many societies. These various societies contribute to the country's overall cultural, social, and political landscape, creating a rich blend of different but interconnected groups.

Society is a group of people living together who share common rules, traditions, and ways of behaving. In simple terms, society is about how people interact and live together.

The growth of a country depends on the quality of its Public Infrastructure and Public Goods. These two are the pillars for economic activities, quality of life, growth, public welfare, basic needs realization and for ensuring societal stability and equity.

Public Infrastructure

The primary aim of public infrastructure is to support economic activities and enhance the quality of life, providing the physical framework essential for a countries/ societies' functioning and growth.

Public infrastructure encompasses essential facilities and systems like Bridges, Tunnels, Water Grids, Power Grids, Road Grids, Fiber Grids, Gas Grids, Hospital infrastructure, Public Libraries infrastructure, Airports/ Sea Ports etc.,

Public infrastructure serves the foundational needs of a country, city, or area. Access to these facilities may require payment or be subsidized, and use can sometimes lead to congestion.

Funding of Physical Infrastructure typically comes from a mix of public and private investments, as well as government budgets, with maintenance handled either by the government or through public-private partnerships.

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Public Goods

The primary aim of public goods is for public welfare, fulfilling basic needs and ensuring societal stability and equity.

Public goods are vital societal elements, non-excludable and non-rivalrous, meaning their use by one does not limit others' access. Examples include National Defense, Public Parks, Street Lighting, Public roads, Emergency services, Public education ??etc

All these could be available without direct payment. Funded by taxation and government-managed, ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

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Digital Society, Digital Public Infrastructure, And Digital Public Goods

For the past decade, countries worldwide have been striving to align with the 4th and 5th industrial revolutions, driven predominantly by the fusion of technologies, also known as modern cyber system (as discussed in my book 'Lean Digital Thinking,' available on Amazon).

The critical question now is how these technology driven Industrial revolutions are impacting societies, public infrastructure, and public goods. Is it sufficient to rely on conventional public infrastructure and public goods? The answer is a RESOUNDING NO!

Now, let me emphasize the importance of understanding digital society, digital public infrastructure, and digital public goods. Building these elements is crucial for any country to effectively prepare for technologically driven industrial revolutions.

Without developing digital public infrastructure and digital public goods, countries face the risk of social unrest and crises. This is because they may fail to meet the distinct needs and wants of digital societies, which differ significantly from conventional societies.

Digital Society

Digital Society is one where digital technology such as mobile devices, social media, analytics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, augmented reality, geographical information systems, the Internet of Things, and others play a crucial role. These technologies significantly impact how people live together, share information, uphold traditions, behave, and interact. A few examples are given below:

1. IoT-enabled appliances allow for more efficient and connected living environments. Family members can manage household tasks remotely, enhancing convenience and coordination.
2. Social media platforms have revolutionized information sharing. People can instantly share news, personal updates, and educational content, bridging geographical divides and creating global communities.
3. Online forums and video sharing sites allow communities to showcase and teach traditional practices, recipes, dances, and languages to younger generations and a broader audience.
4. The rise of digital etiquette is evident, with new norms emerging for how to behave online. This includes how people present themselves, communicate, and interact on various digital platforms, from professional networking sites to more personal social media spaces.
5. Virtual reality and augmented reality technologies are creating new ways for people to interact, whether it’s through immersive gaming experiences, virtual meetings, or augmented reality in education, enabling more engaging and interactive learning experiences.
6. Manual interventions will be minimized as technologies perform many manual tasks faster, better, and more cheaply.
7. People to people, people to things, and things to things will connect, collaborate and work together.
8. Humans will work in collaboration with robots and bots at home, in offices, industries, battlefields, governments, and other places.
9. Security and identification will be handled through digital identification (such as facial recognition).
10. Travel on intelligent roads which can automatically charge the electric cars and instruct drivers on safe driving
11. Receive remote healthcare using smart hospitals and get medicines from Any Time Medicine Machines
12. Obtain education in smart schools, where robots and bots serve as teachers, and integrated digital studios provide immersive learning experiences.

It is quite evident that a Digital Society differs drastically from conventional societies. Therefore, conventional Public Infrastructure and Public Goods are not sufficient. Each country must build Digital Public Infrastructure and Digital Public Goods to meet these new demands.

What is Digital Public Infrastructure?

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) is about the digital systems, platforms, and networks we use today. It's like a digital infrastructure that helps deliver important services quickly and fairly to everyone, including businesses and regular people.

DPI includes key digital areas and services that work well together, are safe, and help a digital society run smoothly.

This doesn't mean that the conventional public infrastructure like roads and bridges become unimportant. Instead, Digital Public Infrastructure makes these public infrastructure smarter and more efficient. It ensures that public services are faster, better, cheaper, and more reliable for everyone.

A few examples of Digital Public Infrastructure are Digital Communication Networks, E-Government Platforms, Digital Identification Systems, Digital Payment Systems, Data Management and Analytics Infrastructure, Cybersecurity Frameworks, Digital Healthcare Platforms, Smart City Technologies.

What is Digital Public Goods?

Digital Public Goods (DPGs) are digital resources, including open-source software, open data, open AI models, open standards, and open content, that are freely accessible and beneficial to the public.

Designed for societal development, these goods are like conventional Public Goods are non-rivalrous, allowing shared use without preventing others from using them.

Digital Public Goods serve as a foundation for a healthy digital ecosystem, fostering innovation, collaboration, and problem-solving.

They play a crucial role in ensuring universal access to digital technology benefits, contributing significantly to country development and progress.

?A few examples of Digital Public Goods are given below:

India is already an alliance partner of Digital Public Goods Alliance (https://digitalpublicgoods.net/)

Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository (GDPIR)

Source: Ministry of Electronics & IT

Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi announces completion of Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository and creation of a Social Impact Fund to advance Digital Public Infrastructure in Global South

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi announced the launch of two India-led initiatives: the Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository and a Social Impact Fund aimed at promoting the development of Social Impact Fund to advance Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in the Global South during the Virtual G20 Leaders’ Summit on 22nd?November 2023.

Towards delivering these outcomes, the MeitY has developed the GDPIR, which is a comprehensive resource hub, pooling essential lessons and expertise from G20 members and guest nations. Its primary aim is to bridge the knowledge gap in the choices and methodologies required for the design, construction, deployment, and governance of DPIs.?

Furthermore, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi also announced the creation of a Social Impact Fund (SIF), to which India has pledged an initial commitment of 25 million USD. The SIF is envisioned as a government led, multistakeholder initiative to fast-track DPI implementation in the global south. This fund will offer financial support to provide upstream technical and non-technical assistance to countries in developing DPI systems.?

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My View Point

• India has assumed a leadership role in developing Digital Public Infrastructure, also known as India Stack.
• India Stack includes Aadhaar, Unified Payments Interface (UPI), e-KYC (Electronic Know Your Customer), e-Sign, DigiLocker, Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN), BHIM (Bharat Interface for Money), and Fastag. India is also extending this Digital Public Infrastructure to other countries.
• The Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository (GDPIR) initiative marks a significant milestone in India's journey to becoming a global leader in the digital era.
• While this repository serves as a comprehensive knowledge bank and catalogue of various countries' Digital Infrastructure components, India should focus on creating a Global Digital Infrastructure Architecture Blueprint and Platform (GDIABP).
• This GDIABP would aid other countries in building their Digital Public Infrastructure more efficiently, cost-effectively, and rapidly, enhancing interoperability among different nations' digital public infrastructure elements.
• These advancements are key to boosting economies, trade, and businesses, paving the way for true globalization
• In addition to the GDPIR, India should also take a leadership role in creating a repository of Global Digital Public Goods (GDPG). It's important to establish a framework and methodology for countries to effectively utilize these open-source elements to enhance the quality of life.

India needs to focus on standardizing Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and Digital Public Goods (DPG) across its different States and Union Territories. It's unnecessary for each State to spend millions of rupees on systems that aren't interoperable. A unified approach to DPI and DPG is essential.

VSR

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