Informal consultations with Member States and observers (2024)

In preparation for the intergovernmental negotiations on the Global Digital Compact (GDC), informal consultations with UN member states and observers will be held on 12 February 2024. The consultations are part of the intergovernmental process led by the Co-facilitators and are scheduled to take place in person in the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Chamber at the UN Headquarters in New York. These consultations are a significant step in the development of the GDC, which is aimed at addressing various digital cooperation issues on a global scale.


Germany and Namibia, co-facilitators of the Summit of the Future, publish zero draft of the Pact for the Future

On 26 January 2024, Germany and Namibia – co-facilitators of the Summit of the Future – announced the release of the zero draft of the Pact for the Future. The zero draft tackles digital issues in the chapeau and in two subsequent chapters: international peace and security, and science, technology, innovation and digital cooperation.

1. Chapeau

The paragraph on peace and security notes that member states would act collectively to maintain and restore international peace and security on land, at sea, in space, in cyberspace and other emerging domains. They would also take concrete steps to avoid the misuse of emerging domains and new technologies.

The paragraph on science, technology and innovation and digital cooperation includes a commitment from member states to strengthen digital cooperation and harness the potential of science, technology and innovation for the benefit of all humanity. Member states also reiterate their commitments for an open, free, secure, inclusive and human-centred digital future. They further commit to ensuring that new technologies are shaped in ways that are human-centred, reflect universal human values and protect the planet.

1. International peace and security

A sub-section in the chapter dedicated to peace and security focuses on ’emerging domains and new technology’ and proposes a series of commitments from member states:

  • Commitment to developing international norms, rules and principles to address threats to space systems, and launching negotiations on a treaty to ensure peace, security and the prevention of an arms race in outer space.
  • Commitment to be guided – in the use of ICTs – by agreed norms of responsible state behaviour.
  • Commitment to concluding a legally binding instrument to prohibit lethal autonomous weapons systems that function without human control or oversight, and which cannot be used in compliance with international humanitarian law, and to regulate all other types of autonomous weapons systems.
  • Commitment to strengthening oversight mechanisms for the use of data-driven technology, including AI, to support the maintenance of international peace and security.
  • Commitment to developing norms, rules and principles on the design, development and use of military applications of AI through a multilateral process, while also ensuring engagement with other stakeholders.
  • Commitment to exploring measures to address the risks involved in biotechnology and human enhancement technology applied to the military domain.

2. Science, technology and innovation and digital cooperation

Echoing to some extent the provisions of the UN General Assembly Resolution on science, technology and innovation for sustainable development (A/RES/78/160) and the Political declaration adopted at the 2023 SDG Summit (A/RES/78/1), this section acknowledges the role of science, technology and innovation (STI) in advancing sustainable development. Among other provisions, member states:

  • Undertake to increase the use of science and scientific evidence in policymaking.
  • Reiterate the need to accelerate the transfer of environmentally sound technologies to developing countries on favourable terms.
  • Commit to addressing barriers to equal access for women and girls to STI.
  • Commit to addressing structural impediments to accessing new and emerging technologies, including by scaling up the use of open science, affordable and open-source technology, research and development.
  • Aim to increase funding for research and innovation related to SDGs and build capacities in all regions to contribute to and benefit from such research.
  • Call upon the UN system to support the efforts of developing countries to develop and strengthen their national STI ecosystems.

The zero draft also notes that the Global Digital Compact – developed and negotiated in a separate process – is to be annexed to the Pact for the Future.

The co-facilitators have also published a roadmap outlining the next steps towards the Summit of the Future in September 2024.

  • 29 January 2024 | Presentation of the zero draft
  • By 12 February 2024 | Submission of written input by member states
  • 6–9 February 2024 | First reading of the zero draft
  • 21 February 2024 | Virtual consultations with Major Groups and other Stakeholders (MGoS) and civil society
  • 21–23 February, 26–28 February, 4–6 March 2024 | Second reading

Thematic Deep-Dive: Global digital commons

Guiding questions:

  1. Which challenges in the domain of digital transformation can be addressed by strengthening “global digital commons”? What could a “global digital commons” approach entail – in terms of possible principles, values, and ideas? How should these principles influence the creation of “global digital commons” and their governance?
  2. Digital public goods (DPGs) and digital public infrastructures are increasingly part of countries’ digital transformations, including by promoting digital inclusion, as well as supporting other sectors such as health, environment, and education. What are the main challenges with regards to digital public infrastructure? How can the GDC contribute to the safety and inclusivity of digital public infrastructure and mitigate potential harm? How can the GDC contribute to strengthening the global DPG ecosystem and increase local adoption of DPGs?

