We need to redouble our efforts to make technology work for all

13 November 2020  

John W.H. Denton AO 

Around this time last year, I wrote about the need to significantly scale up efforts to close the digital gap globally and ensure business and government work together to increase access for all to the many benefits that technology facilitates. While I certainly did not anticipate then that 2020 would turn out as it has, the challenges that have arisen in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic have only reconfirmed many of the elements framed in my comments last year.  

The pandemic has demonstrated that digital access is indispensable to global prosperity. Since the onset of the pandemic, digital technologies have helped to sustain business operations and keep economies afloat. Technology is critical to detecting and managing the spread of the virus, and digital solutions are already shaping how we safely resume various activities even as we live with COVID-19. For many, video conferences, online streaming, and home delivery services, have become the new normal.  

Yet, this is not the case for everyone. As many of us continue to search for the “mute button” on Zoom, nearly half of the world remains offline. This digital divide hinders collective efforts to contain the pandemic and achieve a sustainable economic recovery for all.  

Since the onset of the pandemic, businesses in offline communities, especially small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), have scrambled to transition their operations remotely without meaningful connectivity to the Internet. In these same offline communities, learning online, connecting with friends and family, and accessing e-commerce marketplaces, has been made impossible without adequate digital infrastructure. While it’s still too early to predict the shape of the global economic recovery, the pandemic has made one thing clear: access to the Internet and digital technologies are essential to everyone, everywhere. 

During last year’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Berlin, ICC launched a campaign to Make technology work for all, calling on business and government to work in close partnership to bridge digital gaps, safeguard the free flow of data across borders, and form multi-stakeholder partnerships to expand meaningful access to technology. One year later, as representatives from government, business, civil society, and the technical community gather for the first-ever virtual IGF, it’s time to redouble our efforts to improve access and close the digital gap. 

We need to create a stable legal and regulatory environment that recognises ongoing development, welcomes new entrants into our digital ecosystem and values new forms of competition. Governments should implement regulatory policies that provide access to stable financing sources for digital projects to achieve sustainable returns, encourage competition and promote digital transformation through education and skilling.  

We must also work together to ensure the free flow of data across borders and between different stakeholders. Digital innovations can be crippled without the fluid movement of information between countries. While privacy and security concerns form a legitimate basis for placing limits on data flows, they should not be used arbitrarily to restrict trade. Restrictions on data flows will create further burdens for business, which will have a disproportionate impact on SMEs everywhere. By enhancing the availability and interoperability of data across borders, we can create new avenues of growth and innovation as we rebuild during this crisis and after COVID-19 subsides. 

In response to COVID-19, many countries have adopted whole-of-government approaches to managing the spread of virus. This same approach should be adopted in the case of digital transformation. Unlike other public policies, digital technology touches upon a wide range of economic, technical and socio-cultural factors. Instead of treating these issues in separate silos, governments should adopt over-arching principles to help encourage the importance of digital technology in all areas of policymaking. Governments should work in close partnership with the private sector to devise long-term strategies that will bridge local digital gaps and create an inclusive online environment for all. 

Multistakeholder partnerships of this kind are vital to effectively promoting the benefits of the digital economy. Business and government can ensure that implemented policies maximise opportunities for all and address relevant issues for local societies. One of the biggest benefits of private-public partnerships is the implementation of industry-backed capacity building programmes, such as coding labs, innovation hubs, or tutorials for local communities. With these ventures, business and government can advance sustainable development, while at the same time, encourage the creation of locally relevant content in local languages.  

Many of us have benefitted greatly in this challenging year from high levels of digital access to keep our connections with family, friends and work active. But the COVID-19 crisis has made it very clear that too many have been left behind for too long as technological integration in business and society has rapidly advanced. It’s incumbent upon business, government, and civil society to work cooperatively to design and implement the enabling environments for digital access that will end these digital differences and make technology truly work for all.