Thematic Deep-Dive: Accelerating progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Guiding questions:

  1. Given existing experience, especially from the Global South, where and how is digital technology helping to deliver on the SDGs (eg health, water, jobs environment)? How can experiences be shared effectively? Are there any principles and approaches that could be generalized?
  2. How can Member States, the private sector, civil society, the technical community, and individuals work together to design and apply digital technologies for the purpose of accelerating process on the SDGs? What role could capacity-development of public officials and other development stakeholders play in this regard?
  3. Which future challenges, for example with regards to environmental sustainability, could digital technologies create or help solve in relations to the SDG? What measures could support stakeholders in tackling these issues?

UN Secretary-General issues policy brief for Global Digital Compact

As part of the process towards developing a Global Digital Compact (GDC), the UN Secretary-General has issued a policy brief outlining areas in which ‘the need for multistakeholder digital cooperation is urgent’: closing the digital divide and advancing sustainable development goals (SDGs), making the online space open and safe for everyone, and governing artificial intelligence (AI) for humanity. 

The policy brief also suggests objectives and actions to advance such cooperation and ‘safeguard and advance our digital future’. These are structured around the following topics:

  • Digital connectivity and capacity building. The overarching objectives here are to close the digital divide and empower people to participate fully in the digital economy. Proposed actions range from common targets for universal and meaningful connectivity to putting in place or strengthening public education for digital literacy. 
  • Digital cooperation to accelerate progress on the SDGs. Objectives include making targeted investments in digital public infrastructure and services, making data representative, interoperable, and accessible, and developing globally harmonised digital sustainability standards. Among the proposed actions are the development of definitions of safe, inclusive, and sustainable digital public infrastructures, fostering open and accessible data ecosystems, and developing a common blueprint on digital transformation (something the UN would do). 
  • Upholding human rights. Putting human rights at the centre of the digital future, ending the gender digital divide, and protecting workers are the outlined objectives in this area. One key proposed action is the establishment of a digital human rights advisory mechanism, facilitated by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, to provide guidance on human rights and technology issues. 
  • An inclusive, open, secure, and shared internet. There are two objectives: safeguarding the free and shared nature of the internet, and reinforcing accountable multistakeholder governance. Some of the proposed actions include commitments from governments to avoid blanket internet shutdowns and refrain from actions disrupting critical infrastructures.
  • Digital trust and security. Objectives range from strengthening multistakeholder cooperation to elaborate norms, guidelines, and principles on the responsible use of digital technologies, to building capacity and expanding the global cybersecurity workforce. The proposed overarching action is for stakeholders to commit to developing common standards and industry codes of conduct to address harmful content on digital platforms. 
  • Data protection and empowerment. Ensuring that data are governed for the benefit of all, empowering people to control their personal data, and developing interoperable standards for data quality as envisioned as key objectives. Among the proposed actions are an invitation for countries to consider adopting a declaration on data rights and seeking convergence on principles for data governance through a potential Global Data Compact. 
  • Agile governance of AI and other emerging technologies. The proposed objectives relate to ensuring transparency, reliability, safety, and human control in the design and use of AI; putting transparency, fairness, and accountability at the core of AI governance; and combining existing norms, regulations, and standards into a framework for agile governance of AI. Actions envisioned range from establishing a high-level advisory body for AI to building regulatory capacity in the public sector. 
  • Global digital commons. Objectives include ensuring inclusive digital cooperation, enabling regular and sustained exchanges across states, regions, and industry sectors, and developing and governing technologies in ways that enable sustainable development, empower people, and address harms. 

The document further notes that ‘the success of a GDC will rest on its implementation’. This implementation would be done by different stakeholders at the national, regional, and sectoral level, and be supported by spaces such as the Internet Governance Forum and the World Summit on the Information Society Forum. One suggested way to support multistakeholder participation is through a trust fund that could sponsor a Digital Cooperation Fellowship Programme. 

As a mechanism to follow up on the implementation of the GDC, the policy brief suggests that the Secretary-General could be tasked to convene an annual Digital Cooperation Forum (DCF). The mandate of the forum would also include, among other things, facilitating collaboration across digital multistakeholder frameworks and reducing duplication; promoting cross-border learning in digital governance; and identifying and promoting policy solutions to emerging digital challenges and governance gaps.

Thematic Deep-Dive: Artificial Intelligence and other emerging technologies

Guiding questions:

  1. How can we move from principles to practical measures that will help guide
    and lead the application of AI technologies in different contexts, and how can
    these be aligned?
  2. How can regulators and innovators work together to promote the development
    and rollout of new emerging technologies while protecting human and
    planetary safety, human agency, and fundamental rights?
  3. What measures can be taken to ensure that AI and other emerging
    technologies promote the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals?