HIGH LEVEL LEADERS SESSION IV

Ms Lise Fuhr

Digital technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) play a crucial role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They have the potential to support climate change mitigation, sustainability in industries and agriculture, and improve the quality of life in cities. However, there are challenges that hinder progress, such as connectivity, access to devices, and digital literacy skills. Gender equality is also a significant issue, with slow progress in achieving equal representation in leadership and research fields. Bridging the gender gap is crucial for unlocking the full potential of digital solutions. Mobile phones are vital tools for connecting women to information and education. Despite progress in connectivity, there is still a need for improved access and digital skills. It is essential to base digital solutions on an open, inclusive, and secure internet that respects human rights. Multi-stakeholder decision-making is important for inclusive internet governance. Collaboration among stakeholders is necessary to further progress towards the SDGs. Digital innovation has shown potential in responding to global challenges, but there is still work to be done. In conclusion, digital technologies have the potential to contribute significantly to the SDGs, but addressing challenges and promoting collaboration is crucial for their successful implementation.

Ms. Nanako Ishido

During the discussion, the speakers examined the impact of digital technology on education, peace, and sustainability in Japan. One of the key topics discussed was Japan’s GIGA School Initiative, which aims to integrate digital technology into schools and achieve quality education for all. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, Japan was somewhat behind in terms of integrating digital technology into school education. However, the pandemic prompted significant change, and now every elementary and middle school student in Japan has been provided with a digital device. This move towards digitalisation is seen as a positive step in ensuring that everyone has digital literacy and equal access to a digital learning environment in educational institutions.

Furthermore, the speakers discussed the importance of addressing educational disparities and bridging the digital divide through initiatives such as the GIGA School Initiative. Ensuring that every student has access to digital technology is crucial in achieving equal educational opportunities. In the past, Japan had been ranked last among OECD countries in terms of infrastructure development and effective utilization of digital technologies. However, the distribution of digital devices to students has enabled progress towards closing this gap.

On the other hand, the speakers also highlighted the risks and challenges associated with the use of digital innovations, particularly with the rapid advancement of AI. The diversity of perspectives on how to interact with AI and other digital technologies poses a risk in itself. The potential for differing opinions and intentions when using these technologies can lead to adverse consequences. Therefore, it is essential to consider these risks and engage in discussions involving multiple stakeholders to mitigate them.

The speakers further noted that although digital technology has the potential to promote peace, it can also be used extensively for harm, especially in ongoing conflicts between countries. The human intention and purpose behind the use of these tools ultimately determine whether they contribute to peace or conflict. This insight highlights the need to consider human intentions as a risk factor when using digital technology, and to carefully navigate its application in peacebuilding efforts.

Additionally, the establishment of international consensus on the use of AI and digital technology was identified as a challenge. Large global companies in the field, such as Ritter, have the potential to surpass nations in terms of technological advancements. However, reaching consensus on the ethical and responsible use of these technologies on an international scale remains a complex task.

In terms of sustainability, Kyoto was praised for its long-standing commitment to sustainable city development. For over 1000 years, Kyoto has served as Japan’s capital and symbolizes sustainable management in terms of corporate practices. There are approximately 50,000 companies in Japan that have been in business for more than 100 years, with 3000 companies having operated for over 200 years. By exemplifying sustainable management, these Japanese companies contribute to the goal of responsible consumption and production.

It was also observed during the discussion that the integration of technology in policy-making processes can enable a wide range of actors, including students, to participate. This use of technology creates an environment where a larger number of individuals can contribute to policy decisions, fostering inclusivity and democratic processes.

In conclusion, the speakers highlighted the positive progress made in integrating digital technology into education in Japan, particularly through initiatives like the GIGA School Initiative. However, they also raised awareness of the risks and challenges associated with the use of digital innovations, such as differing perspectives on AI and the need for international consensus. Furthermore, the speakers commended Kyoto for its sustainable city development efforts and recognized Japan for symbolizing sustainable management in corporate practices. Overall, the importance of taking action towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and translating priorities into concrete actions was emphasized.

Mr Mohamed Shareef

The analysis reveals several key points regarding the digital transformation and its role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). One notable finding is that in the Maldives, 7% of the population still does not have a smartphone, and 15% do not use the internet. This lack of access to digital technology hinders progress towards the SDGs.

Furthermore, it is concerning that 30% of the SDG targets have either stalled or regressed. This suggests that more efforts are needed to effectively meet these goals.

However, there is a positive sentiment towards establishing a digital foundation to achieve the SDGs. It is argued that a digital infrastructure is necessary for various sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, and weather protection. The ability to leverage digital technologies and data can greatly enhance these sectors, resulting in smarter decision-making and improved outcomes.

Cooperation among stakeholders, including the government, industry, academia, and civil society, is seen as crucial to attaining the SDGs. This collaborative approach ensures that resources, knowledge, and expertise are shared, leading to more effective and sustainable solutions.

On the other hand, there are several challenges faced in the digital transformation journey. The increasing complexity of technology poses risks in terms of cybersecurity and data privacy. Additionally, the lack of expertise in implementing and managing digital innovations, particularly in developing countries, further complicates the transition. Financial risks also arise from overspending on technology that may not deliver the expected benefits. Moreover, the issue of electronic waste becomes more prominent as societies invest more in technology.

To tackle these challenges, it is suggested to establish a dedicated team to drive the digital transformation agenda. Robust security measures and system integration are essential to ensure the integrity and safety of digital systems. Compliance with both local and international data privacy standards and regulations is crucial to maintain trust. Furthermore, it is important to invest in people by providing training and development opportunities to build the necessary skills and capabilities.

Inclusion and accessibility should also be at the forefront of the digital transformation efforts. Ensuring that no one is left behind in the digital revolution is necessary to reduce inequalities and promote social cohesion.

A careful balance between progress and privacy concerns must be maintained. While digital technologies offer immense potential in achieving the SDGs, it is important to address privacy concerns and ensure that individuals’ rights are protected.

Lastly, it is crucial to adapt to changing environments and climate change. Digital technologies can play a significant role in monitoring and mitigating the impacts of climate change. By harnessing the power of digital innovation, societies can enhance their resilience and ability to respond to environmental challenges.

In conclusion, the analysis underscores the importance of digital transformation in achieving the SDGs. While there are challenges that need to be addressed, the potential benefits are substantial. A collaborative approach, inclusion, and a balance between progress and privacy concerns are key to navigating the digital transformation journey successfully.

Mr Junhua Li

Digital solutions are seen as crucial in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with the potential to improve financial inclusion, enhance public services, and accelerate climate action. There is a positive sentiment towards digital solutions due to their ability to address development challenges. However, there are concerns regarding unequal access and limited infrastructure in developing countries, hindering progress. Bridging the digital divide and promoting inclusive access to digital solutions, particularly in vulnerable countries, is necessary. Involving all stakeholders, such as government bodies, the private sector, and academia, is important in developing effective and inclusive digital innovation frameworks. A global framework is being considered to guide digital innovation and mitigate potential risks, such as increased carbon emissions. By prioritizing these efforts, actions towards achieving the SDGs can be accelerated.

Ms Karoline Edtstadler

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is deemed a key driver in numerous fields, with its widespread use and positive impact. It is employed across various industries to enhance efficiency, productivity, and decision-making processes. Moreover, AI has become an integral part of everyday life, as individuals globally utilise it.

New technologies, including AI, have the potential to revolutionise information gathering, expression of opinions, and organisation of peaceful assemblies. These technologies provide platforms for individuals to freely express themselves and engage in constructive discussions. They also promote knowledge sharing and a better understanding of human rights and democracy.

However, there are concerns that these technologies could perpetuate existing social and economic inequalities. The risk of dehumanisation and forgetting our fundamental values and principles is also a prominent issue. It is crucial to consider the perspectives of the Global South when implementing and connecting people with these technologies. Ensuring equal access and addressing the specific needs and challenges of marginalised communities should be a priority.

A human rights-based approach is advocated for the application of technology. It is essential to safeguard human rights, privacy, and individual freedoms in the development and implementation of AI and new technologies. This approach ensures that technology is used as a means to empower individuals and promote equality.

Mitigating risks and ensuring human oversight are crucial aspects of responsible technological advancements. Transparency and explainability of algorithms and decision-making processes are necessary to build trust and hold technology accountable.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical role of technology in education, employment, and access to resources. With the increased use of technology in universities, schools, and among elderly populations, the importance of connectivity and equal access is more evident than ever. Technology has proven to be instrumental in providing remote learning opportunities, connecting people, and maintaining economic activities during the pandemic.

Ms Karoline Edstadler, emphasising the current situation as a watershed moment, believes that challenges are accompanied by chances and changes. She underscores the role of Parliamentarians and governments in setting the right measures and regulations to ensure the responsible use of technology.

The pandemic has also accelerated digitalisation efforts, resulting in significant progress in adopting digital solutions. This has led to newfound efficiencies and opportunities in various sectors.

In conclusion, while AI and new technologies offer immense potential, it is crucial to address concerns such as inequality, dehumanisation, and privacy infringement. By adopting a human rights-based approach and considering the perspectives of all stakeholders, we can maximise the benefits of technology while minimising the risks. Furthermore, responsible oversight and transparent practices are necessary for building trust and accountability in the use of technology. The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of technology in various aspects of life, necessitating equal access and connectivity for all individuals. Parliamentarians and governments play a significant role in shaping the future of technology through appropriate measures and regulations.

Audience

The analysis highlights several key points regarding the importance of a human rights-based approach to new technologies and artificial intelligence. The speakers argue that technological progress should be inclusive and should not lead to discrimination. They emphasize the need for human oversight, transparency, and explainability in the development and implementation of these technologies. Inclusivity and avoiding discrimination are seen as crucial principles that should guide the advancement of technology.

Another significant point raised in the analysis is the need to bridge the digital gap in developing countries. The speakers stress that information technology and the internet are fundamental tools for the development of societies. They argue that promoting access to and the adoption of these technologies is a major priority for achieving social and economic progress. They point to the fact that information technology and the internet have been identified as key drivers of development, as evidenced by the attendance of heads of state and government from 175 countries at the first Summit on the Society of Information.

The analysis also draws attention to the commitments made by developed countries in the context of societal and economic development. The speakers express concern that these commitments have not been fully met, which hinders progress in social and economic development. They argue that it is crucial for developed countries to fulfill their commitments to ensure the advancement of societies.

The interlink between the recent China summit and the Society of Information project is highlighted in the analysis. The ratification of the completion of the Society of Information project by 2025 at the end of the summit in China is seen as a significant step. China has emphasised the link between the summit and information technologies in fostering development, showcasing the importance of integrating technology into various sectors to drive progress.

Innovation is recognised as a crucial driver of sustainable development. The speakers argue that creative solutions to pressing challenges can be achieved through innovation. However, they emphasize that access to these innovative solutions is equally important. They state that access is the bridge that connects innovative solutions to those who need them the most, thereby ensuring the benefits of innovation are widespread and accessible.

The analysis also emphasizes the need for a multi-stakeholder approach in addressing the challenges and opportunities presented by technology and artificial intelligence. The speakers argue that government action alone will not suffice, and that a collaborative approach involving various stakeholders is required. They highlight that forums can be organised to refocus efforts in different areas according to expertise, passion, and common interests, thereby strengthening collaboration and cooperation.

The speakers also advocate for research and development that addresses the unique needs of vulnerable populations. They argue that social entrepreneurship should prioritise planet and equality above profit maximisation, and that promoting research and development in this regard can help address and alleviate the challenges faced by vulnerable populations.

Affordability of access is identified as a critical factor in achieving progress. The analysis highlights that affordable access to education and healthcare expands opportunities and benefits for individuals and communities. It is seen as a key component of reducing inequalities and ensuring equal opportunities for all.

The ITU’s Partner to Connect initiative and the global digital compact receive support in the analysis. The speakers argue that these initiatives should be fully supported by the global community, as they play a crucial role in promoting connectivity and digital inclusion.

Education and awareness are emphasized as important factors in the advancement of technology and the achievement of sustainable development goals. The speakers argue that those who need technology the most should embrace it and actively participate in their own development. Education and awareness are seen as catalysts for empowerment and progress.

The analysis also highlights the impact of the digital divide, particularly during the ongoing pandemic. Limited and unaffordable internet access has worsened the digital divide in the Asia-Pacific region. The speakers argue that countries in special situations have been disproportionately impacted during the pandemic, further exacerbating existing disparities. This highlights the urgent need to address the digital divide and ensure equal access to technology and online resources for all.

The deployment of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, is seen as promising in addressing climate change. The analysis presents examples of countries like Singapore, Japan, and the Republic of Korea that are using AI-driven applications to enhance disaster resilience, climate adaptation, and the development of advanced digital skills.

However, despite the promising beginnings in directing the development of AI through a people-centered approach based on shared human values and rights, the analysis points out that there is still much work to be done.

Efforts to close the digital divide should be intensified according to the analysis. It highlights the need for investments in digital infrastructure, promotion of digital literacy, and strengthening cooperation between stakeholders. These steps are necessary to ensure that the benefits of technology are accessible to all, and to prevent further widening of inequalities.

The analysis also explores the role of the World Bank in addressing global challenges and promoting digital development. The World Bank’s efforts to lift a billion people out of poverty in the last few decades are recognised. However, the speakers argue that renewing progress in the fight against poverty and addressing global challenges requires a new approach that incorporates digital solutions.

The risk of widening the digital and poverty divide is also emphasised in the analysis. It points to the fact that nearly 2.6 billion people are still offline, with a significant disparity in internet usage between high-income and low-income countries. This highlights the urgent need to address the digital divide and ensure equal access to technology and online resources for all.

The governance of the internet and digital spaces is viewed as crucial, with the analysis highlighting the importance of trust in the digital sector. The speakers argue that to build trust, technology should be based on open, inclusive, secure, and resilient digital foundations.

Lastly, the analysis underscores the potential of a digital development agenda in driving human, economic, and social development. It mentions the estimation of 150 million new technology jobs over the next five years, highlighting the opportunities that can arise through a focus on digital advancement.

Overall, the analysis provides valuable insights and arguments for embracing a human rights-based approach to technology, bridging the digital gap, fulfilling commitments, promoting innovation and access, adopting a multi-stakeholder approach, addressing the unique needs of vulnerable populations, promoting affordability of access, supporting initiatives for connectivity and digital inclusion, prioritising education and awareness, closing the digital divide, addressing climate change through emerging technologies, directing the development of AI based on shared human values and rights, strengthening cooperation and investment in digital infrastructure, recognising the role of the World Bank in digital development, mitigating the risks of widening the digital and poverty divide, governing the internet and digital spaces with trust, and advancing a digital development agenda for human, economic, and social progress.

Mr Kojo Boakye

The analysis highlights the importance of broadband internet access and the role of AI and technology in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). One key point is that there is still a significant number of people who lack access to broadband. Despite 95% of people being within range of a network, this does not guarantee access to broadband. Approximately 2.6 billion people remain offline, indicating that efforts are needed to bridge the gap and provide universal connectivity.

On the positive side, the analysis highlights the potential of AI and technology in achieving SDGs. META, for example, has been working for over 10 years using AI and has produced the world’s most sophisticated population density maps through its use of AI and satellite imagery. This demonstrates the power of AI and technology in generating valuable insights that can aid in addressing societal challenges.

The analysis also emphasizes the interconnection between SDGs. It highlights that to effectively address these goals, various aspects need to be considered holistically. This interconnectedness means that progress in one goal can positively impact progress in others. Therefore, efforts towards achieving SDGs should be comprehensive and collaborative.

Partnerships are seen as key to achieving SDGs. META has partnered with over 700 institutions, including the World Bank, International Organization of Migration, and UNHCR. This collaboration highlights the importance of collective action and the need for different stakeholders to work together towards common goals.

Furthermore, the analysis points out the positive impact that AI-driven solutions can have on SDGs. Examples include the use of AI in health immunization programs in Malawi, clean water and sanitation initiatives in Zambia and Rwanda, and the development of electrification maps in Benin and Somalia. These examples demonstrate how AI can contribute to tangible improvements in areas crucial to achieving SDGs.

There is substantial support for the use of technology in addressing SDG challenges. The analysis cites a groundswell of support for tech use in Ghana, Lagos, Jordan, Egypt, and New York. This indicates that there is recognition of the potential of technology to drive progress in various sectors and address societal challenges.

However, it is also important to acknowledge and address the risks and inequalities that may arise from tech innovations. The analysis recognizes the concerns regarding digital inequality and the potential for greater inequality caused by technology. This highlights the need for inclusive approaches that ensure benefits are accessible to all.

Governments are urged to put necessary guardrails in place while harnessing the power of AI and technology. Examples mentioned include companies like Meta following voluntary commitments towards AI and countries like Saudi Arabia developing their AI ethics guidelines. This highlights the importance of ethical considerations and responsible governance in the tech sector.

Corporate responsibility is also emphasized, with companies engaging in policy discussions globally. This indicates the recognition that companies have a role to play in shaping policies and providing examples of good practice to ensure positive outcomes.

To ensure progress, the analysis calls for action and urgency. It emphasizes that while analysis is important, it should not lead to paralysis. Instead, there is a need for proactive measures and tangible actions to drive progress towards achieving SDGs.

In conclusion, the analysis highlights both the challenges and opportunities related to broadband internet access and the role of AI and technology in achieving SDGs. It underlines the need for universal connectivity and the potential of AI to address various societal challenges. The analysis also emphasizes the interconnectedness between SDGs, the importance of partnerships, and the need for responsible governance and ethical considerations. Overall, it calls for action and collaboration to ensure progress towards SDGs.

Mr Masanori Kondo

Affordable accessibility and innovative digitisation are essential for driving change in a world where people are busy with their daily lives and businesses. It is argued that making digital solutions attractive enough to surpass the status quo and embrace new challenges is crucial.

In order to address global challenges, cooperation, data sharing, and information sharing among different stakeholders are seen as vital. However, as digital solutions evolve, the issue of data interoperability may arise, posing a potential challenge in the future.

Collaboration plays a key role in effective stakeholder engagement. By implementing minimum requirements, stakeholders can work together more efficiently, fostering cooperation and achieving shared goals. This is particularly important in the context of cybersecurity standards and network security vulnerabilities, as the lowest level of security can be a potential vulnerability.

Generating support for digital innovations and solutions in policy-making is crucial for their successful implementation. This can be achieved through education, awareness, and policy hackathons. Educating policymakers and other stakeholders about the necessity, importance, and feasibility of digital innovations ensures their adoption and implementation. Creating a goodwill ambassador for digital Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and conducting digital enlightenment movements can further help in spreading awareness and knowledge.

The transition from Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals has brought about new and changing issues. The widespread dissemination of ICT services has played a pivotal role in recent developments, offering numerous opportunities and transforming challenges into solutions. The commitment and creativity of the ICT community are crucial for constructing a proud and inspiring future.

To achieve the SDGs, collaboration among the ICT community and other stakeholders is essential. The involvement of various actors, including governments, businesses, and civil society, is crucial. By striving for partnerships and working together, progress towards the SDGs can be accelerated.

In conclusion, affordable accessibility and innovative digitisation are vital for driving change. Effective cooperation, data sharing, and information sharing are key to addressing global challenges. Collaboration, education, and awareness are essential for generating support for digital innovations and solutions in policy-making. The commitment and creativity of the ICT community are instrumental in shaping a promising future. By collaborating and striving for partnerships, the Sustainable Development Goals can be achieved.

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala

Digital solutions have the potential to expedite the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and alleviate poverty, given that over two billion people do not have a bank account. Access to digital financial services can help these individuals participate in the formal economy and improve their livelihoods. Initiatives utilizing technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud computing, sensors, drones, and blockchain in smart agriculture are being implemented globally to tackle SDG2 and eradicate hunger. Public digital infrastructure, including digital identity systems, plays a crucial role in achieving the SDGs, as upgrading these systems can facilitate the delivery of essential services and promote inclusivity. However, challenges in governance and access hinder the effective implementation of digital solutions. The progress towards the SDGs is lagging, with only 15% of the goals being met. Education is key in unlocking digital opportunities and crafting regulations to address global challenges. It is important to invest in infrastructure and ensure access to technology for all. Access to Intellectual Property (IP) is vital for developing innovative solutions and tackling issues like climate change. Concerns about privacy, cybersecurity, and asymmetry of capabilities need to be addressed, and advocating for a global agreement can help create a more equitable and secure digital environment. Access to affordable technology is essential to ensuring equitable access to digital solutions and reducing inequalities. Collaboration between stakeholders, including government, the private sector, and public-private partnerships, is crucial for successful progress towards the SDGs. In conclusion, digital solutions have immense potential for achieving the SDGs and lifting people out of poverty, but challenges such as governance, access, and ethical considerations must be addressed. Education, infrastructure, access to Intellectual Property, and responsible consumption and production are among the key factors in leveraging digital opportunities for sustainable development.

Moderator

The discussions focused on the potential of digital solutions in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as reducing inequality, addressing climate change, and bridging the digital divide. It was acknowledged that inequality and newer challenges like climate change are significant obstacles to achieving the SDGs. However, the conversations emphasized that leveraging digital solutions can play a vital role in bridging persisting gaps and preventing newer challenges.

The importance of equality, non-discrimination, and public access to information and freedom of expression was highlighted in relation to the SDGs. It was recognized that digital technologies supported by effective policies can address multiple challenges and contribute to achieving the goals. The discussions emphasized that embracing and harnessing digitization is crucial and can be guided by the 2030 Development Agenda.

Emerging technologies, especially artificial intelligence, were highlighted as key drivers in various fields and as powerful tools for promoting human rights, democracy, and peaceful assemblies. The role of digital solutions in areas such as finance, education, agriculture, and public services was also recognized. The discussions emphasized that digitization offers unique opportunities and is key to achieving the SDGs.

The importance of efficient and affordable ICT infrastructure and services was highlighted for countries to engage in the digital economy and enhance global competitiveness. Public digital infrastructure, such as digital identity systems, was seen as an expedient way to accelerate the delivery of the SDGs. However, it was also acknowledged that broadband availability does not guarantee access, and efforts are needed to ensure that everyone has access to digital services.

The discussions underscored the need for continued efforts to achieve the SDGs, as it was recognized that progress was lagging behind. The call for bolder action and the need to spread the benefits of digitization, especially to developing countries, was emphasized. It was noted that political declarations and global initiatives were paving the way for expanding participation in the benefits of digitization.

The discussions also recognized the ethical implications and risks associated with digital technologies, such as privacy concerns, cybersecurity, and environmental degradation. It was emphasized that digital innovations should be guided by ethics and responsible consumption and production practices. The importance of digital literacy, skills development, and access to technology were highlighted as essential for realizing the full benefits of digital solutions.

In conclusion, the discussions highlighted the potential of digital solutions in addressing numerous challenges and contributing to the achievement of the SDGs. However, they also called for comprehensive approaches, collaboration among stakeholders, and international cooperation to ensure inclusivity, address risks, and bridge societal gaps. The discussions emphasized the need for action, continued dialogue, and multi-stakeholder engagement to harness the opportunities presented by digitization for sustainable development.

Moderator:
vitalizing the SDGs. We are more than pleased to be having you all here back again. I am Shivani Thapar Basnath, a journalist, a news editor with Nepal Television. So I’m basically based in Kathmandu and do get opportunities like this to be a part of the assembly of minds like this and it indeed is a matter of great privilege. So we’re now getting the stage set and please welcome my set of distinguished panelists who will be joining us here at the high level session fourth. It’s with much pleasure we welcome all our panelists as they take on the stage. Ladies and gentlemen, this is requesting all our panelists to kindly be seated. Your nameplates have been put up on the tables next to your seats so it wouldn’t take, I mean it would take less than a minute to find your places. Thank you so much, it’s such a pleasure to see you all here. Thank you Mr. Lee. Right, thank you. So pleased to see you back here again. Okay, so let’s get to business right away. As I’ve been saying this is the fourth high-level session here at the 18th IGF and it is themed at access and innovation for revitalizing the SDGs. Now SDGs have, as we all know, very very central to bringing the entire globe and these stakeholder communities to create a synergy, so as to create a synergy amongst all the actions, inputs, efforts towards creating, I mean attaining the developmental goals and that also in an equitable and inclusive manner. We have had, I think, talked much about this even in the preceding sessions wherein we did talk about the SDGs, about what is the status of some of the SDGs or majority of the SDGs and how far we are and how much we need to add impetus in order to meet up to the pace among all these stakeholders to reach the goals that we have set for us. Inequality, as stated by the major panelists in all these sessions that proceeded in the morning, ladies and gentlemen, you all could see that their reflection was pretty much univocal and they were in consensus to state that inequality and then there are other newer challenges like climate change that are emerging in front of us, in addition to our traditional problems that have posed a lot of challenges and threats even for us to keep that pace and to reach the SDGs that we have set for ourselves. So unequal access to opportunities and basic service, as we all know, such as education and health care, these obstruct the path of the, these are obstructing the path of sustainable development. Now leveraging digital solutions can bridge historically persisting gaps as well as help us, as I said earlier, help us through innovative technologies and innovative solution curtail and prevent newer challenges like climate change and so forth. And applying digital technologies to secure their maximum benefit entails a specific commitment to integrating rights at every milestones of SDGs. Equality and non-discrimination are central, as we all know, to the goals, especially to the sustainable, as we all know, sustainable development relies on a strong rights regime that promotes peaceful and inclusive societies and ensures public access to information and freedom of expression. Now the synergy between access and innovation is not merely aspirational, it’s a pragmatic strategy for revitalizing the SDGs and digital technology supported by effective policy can address multiple challenge. This would be the food for the broad deliberation in course of this one hour plus long session with our host of panelists. Allow me to introduce our distinguished panelist for the session, beginning with His Excellency Mr. Joon-Ho Lee, the United Nations Under Secretary General for Economic and Social Welfare Affairs. Welcome to the panel, sir. Likewise, we are pleased to have Ms. Caroline Edstalder, the Honourable Federal Minister for European Union and Constitution, Austria. Warm welcome to you to the panel. Equally pleased we are to be welcoming Mr. Shildze Marlawa, Rector, United Nations University. In fact, we are very, very much pleased to have Ms. Nanako Ishido, Professor, Keio University Graduate School of Media Design. It’s a pleasure to have Mr. Mohammed Sharif, the Honourable Minister of State for Environment, Climate and Technology, the Maldives. Welcome to the panel, sir. We are very, very much pleased to have Mr. Masanori Kondo, the Secretary General, Asia-Pacific Telecommunity. Also, we are pleased to have Ms. Lise Furr, the Director General, European Telecommunications Networks Operators Association, ETNO. And last but not the least, we have with us Mr. Kozo Boyke, the Vice President, Public Policy Africa, Middle East and Turkey from META. A very, very warm welcome to all our distinguished panelists. Now, without further ado, let us quickly dive into the questions we have set for the day. I would put forth a host of questions relating to the theme and would come to you turn-wise. First and foremost, let’s begin with the UN Under-Secretary General himself. What do you think are some current global examples of leveraging digital solutions for the achievement of the specific SDGs?

Mr Junhua Li:
Well, thank you, Moderator. Good afternoon. It’s good to be with you this afternoon for this very outstanding issue. I’m so glad to hear from you. Digital is linked to the… attainment of the SDG in almost all the aspects. From us, from the UN Secretariat, we certainly believe digitalization offers very unique opportunities in many areas, and it’s the key to achieving the SDGs. For instance, digital solutions can improve the financial inclusion, increase the effectiveness of the public services, and also accelerate climate action, education, and hunger and poverty eradication. To us, digital solution is more than just a technology or infrastructure. It is about tackling complex human challenges and to achieve the sustainable development. Digital solution should be guided by priorities and principles contained in 2030 Development Agenda, as well as the pressing needs for developing countries, because we know when we implemented our SDG goals and all the 2030 Agenda, now we don’t have any satisfactory data to indicate that we achieved enormously, actually. On the contrary, we left it far behind. Almost all the SDG targets are off track. Only 15% are on the track. So last month, the world leaders gathered in New York adopted the political declaration by consensus. They recommitted themselves to take bolder action to bridge the gaps, bridge the divides, including to spread the benefits of the digitalization and expand the participation of all countries, especially developing countries. So that is why I’m absolutely convinced that we need to embrace and harness the digitalization. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you so much for vouching for technology or digital sector as a tool to speed up the needed approaches or energy for reaching the SDG, sir. Moving to Ms. Caroline Edstalder, the Federal Minister for European Union and Constitution in Austria. What would be your thoughts to these particular questions?

Ms Karoline Edtstadler :
First of all, thank you so much for the invitation. I think this high-level panel is really a very important one, and I’m also responsible as a federal minister for coordinating the SDGs and implementing them in Austria. So we are currently preparing the second review, and we will present it in July in New York. Well, I think we find ourselves in a watershed moment, and if I’m talking about we, then I mean the whole international community. We have artificial intelligence in all of our hands. Everyone is using it. We use it in so many fields, and I think that these emerging technologies will be the key drivers in so many fields. Turning to one of my focus topics, the human rights side of you, I would see that we can easily use it in a better way to have the necessary skills to use it also to gather information, to organize gatherings and discussing things, and I would say this would help a lot to express and exchange opinions and thoughts freely, to gather information and organize peaceful assemblies. So we find ourselves also in a world where nearly everything is different than we thought only a few months ago, and these days and these hours, we get also horrifying infos from Israel. So I would say that these new technologies should be used in the best way also to get the knowledge and the information regarding human rights and democracy to really install the rule of law everywhere and make the world a better one, and this is really needed at that moment. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you, Honorable Minister. Let’s move to Maldives, a nation which is in the forefront of bearing the brunt of the consequences of climate change. What are your say on this, if you could share your perspectives on some current global examples of leveraging digital solutions for the achievement of SDGs?

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala :
Thank you. Let me start by thanking the IGF Secretariat and UNDES for inviting us and letting us have a say here. When we look at global examples, right, global examples of how digital can be utilized in achieving the SDGs, we have SDG 1 and 2, talking about no hunger. and talking about zero poverty, if you look at the statistics, over two billion people still do not have a bank account. But we already know from practice that access to digital financial service is a wonderful method to lift people out of poverty. So there are global initiatives who are working on this. If you look at hunger, for example, smart agriculture, this is where emerging tech comes to play. Technologies like artificial intelligence, cloud computing, sensors, drones, blockchain can be utilised and already are being put to use in smart agriculture, vertical farming, so that we can tackle SDG2. If you look at SDG9, for example, industry innovation and infrastructure, efficient and affordable ICT infrastructure and services will help countries like ours, right, engage in the digital economy and boost our global competitiveness. And this is happening, this is happening not just in the developed world, this is happening in the developing as well as the least developed world, that we are investing in digital to do this. In the Maldives, if you take the example of the Maldives, over the last year, year and a half, we’ve been actually focused on upgrading our digital identity systems. Public digital infrastructure is one of the key technologies we need to look at when we want to expedite the delivery of SDGs. As the UNSC has pointed out, we are behind. It looks like we will miss our target for the people, planet and prosperity. So prioritising public digital infrastructure, like digital identity, can help tackle things like SDG1, poverty, SDG2, hunger, and also things like gender equality. So if you look at SDG 16, particularly 16.9, there is a provision to provide legal identity for everyone by 2030, I think if we can do that, and concentrate on other public digital infrastructure, like financial, digital finance, like digital agriculture, we can definitely expedite at the pace at which we are achieving the SDGs today. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you, Honorable Minister. Let me turn to the experts from the policy leaders now. Just a reminder, in case you are not aware of it, we have a timer on the screens, so your time ends before the color of the timing changes. So this is just destroying your attention. Thank you so much for your kind understanding. So moving to the pool of experts now, on the very question, let us begin with Ms. Lees for the Director General of European Telecommunications Networks Operators Association.

Ms Lise Fuhr:
Well, for us, digital is an interesting concept when we think about the SDGs. There is no specific SDG about digital development or digital governance. And if you look at it with the lens of 2023, we see digital technologies and AI assume even a greater role in all part of our lives. So digital solutions actually pervade many of the SDGs in some way, mostly in relation to harnessing of high-quality connectivity to make the world a better place, or the uptake of vital skills. So this year, the UN’s SDG reports highlight some of the places where digital can help us drive towards the SDGs, and places where digital shortcomings are holding us all back. So let’s look at SDG number four, that is quality education. This is, of course, linked to eliminating poverty, goal one, decent work and… growth, goal 8, and reduced inequalities, goal 10. Connectivity is fundamental, but if there is no access to devices, the networks remain unused. So connectivity and devices are a huge step forward, and indeed billions of people today of course use the internet, but we also see skills are lacking, meaning that the full benefit cannot be realized. So when digital solutions are properly divided, connectivity, devices, and skills, digital is an extremely powerful tool for achieving these people-centered STGs, and I would like to add that we’re seeing digital solutions being used right across the economy and society, supporting in climate change mitigation, making industry and agriculture more sustainable, and making our cities not only less harmful to the environment, but also not only less harmful to the environment, but also more livable. Thank

Moderator:
you. Thank you. Let us read from META’s perspectives now. Can we hear your thoughts, Mr. Kuzuoboike?

Mr Kojo Boakye:
Hi, thanks ever so much, and very, very pleased to be here, and thank the audience for their attention. A couple of things I’ve heard as my learned friends have spoken. One from my friend from Etno about the fact that actually we can’t rely on the fact that people having access to broadband networks, as the recent Broadman Commission report suggests, 95% of people are within range of a network. It doesn’t mean that everybody has access to broadband, or indeed the technologies that offer so much promise in terms of AI. So I just wanted to kind of stress that point. 2.6 billion people still remain offline and won’t have access to broadband or the innovative technologies that ride upon it. I’ll probably provide a concrete example of the way in which tech could be used to achieve an SDG, or indeed all the SDGs. META has been working for more than 10 years using AI. Some of the biggest investments we’ve made using AI in our connectivity work. and I spoke in a panel this morning about the many investments we’ve made in connectivity, so I won’t belabor the point. But a positive externality of that work was our quick understanding that actually when it came to understanding where people were, population density, information was just scarce or poor. Even when we had census data, it didn’t tell us where most people lived. It told us broadly where they were, but not where they lived. We took a step where we took some AI satellite imagery and applied that to the census data as well to produce some of the world’s most sophisticated population density maps in collaboration with the Columbia University. We then open-sourced that and open-sourced that to the UN Humanitarian Data Exchange for more than 150 countries. Those maps are now used by everybody from the World Bank to particular governments and universities who are trying to drive the kind of impact we want to see on sustainable development goals. So this is just a shout out to AI in the first part, and actually positive externalities that come from trying to achieve some business goals at the same time. And also a shout out, basically because of what I’ve heard, I’m just 10 seconds over, you moderator, from what I heard from New York, that there is so much opportunity and risk, we understand the risk, but so much opportunity offered by AI that we are at an inflection point where we need to take that opportunity. And I’m very, very keen to have a discussion about all of that now. Thank you. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you for this profound sharing and your special emphasis on the positive sides. To Ms. Nanako Ishido, the professor at Keio University Graduate School of Media Design.

Ms. Nanako Ishido:
Hi, thank you, moderator. And first of all, welcome everyone to Japan and welcome to Kyoto. I’d like to introduce Japan’s GIGA School Initiative as a digital solution towards achieving SDGs Goal 4, which aimed to provide quality education for all. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, Japan was somewhat behind in integrating digital technology into school education. We were, in fact, ranked last among OECD countries in terms of both infrastructure development and effective utilization of digital technologies. However, the pandemic triggered a significant change. Japan distributed the digital device to every elementary and middle school student. world. This marked a major step towards addressing educational disparities and bridging the digital divide. We commenced this initiative in 2020, and from what I hear, it’s been going pretty smoothly with no significant setbacks. I believe this could serve as a valuable example globally. To ensure that everyone has digital literacy and to eliminate digital divide, it is crucial to provide equal access to digital learning environment in our educational institutions.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Professor. Thank you for your very warm words. And of course, even personally, I believe Japan is such a best suited hub for a forum like IGF, because personally I believe so and I’m sure many of you do agree with me that there is so much to learn for many of us, especially the curious minds and the aspiring hearts from the journey of Japan and from the achievements that Japan has achieved so far. Thank you to IGF Secretariat and to the host country representing the panel. Let’s move on and let’s move, yes, as we are focusing on Asia again and the Asia-Pacific telecommunity community must have a lot to share with us based on their experience and their observation. Moving to Mr. Masanori Kondo, the Secretary General of Asia-Pacific telecommunity community. Sir, what are the technical regulatory policy and other challenges in promoting and implementing digital solutions for revitalizing the SDGs achieving the Agenda 2030.

Mr Masanori Kondo:
Okay, thank you, Moderator. First of all, I’d like to express my appreciation to the IGF Secretariat for inviting me for this very important session, as well as host country Japan for its hospitality. Then with regard to the question, what are the challenges in promoting and implementing digital solutions, keeping in mind that the theme of this session is accessibility. Of course, accessibility, especially affordable accessibility, is very important. And in this aspect, I think both technology and the policies continue to be updated. But based on my experience in the organization, I would like to share one thing here today. So on site, people don’t introduce digital solutions, not because they cannot use it, but because they don’t think it is necessary. So people have their own daily life and business, and they are too busy to dare introduce new things. That requires time and effort to learn to use. So then it is necessary to promote innovation, including innovative idea. That makes things attractive enough to move from status quo to new challenges. But at the same time, innovation doesn’t come from a survey or questionnaires for potential users. So we need to keep in mind that it is important to have entrepreneurship spirit in the supply side who try to promote digital solutions. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you so much, Mr. Ishido. Mr. Kondo, I beg your pardon. Coming to Ms. Caroline Edstead, as a policy leader, what are your thoughts about this?

Ms Karoline Edtstadler :
Well, I think that we have to do especially one thing. We have to connect the unconnected, and we have to reconnect the disconnected. Because there is also a big danger in artificial intelligence and all the new technologies, because we risk that there is a reinforcing of existing social and economic inequalities. And it was already mentioned on this panel also. We saw that it is needed to have all these technologies to stay connected, especially during COVID-19. It was something where we saw firsthand how important this technology is. And we saw a boost of getting these new technologies to universities, to schools, to even elder people who used it to get in touch with their, I don’t know, grandsons and granddaughters, and it became normal. But now we really have to see that we get it in all the fields of the SDGs also. And also, as Lisa already mentioned, maybe we need SDGs for the Internet, especially to do so and to be really on the right side. It was mentioned it is important for SDG 4 and SDG 8, access to education and employment. You have a lot of chances lying in these fields. But also SDG 3, as it was mentioned by you, Lisa, I think it’s really important, especially in times where we have a lack of trained people in nearly all the fields of our lives. And this could really help us to facilitate these things. But the precondition is to connect all the unconnected people. And to see it not only from the perspective of the Western world, but also from the global south. And I think this is a big, big challenge. We only can do it if we strengthen our forces together. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you, Honorable Minister. Moving to the academia, Mr. Chelsea Marwala, you’ve heard from the policy leaders, you’ve heard from experts. What is your observation on the challenges facing the digital solutions for revitalizing SDGs?

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala :
No, thank you very much for the invitation. I think there are actually two main challenges. The first one is governance. And of course, in governance, the principles are actually quite simple. We should maximize the good use of AI and minimize the bad use of AI. And what are some of these good uses? We have talked about agriculture, which deals with SDG 1 and 2. Health, education, and governance. The second one is access, and access here, you know, means access to data. I used to be director of the University of Johannesburg, and during COVID, and when we sent people home, it was clear that not everybody has access to data, and we had to go and buy data packs for students, which was quite expensive for more than 50,000 students. And the second one is access to technology. And maybe just back on the data, today we talked about data flow between countries and so on and so forth, and the security around the governance around that, which we should not forget. And the second one is technology, whether it is devices, if I were to go back to my experience in Johannesburg, procuring 26,000 devices within basically weeks is not actually quite easy. So we need to ensure that, you know, we are able to train countries to be able to, especially small countries, to work together with other countries so that they can have economies of scale when they are buying these technologies. I see my time is up. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Marwala. I’d want to stay with you with my other question. We in a way agree that SDGs are very, very much critical in promoting prosperity, equality, and also the emerging, the newer problems, right? There is a consensus among all. If you could shed light on which SDGs are lagging behind in terms of unlocking the value of digital solutions?

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala :
Well, I mean, maybe just in general, we are lagging behind in… So, we are lagging quite behind in terms of SDGs, and we are lagging behind in terms of SDGs, and we are lagging behind in terms of SDGs. We are lagging behind in almost all SDGs. Only 15% of SDGs, we are actually of the goals, the indicators, we are lagging behind in terms of SDGs, we are lagging behind in terms of SDGs, and the rest, we are worse than we were before. So we are lagging quite behind. Now, if I were to answer your questions specifically on unlocking digital opportunities, it is quite clear that education is at the forefront of that. And education here varies from the specialist education to just digital literacy. So, education is quite important, and education is quite important, and education is quite important for us. My mother who receives an old-age pension in South Africa is supposed to be able to use these devices, and I have taught her how to use these devices, is to collect this pension rather than go and queue for hours. So, that’s one thing, and then the second thing is infrastructure, and we need infrastructure to be able to use these technologies. And then the third thing is data. Again, the issue of data. They say data is the new oil. I don’t like the word oil. I hope data is going to be a much, much better form of oil in terms of renewability, you know. So, that’s one of the things that we need to do in order to unlock, and, of course, the issues of IP, access to IPs becomes very important. required for us to be able to deal with issues of climate change, and therefore it is important that that technology is unlocked, and then we will be able to deal with climate change. Thank you.

Moderator:
Certainly, as you said, from a tool to an element of human right, the change or the shift has been so quick that now we are reeling with the challenge of having to match pace and put things in order. So, on this pretext, may I turn to Ms. Lies for the Director General of European Telecommunications Network Operators Association on this very question.

Ms Lise Fuhr:
Well, yes, and let me start with being frank. I might be biased, but this is supported by also some very frank facts. The world is not on track to achieve gender equality by 2030. The UN SDG report finds that, at current rate, it will take 140 years to achieve equal representation leadership in the workplace. 140. But, also states that only 22 of the researchers in cutting it fields, like AI and others, are women. So, we lack women also in research. Women are still only 40% of graduates in computer science and informatics. So, let me say that SDG 5 is lagging behind. We need more women in leadership, we need more women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. So, this is due to the fact that, if you don’t include women, we don’t unlock the full value of digital solutions. So, if we don’t have women, we cannot reduce bias in, for example, training data for machine learning models. But, there are, of course, digital solutions which, in turn, can help achieve equality. So, the UN finds that owning a mobile phone is a vital tool for connecting women to other people and giving them crucial access to information and education. But, the gap remains far too high still. Also, if we look at other SDGs, such as industry, innovation, and infrastructure, SDG 9, I think it has been mentioned here, and it is crucial. We find that, while 95% of the world has at least 3G mobile broadband access, connecting the final stretch is extremely difficult. again, connectivity is only part of the puzzle. I think it needs to be followed with skills.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for being so precise. Over to the Honourable Minister of State of the Maldives. What’s your take on this?

Mr Mohamed Shareef:
Thank you. I think it’s clear from the answers given by the two panellists before that we are definitely behind. In fact, 30% of the SDG targets have either stalled or gone in reverse. So now, which SDG or which technology is failing which SDG, or is technology failing these SDGs? I think that’s a complex question. But what is actually quite interesting to note, I think the answers have already been given, so I would like to kind of present an alternative phrasing of it. I think the important thing is to make sure nobody is left behind. So if you look at the Maldives, for example, we’ve got over 15% of our population who still don’t use internet. Over 7% of the population still don’t have a smartphone. So I think we’ve got to get the foundations, and I think we’ve heard about those foundations, making sure we have digital literacy, making sure SDG 5, we’ve got to get the other half of the population in play, otherwise we are never going to get to reach our targets that we set for ourselves for 2030. Only if half of the population works, that’s not going to work. That’s never going to be able to achieve the targets we set for ourselves. So we know that. So we’re going to have to concentrate on the vulnerable populations. So we have to actually look at digital inclusion, we have to look at digital accessibility to make sure. that all SDGs are supported by the new technologies, as much as we like to talk about AI, blockchain, earth monitoring stations, well, I’m from the Maldives, so for us important, you know, digital technologies have to start from the people, and how do we get them on board, how, for example, in the Maldives, we make sure that the rest of the 15% are in the digital world, and the rest of the 7% have access to smartphones that can unlock those possibilities for smart health, smart agriculture, smart fisheries, protection of and adapting to extreme weather that we face. So ultimately, it’s about stakeholders working together to kind of build those foundations at the grassroot level, making sure that our civil society is also part of the solution, and the government and the industry works together. It is extremely nice to have the big platform up here as well, with the government and academia, everyone needs to work together on this. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you, indeed. Over to Mr Kojo Bokir, what are your impressions on this?

Mr Kojo Boakye:
I’ll be quick, actually, I’m going to make a quick correction, because I know when I climb down, someone’s going to correct me on this, is that there is a part of the SDGs that speaks to universal internet access. Anyone that drills down and who was around in 2014-15 knows that 9c speaks to the need to connect people in the least developed countries, like universal connectivity, so it does speak to it. And I think in their wisdom, the people who wrote the SDGs and finalised them assumed the ICT would be mainstreamed within. Like my colleagues, I’m not completely or too optimistic about our ability to achieve it at this time, unless we make those bold steps, so I’m not going to go through each of the SDGs that we are failing to achieve. get to or look like we’re going to fail to get to, in part because of their interconnectedness. They’re all dependent on each other. You can’t remove or decrease poverty and the impacts of poverty if the environment isn’t right. There’s an interconnection between them. One of the things I feel we are doing well on, and it may be an echo chamber that I’m in, so I have to be careful, is this idea around partnership. So I know Goal 17 is around partnership for sustainability, but I believe partnership towards all SDG goals has been particularly important. And I say that in part because of META’s partnership. So META has developed, as I told you, these population density maps as well as other AI-driven solutions that we think can have an impact on the SDGs. As part of that, there’s a partnership with more than 700 institutions. I mentioned some before, whether it’s the World Bank, International Organization of Migration, UNHCR, as well as many other academic institutions. And what we’ve seen, and this is why I’m infused by it, what we’ve seen is an impact on, for example, health immunization programs in Malawi, clean water and sanitization. The people know the goals, I won’t mention those. Goal 6, clean water and sanitization in Rwanda and Zambia, electrification maps in places like Benin and Somalia, and much, much more. So for that reason, yes, we are far away. But as we all know, and I have to be careful again about the echo chamber, ICTs can have a profound impact on our efforts to achieve them if we release their potential impact.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you for this profound sharing. Coming to the Under-Secretary-General himself, you’ve been quite upfront in admitting that the SDGs, majority of the SDGs, have been off track and that has certainly been aided by the facts and figures. So what would be, how would you, which SDGs do you think are terming, I mean, lagging behind in terms of unlocking the potentials of digital solutions?

Mr Junhua Li:
Well, first of all, let me say to UN, to all the member states, all 17 SDGs are equally important. Certainly, due to the various factors, now we have such a situation that is the sum of the SDGs or SDG targets left behind far more than others. For instance, like our panelists underlined SDGs for education and women and girls and also poverty, poverty eradication. But let me just add one more example, that is the SDG 11. That is about a sustainable city and the communities. And we now talked about the digitalization would have helped the local government to launch the smart cities. But we have to recognize that yes, This digitalization would help the cities with a more sustainable transportation management and then also reducing energy consumption, managing waste water, but however, many cities in developing countries, due to its limited infrastructure and very limited resources, they even don’t have an online presence. Based on a latest study conducted by my department last year, in 47 countries, the most popular city does not have such a facility, internet. So we can imagine, with those challenges, how can we talk about the digitalization or digital economy, and we talked about the attainment of the SDGs. We said that the SDGs should be the people-centered, but what is the essence to us? It’s equality and inclusion.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you, Your Excellency. Now, in this very pretext and from the reflections just shared by all our panelists, as they talk or try to dissect the challenges, the prospects, potentials, disparity, and the inequalities, let me turn to Ms. Nanako Ishido. What do you think are the risks of applying digital innovations and solutions that need to be considered in terms of tackling global challenges, and how can these risks be mitigated?

Ms. Nanako Ishido:
Thank you. I think the fundamental risk here is the diversity in perspectives regarding digital technology usage. The pace of technological advancement is exceedingly rapid, especially with AI, and there are varying opinions on how to interact with AI, and that was the major point of discussion during this year’s G7 Summit held in Japan. Also, there are global giant companies like Ritter in this field, and the companies with e-mails that can surpass nations. I think it’s clear that we have yet to establish international consensus on this matter. So everyone think differently. And simply deciding where to use AI for a particular purpose, it can lead to a different opinion. And that is a risk in itself. Let’s take goal 16, peace, as an example. Digital technology can promote. It is unclear that digital technology can promote peace. In current conflict between some countries, the digital technology can extensively used. The technology has the power to assist people. Yet it also has the potential to cause harm. Ultimately, the intention of a human can be a risk factor, depending on how they use these tools. So to reduce these risks, it is important to have a discussion involving multiple stakeholders. And I believe with this, the right intention, we can guide digital technology in a positive direction. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you. And this gets me back again to Mr. Li with the very question. We’re talking about the risks on applying digital innovations and solutions to the global challenges.

Mr Junhua Li:
Yeah, if we say that we consider the application of the digital solution, we’ll bring enormous benefits. But certainly, we have to think about the potential risks. A few observations from my arm. First, that is inequality is a pressing concern. We all learned that a very striking figure, that’s the 2.6 billion people, are still unconnected. So if the majority in the developing world, or particularly in the LDCs, at least the developed countries, remain unconnected, how we can assure them the benefits of digitalization could also become their part of life. And second is digital literacy. Just now, my fellow panelists have. that delivered on this very adequately. I won’t talk anymore on this. The third thing is environmental challenges. We know the digital brings the more the benefits, but at the same time, the digital infrastructure also contribute to increase the carbon emission. This is a very alarming tangent with this AI technology. So the crucial point is that how we can manage it, or do we adopt the sustainable practices in technology to mitigate the environmental damages? That’s something when we talk about the digital, we need to bear that in mind. So in promoting digital innovation for SDG challenges, it is imperative that we focus on solutions that directly address those challenges. At the same time, we need to focus more the potential risks.

Moderator:
I couldn’t have been understood better. Thank you, Your Excellency. Moving with the same question to Mr. Shilsi Marwale.

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala :
No, thank you very much. Without repeating what the good things that have been said by Professor Hido and the Undersecretary General, I think we have a challenge of ethics. I think that is a big challenge that we need to be honest about. I will just to give you an example. The amount of environmental degradation that data centers leave on their wake is quite huge. Issues of e-waste. And of course, this is embedded in issues of ethics. Then the second one, in terms of privacy and cyber security, I think the two things that really worry me is the asymmetry of capabilities globally. And it’s not just between the Global South and the Global North. It is even within the Global North. where you see this asymmetry of capabilities. And therefore, we need a global agreement. And this is one area which proves to be difficult to have global agreement. Even if you have global agreements, there’s always cyber warfare is a big threat that we really need to worry about. I think the issue of access is very important. And for me, when it comes to issues of access, I think the cost of technology, if we do not find the cost that ensure that there is equal, there is equity in access to these technologies, then we are not going to be able to tackle global challenges. So and also, quite lastly, I think is the issue of education. The fact that education is not evenly available to people across the board. Educating the lawmakers so that they can be able to craft rules, regulations, and laws that are going to focus on tackling global challenges. Of course, global and local challenges must be seen as one. Thank you. Thank you, sir.

Moderator:
We would now request Mr. Masanori Kondo to build on this.

Mr Masanori Kondo:
Yes, thank you. In line with what the previous speakers mentioned in terms of cybersecurity, I would like to provide another aspect from a different angle. So global challenges are global. And not a single project can tackle and solve the issue alone. So which means, one way or another, we need to consider collecting and sharing data or information across. different stakeholders domestically, regionally, or internationally. So in the future, as digital solutions evolve, data interoperability will be an issue. And in this context, we need to be mindful of so-called digital patchwork vulnerability, which means vulnerability comes to the lowest level of security in the network. So I think we don’t need a detailed specification or standardization, but it is not practical. But I think a concept of minimum requirement will facilitate our future work in order to collaborate with each other.

Moderator:
Thank you, sir. Please, for your impressions, please.

Ms Lise Fuhr:
Yes. I mentioned before that while digital pervade many of the STGs, there is, of course, no single digital STG setting standards for the digital economy and society, how that should look like. But I think this is also one of the risks we have, because we throw around the term digital, digital innovation, without necessarily considering what underpins the terms. So connectivity does not necessarily lead to achieving the STGs in itself, or greater prosperity. I think digital solution must be based on an Internet that is open, inclusive, safe and secure, and respecting human rights. So we might think that rolling out connectivity is, of course, a very important part of the puzzle, but that must be coupled at all costs with an open Internet where decisions are taken in a multi-stakeholder way. So this means governments, academia, private sector, civil society, and never, never, never forget the technical community, which defines the crucial standards for the way the open Internet works. And while we’re working on this in the IGF leadership panel together with my esteemed colleague, Mrs. Edstadler-Caroline, we’re also launching a process to reach out to hear from all of you how you see and how we should define the specific ways that the Internet should work today. And I think this would be an essential step to drive digital innovation and solutions in the right direction for the future, making sure digital solutions and innovation work for all people. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you. And with this, I come to Honourable Mohamed Sharif for his insights on this.

Mr Mohamed Shareef:
Thank you. As a practitioner, some of the challenges that I face include the complexity of technology. Digital innovations that we are talking about here, be it AI, be it space technologies are becoming increasingly complex, and there are many challenges that arise from this, including cyber security risks, including the risks associated with data privacy, and especially in the small island developing context, or in developing context as a whole, there is a huge lack of expertise when we come, when we try and do this at home. And of course there is the financial risks. We often tend to throw money into the IT black hole, so we, there is the risk of overspending on innovations that may not provide, that may not actually get the, you know, that doesn’t have the benefits, while at the same time, often, what often happens is the opposite, that we do not fund enough the technologies that have true potential. And then, of course, there is the environment. So as we invest more and more in technology, we’ve got to think about e-waste, and that also has a financial implication to it. Then how do we go about resolving this? In the Maldives, we’ve established a dedicated team in the last couple of years, so that we know resources are dedicated for this. We are working towards implementing robust security measures, integrating systems into a unified security architecture, making sure that we are in compliance with local, but also international data privacy standards and regulations, and of course, investing in people, training, and development. And above all, I think something that struck to me just a couple of weeks, a couple of days ago, during a cybersecurity seminar, someone pointed out to me that very, very It is good to actually take up an entrepreneurial idea to this digital transformation in government where we think like a start-up. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you so much. I come to Honourable Caroline Edsthalter.

Ms Karoline Edtstadler :
Well, having heard all these smart interventions, some of them longer, some of them shorter, I could be very short in my answer. The risk is that we forget that we are human beings. And I won’t stop here. Being human beings means that we need human rights and we need a human rights-based approach. And this is, I think, in the heart of mitigating risks in connection with new technologies and especially also artificial intelligence. If we do have this human rights-based approach, it contributes essentially to make sure that technological progress is inclusive and does not lead voluntarily or unintendedly to discrimination. There is also something I heard a few months ago. Someone told me that we human beings need, in average, 100 years to adopt to a new technology. And when it comes to the Internet, then we are half-time there. So about 50 years ago, Vint Cerf and others invented the Internet. So it’s really high time now to do something in regard of mitigating the risks and using all the chances coming out of these new technologies. I think there are three things we have to do. We have to keep the human oversight. We have to keep transparency and explainability. Because if we are following these paths, then I think we really could do the best and use it the best way for all of us. In all the fields of the SDGs and in all the fields of our societies.

Audience :
Thank you. Thank you, Honorable Minister. Couldn’t have said any better, especially as… So, thank you very much for this very, very important statement.

Moderator:
And I would like to thank you for this very, very important statement, because human-ness has been a word that has been central to a debate as we advance forward into the age of AI. Thank you for this very, very important statement, and the human quotient that you add to your say. And now, let me come to the penultimate question, if I may ask. So, I’m going to start with the first question, which is, how can we ensure that the human-centred policy that we’ve been running since the many, many decades, policy has been so central to all these debates, deliberations, and actions. The urgency at the moment as we sit here and discuss the issue that we’ve brought to the table is because we’re running out of time to meet the goals that we set for ourselves, and then there are newer challenges emerging in front of us, and so, I’m going to start with the first question, which is, how can we ensure that the human-centred policy that we’ve been running since the many, many decades, policy has been so central to all these debates, deliberations, and actions. So, in this pretext, may I turn to Mr. Masanori Kondo first. Sir, how can we generate more support for digital innovations and solutions to address the SDG challenges in policy-making?

Mr Masanori Kondo:
Thank you very much for your question, and I would like to start with the first question, which is, how and when and why you think you want to support? It may be because you are asked by someone, or you think that you need to, or you want to do. So, when do you think you want to do? It may be when you see people in need with your own eyes. It may be because you are happy when something is changed and you are happy when something is like worse. It is important to consider, OK, people think, so what exactly does this thing mean? I think to you this may mean, please understand, the world is changing, society is changing, everything is evolving. So, I am happy when we see people It is you take an action when you understand necessity, its importance, and the fact that you can do it. So one of the idea here I would like to share with you, this is my personal idea, is that we may consider to create a goodwill ambassador for digital SDGs who conducts digital enlightenment movement to educate policymakers and other stakeholders. Another idea is a digital policy hackathon among policymakers, tech experts, and innovators. I think you are usually on organizer’s side of a hackathon, but you have to be part of the hackathon as a player so that this kind of opportunity will help and facilitate to make things its own affairs. So with this mindset, I think people will tend to support those necessary projects and activities. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you. Indeed, great to hear these inputs from you. Let’s hear the experts inside from Mr. Kojo Boke on this.

Mr Kojo Boakye:
Moderator, can you indulge me? Repeat the question for me. I know it’s about how do we get policymakers to get behind tech for the SDGs, but help me.

Moderator:
Right, I didn’t quite get you, maybe because of the distance herein. But I’m sure that your expert views really count because we are the one in the field dealing with all the consequences.

Mr Kojo Boakye:
So I was asking, do you mind repeating the question for me so I can get it spot on? We’re reading the same problem, the distance issue.

Moderator:
OK. All right, so the question was, how do we generate more support for additional innovations and solutions to address the SDG challenges in policymaking?

Mr Kojo Boakye:
Thank you ever so much. I’m not sure we need much more support from policymakers. In part, my assertion stems from the fact that having travelled over the last few weeks to Ghana, Lagos, Jordan, Egypt and New York and then come here, I feel like we have a ground well of support, bigger than a ground well of support for the use of tech. I agree with my friend from APT who suggests that actually what we need to do is demonstrate that tech even more. And I also agree with my professor here from Japan who spoke about the need to have consultation between government, academia and private sector, including the biggest players, to determine how we’re going to leverage this tech. The one thing I continue to stress, having had all these conversations over the last few weeks, is the need to recognise the opportunity in front of us and to not overplay the risks. And I say that because one of the conversations I had recently was with Professor Mustapha Sise from the African School of Mathematics or Sciences of Mathematics, who spoke about the fact that actually the kind of technologies that people seem to have such a fear of, AI, is very much at inception phase. I’m not an engineer, but I believe him. Very much at an early stage of development. It isn’t going to be these big AI machines that take over. And also the fact that actually as I speak to policy makers and as Meta has with other companies signed up to, for example, the US’s voluntary commitments towards AI, and I speak to others in places like Saudi Arabia with their AI ethics and many other places who are developing these things. I do feel that many governments are trying to harness that opportunity, but put the guardrails in place. And I think that’s the most important thing at this time, alongside the many examples that Meta and so many other companies, players, academics, have to provide to those governments to prove that we need to take this opportunity.

Moderator:
Great. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Over to Ms. Nanako Ishido, what would be your say on this?

Ms. Nanako Ishido:
Yes, thank you. The benefit of using this technology in policy making is to enable a wide range of actors, including stakeholders, students, to participate. In the short term, it is important to create an environment where a large number of students can participate in policy making. In the long term, enhancing digital literacy for everyone becomes crucial. It is also important to be proactive in using new technologies such as AI, blockchain, and so on. We are already using generative AI to come up with solutions to policy problems, and we are starting DAO, Decentralized Autonomous Organization, to kick-start police action. These efforts are already in progress and should be shared. shared worldwide. And most important of all, as Mr Kondo said, take action. The SDGs are goals. The important thing is to take action towards the goal. So it’s about setting priorities, determining which goals are most important to each of us, to our respective countries, and translating these priorities into concrete action.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you. The stress is on action here. And we wouldn’t do justice without putting this question to Your Excellency, Mr. Joon-Hwa Lee.

Mr Junhua Li:
Well, thank you. And I fully agree with the previous panelists. The action actually will bring the difference. With regard to the enabling environment to digital innovation, it is very important to have the policy dimension there. How to do it? My answer is to maximize the participation of all stakeholders in developing a global framework on the digital innovation, in addition to the bilateral or national policies. How to do it? Secretary General proposed a global digital compact, which will be discussed and decided by the world leaders in next September, when they gather in New York again. So we hope that all the stakeholders would be involved in this consultation process, including government, parliament, private sector, business sectors, academia, technical communities, individuals including youth and women, and of course, the UN systems. So by doing so, we would put all our efforts, our perspectives, our suggestions together to ensure a better environment for digital innovation.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you, Your Excellency. Thank you very much. Ladies and gentlemen, allow me a moment now to introduce and invite for a quick thought in this going deliberations herein on this very important theme, and to facilitate with our high ministerial respondents. Please be introduced as I invite my fellow moderator, Ms. Jewel Fordy, the television producer and presenter of the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation. Over to you Jewel

Audience :
Thank you so much Shivani, and thank you to all of our high-level members on the panel. I’ll start by asking Mr. Ernesto Rodríguez-Hernández, he’s the Deputy Minister of Communications in Cuba, to give us a short response to some of what he has heard here today. Over to you Mr. Hernández. First and foremost, I would like to thank all of the organizers for allowing me to take the floor. It has now been 20 years since the very first summit on the Society of Information. The documents were approved by heads of state and government from 175 countries. When we look at the debate, developing countries made it possible to try to answer this call in bridging this digital gap. They limit access to knowledge and information in our very own language. Twenty years after, we have borne witness that information technology, and Internet specifically, help build fundamental tools for the development of societies. We have also seen that this pact has been especially important for developing countries, as opposed to developing countries. developed countries, there were commitments that have not been reached after this very first summit. One of these major tasks was to abide by the various requests from all of these stakeholders, which hinder social and economic development from all of these countries that have been impacted by this. Topics that have been mentioned were addressed by the heads of state and government at the G77 in China and also in Havana, Cuba, which was held last month, in September 2023, and the role of technology and science in development. At the end of this summit, we ratified the summit to completed by 2025, and China has put forward a direct link between this summit and the information technologies in fostering development. We also launched a call between this world summit of the Society of Information and the other outcomes in Addis Ababa and other multi-stakeholder policies and also the future summits that will be held. We need to foster the work by the G77 in China and reviewing the work in this Society of Information, the G77, the global pact, among many other summits in order to make sure that we bridge this digital gap between developing countries and developed countries. We stated that we would focus on working on these digital digital tools. The very first stage in the Society of Information, which was called Building the Society of Information, this is a global challenge for the new millennium, it set forth a common vision for the Society of Information. Among many other attributes, it must be focusing on a holistic individual, focusing on development. This document was meticulously devised and negotiated, is in full force today. This crystallizes the dream of creating this Society of Information, which was implemented over 20 years ago.

Moderator:
Minister of Communications in Cuba, I now invite my fellow Barbadian, Mr. Rodney Taylor, he’s the Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union, to give his comments.

Audience :
Thank you very much, Joelle. Good afternoon, everyone. I bring a perspective from the Caribbean, as pointed out, which represents a diverse group of small island states, and for whom the achievement of the SDGs is critical, and in fact their non-achievement in some cases represents an existential threat, particularly when it comes to the environment and climate change. Innovation is the engine of sustainable development. It enables us to find creative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges, as pointed out previously by many of our panelists. Likewise, access is the bridge that connects innovative solutions to the people who need them the most. And this is not new to any of us here in the room or online today, this is nothing that has not been said. So I think it’s now a question of what we, not what must be said, but what must be done differently. Government action alone will not suffice, and I think we all understand the value of multi-stakeholder approaches. Within this forum, we have the capacity to refocus in different areas. according to our individual areas of expertise, passion, and common interests. We need to promote and fund research and development that addresses the unique needs of vulnerable populations, such as those in SIDS. Encourage social entrepreneurship that places the planet, environmental sustainability, and equality above profit maximization. Affordability of access is critical, in particular, to the LDCs in the Global South. Affordable access will expand access to education, health care, and so on, as pointed out before. The ITU’s Partner to Connect initiative is worthy of special mention here and should be given the full support of the global community. In particular, those making the most financial gains from the internet economy. We need to accelerate international cooperation and partnerships in other areas, as well, to share knowledge and agree on workable solutions. The work towards a global digital compact, as pointed out again on the panel, being undertaken by the UN is fully supported and endorsed by the Caribbean. Lastly, education and awareness are important, so that those who need it most embrace technology and can be empowered to participate in their own development. The IGF should continue to nurture NRIs that encourage organic and independent formations to discuss these issues in a national and culturally relevant context. And for this reason, the Caribbean has celebrated our 19th IGF this year and have supported youth and SIDS IGFs, as well. In conclusion, achieving the SDGs in an accelerated fashion is a complex endeavor. But with sustained effort, commitment, and a multifaceted approach, it is possible to make significant progress. Thank you very much.

Moderator:
Thank you very much, Mr. Rodney Taylor, the Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union. Joining us via video is Ms. Armida Salcia-Alesdjivana, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, ESCAP.

Audience :
Excellencies, distinguished delegates, and participants, allow me to extend my sincere appreciation to the government of Japan, DESA, and ITU for offering me the opportunity to speak at the Internet Governance Forum 2023 in Kyoto. Under the overarching theme of this year’s forum, the internet we want, empowering all people, I’m confident that with the active engagement of all stakeholders, this event will help build global consensus for an empowering future for people and the internet. While digital connectivity brings significant digital dividends to society, if such dividends are not equitably shared, risk will be increasingly difficult to address. I’m therefore pleased to see that the eight sub-themes chosen for the forum this year are all topical, notably the sub-themes on AI and emerging technologies and digital device and inclusion. Allow me to share some regional perspective. Digital device and inclusion challenges in Asia-Pacific remains the most digitally dividend or divided region in the world. Our study has highlighted that limited and unaffordable internet access, as well as the general digital divide, continue to worsen in countries in special situations during the pandemic. Digitally advanced economies, such as Japan, are racing ahead to embrace emerging technologies, accelerating the transformation to digital societies through frontier technology, digital hubs, and digital governance, while others with limited digital infrastructure and digital skills are adapting more slowly to the rapid stream of digital innovations. On AI and emerging technologies opportunities, the deployment of emerging technologies is particularly promising for Sustainable Development Goals 13 on climate change. which is the only goal in the region where implementation is in reverse. For example, Singapore, through its Smart Nation initiative, is using AI to drive growth and innovation in a resource-efficient manner. While in Japan, a number of AI-driven applications have enhanced disaster resilience and climate adaptation. Similarly, Republic of Korea is investing in AI to develop curriculum and teacher training aimed at instilling advanced digital skills that prepare students for an AI-driven future. Work on directing the development of AI through a people-centered approach based on commonly shared human values and rights has just begun, and much remains to be done. Notwithstanding the slow pace and often messiness of multifaceted, multistakeholder, and multilateral approaches, it is our best hope for evolving the future we want. Moving forward, I conclude with three messages. We must double our efforts towards closing the widening digital divide by scaling up investment in digital connectivity infrastructure that is ready for the data-intensive traffic of the future. We also need to promote digital literacy and skills that encompass fundamental human values for the productive use of the Internet in a responsible manner. Finally, we need to strengthen cooperation between government, private sector, and other stakeholders. In this regard, we are working with Member States to implement the action plan of the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway Initiative from 2022 to 2026. This action plan serves as the blueprint for regional cooperation action on bridging the digital divide and accelerating digital transformation. I look forward to collaborating with all key stakeholders to achieve universal digital connectivity and digital transformation for all and the future we want.

Moderator:
Thank you. And thank you, Ms. Alice Giappana. She’s the Executive Secretary of the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific S Gap. And also joining us by video is Mr. Axel von Trostenberg. He’s the Senior Managing Director for the World Bank.

Audience :
Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests.

Moderator:
I hear somebody whispering behind me AI. Where there is technology there will also be hitches. I’m not sure if that’s gonna come back to us a little later but Shivani I’m gonna hand that back over to you and if it comes back later we’ll finish. We sure will. Thank you, thank you so much. Digital it is and glitches are bound to come and that’s why all these great minds have been put together in one platform. So said this and it’s been a pleasure and in fact a matter of gratitude to incorporate the high-level respondents views and thoughts in this very enriching panel and said that as we move forward to winding up the panel we cannot do without the very concluding thoughts from our esteemed panelists. So let me begin but from my most distant panelist from this point Mr. Kojo Boyke, the Vice President. Meta

Mr Kojo Boakye:
Thanks so much. How much time do I have? I know you’re pretty strict. Two minutes for each panelist. I’ll try and pull things together. I think look I think everybody in this room and as I said earlier many of the people that I’ve engaged with over the last few weeks indeed months and years believe in the opportunity that tech presents. I think that towards the SDGs and achieving those goals which we are all behind on I think all the panelists heard us speak about that. I think at the same time there’s a recognition that there are risks with greater inequality being caused by tech. The fact that 2.6 billion people remain offline and don’t even have access to broadband. the more innovative technologies that will ride on that broadband continues to be an issue. I think my friend from APT mentioned it best, that there is some convincing to do with regard to how we move things forward and get technology to play its role in an optimal way. And part of that is the onus is on companies like ours. First of all, to provide examples, like many I’ve mentioned today, using our population maps and much more, but also to engage in the kind of policy discussion that we have engaged in in the US, in places like Europe, in places like Africa, and also in places in the Middle East as well, and Asia, I’m sure my colleagues will remind me to say, but to drive towards action. And I think my learned friend from the ITU and many of the other panellists have said that this is not a time to rest on our laurels, that we need to take action. And my earnest desire is we don’t suffer paralysis by analysis in terms of some of these things, and we take action. And I think I’m speaking, or at least preaching to the choir when I say that.

Moderator:
Thank you. So greatly said. Well, I have the privilege of only availing two minutes to each of our panellists for a quick concluding remarks, and moving to Ms. Lies from Aetna.

Ms Lise Fuhr:
Thank you. First, it’s been a great honour to join this panel today, and among such esteemed colleagues. And it’s an important time to stop and think, how can we revitalise the SDGs? And the SDGs were signed off many years ago, and the world has changed a whole lot, much more than we expected. We had a global pandemic that put our society’s health services and digital structures, infrastructures to the test. And we have the latest technology cutting-edge science, a better minds in research actually delivered vaccines for COVID in record time. So while we also saw the world marbled at the new potential of artificial intelligence, we all sat at home or in the offices testing large language model chatbots and marbled by their newfangled magic. I think we’re still far from achieving all the SDGs as we discussed here today. And the outlook might be pretty bleak, but I think listening to the panel today and the sheer numbers of SDGs we have mentioned, I think it demonstrates one important thing, and that is digital innovation, for me, is the unsung hero of SDGs. It’s not the only solution, and it cannot do it all alone, but digital is our fast track to achieve the SDGs. And we need to do this by including all the stakeholders, and we need collaboration of all the stakeholders.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you. So well said. Now I’ll come to Mr. Kondo shortly. I’ll have to wait for a bit as I get good news that we can now play the video. So this is inviting via this video message, Mr. Axel van Trostenburg, the Senior Managing Director, World Bank.

Audience :
Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, it is a great pleasure to address you at the opening of this year’s Internet Governance Forum in Kyoto. My sincere thanks to the organizers of this forum, the government of Japan and the United Nations, for inviting us to the event and for the longstanding partnership with the World Bank on the digital agenda. We recognize that today the world’s many challenges have become intertwined crises, and that the digital agenda has a role to play in the resolution of these crises. The World Bank has made significant efforts to lift a billion people out of poverty in the last three to four decades, but the COVID-19 pandemic has meant an important setback for economic growth and poverty reduction. Renewing progress in our fight against poverty and addressing the many global challenges and crises requires a new approach. That is why we are moving to scale up our financing, our knowledge, our data and partnerships to deliver. Digital is playing and will continue to play an ever-increasing role for development. Together with people, prosperity, planet and infrastructure, digital is one of the five verticals aiming to communicate more clearly our work and how we aim to put knowledge at the core of the bank’s business. Digital is the transformative opportunity of our time. Digital technologies have become a driving force for development to create new jobs and open new markets, to create opportunities and to improve government efficiency and transparency. But we also need to be attentive to the risk of exclusion, of widening the digital divide and worsening the poverty divide. Today’s digital development agenda requires both technical solutions and sound foundations to govern the Internet and the world’s digital spaces. Nearly 2.6 billion people are still offline. More than 90% of the population in high-income countries used the Internet in 2022, as compared to only 25% in low-income countries. Many people do not have the basic skills to use the Internet effectively, but there will be an estimated 150 million new technology jobs over the next five years. 850 million people lack any form of identification, keeping them excluded from the analogue and increasingly the digital world and its development promises. Technical solutions remain fragmented in many countries, meaning a missed opportunity for a radically new and efficient government service offering. But simply advancing technical solutions will not be enough, because the main foundation of the digital sector is trust. And this trust can only grow where the use of technology is based on open, inclusive, secure and resilient digital foundations. These trust foundations include access to information for everyone worldwide, protection of privacy and personal information, both whether data is kept in a country or traded across borders, minimised risk to get scammed, hacked or otherwise compromised by cybercriminals, and the freedom for everyone to participate in the Internet. If we can advance this agenda, digital will maximise its power to drive human, economic and social development. will be a global public good serving all of us. I’m encouraged to see experts, government representatives, the private sector and civil society all come together at the Internet Governance Forum in Kyoto. At the World Bank, we are looking forward to deepening our collaboration on this agenda with our partners from around the world. Let us leverage that power of digital to eradicate poverty on a livable planet. Thank you.

Moderator:
Well, thank you. Thank you to all our high ministerial respondents for their great thoughts and for their inputs. I still have two minutes each for our panelists for your final words. Yes, on to Mr. Masanori Kondo, your quick say so.

Mr Masanori Kondo:
Okay, thank you. So from Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals, issues in front of us have been changing and increasing. And one of the most influential phenomena in the last decades is certainly emergence and dissemination of ICT services. So I believe as a resident of this ICT community, ICT offers a canvas of possibilities. It transforms challenges to opportunities. So when we navigate towards our SDGs, it is imperative for ICT community to collaborate with other stakeholders. With cautious optimism, ICT community should play a role of architect of the future. Our commitment and creativity to construct a proud and inspiring future is required. So this is a message I would like to share with you today. And once again, thank you for inviting me for this wonderful session. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you so much for your very beautiful and great thoughts. So we move to Honorable Mr. Mohammad Sharif. You have two minutes.

Mr Mohamed Shareef:
Thank you. We’ve heard that the potential for digital technologies in achieving SDGs is immense. Yes, but we are behind in achieving our targets that we set in 2015. We also heard that we need to maybe rethink these targets. The world has changed, but so has technology. The current trends in technology gives us more hope, but also raises questions. Questions about cybersecurity, questions about data privacy, and where does the balance lie? Definitely as we move forward, we can harness the power of digital technologies to accelerate the progress towards the SDGs. That is a given. Let’s ensure that no one is left behind while we are doing it. So inclusivity and accessibility should be front and center of this. Let’s work together to create a sustainable and inclusive future that is cognizant of the changing environment and climate change. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you, sir. Thank you for your great call. Over to Professor Nana Koishido.

Ms. Nanako Ishido:
Thank you. In 1997, the Kyoto Protocol was established right here at this venue, setting a target for greenhouse gas emission in addressing environmental issues. That was 26 years ago. Now, we look at Kyoto through the lens of SDGs. We see that Kyoto has been committed to sustainable city development for a long time. It served as Japan’s capital for over 1,000 years, starting 1,200 years ago. And even the tea shop nearby has been in operation for more than a millennium. There are 50,000 companies in Japan that have been in business more than 100 years, the largest number in the world. And 3,000 companies that have been in business more than 200 years, the majority in the world. In terms of corporate management, Japan symbolizes the sustainable management. Kyoto, Japan, it’s such a place. It is a good place to think about sustainability. So thank you very much for coming to Kyoto. Enjoy Kyoto. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you, ma’am. To Mr. Tshilze Malawa.

Mr Tshilidzi Marwala :
No, no, no, thank you very much. It is clear that we are lagging behind on SDG as we noted at the SDG summit. But it is actually up to all of us. We have personal responsibilities to make sure that we consume and produce responsibly, to make sure that we put pressure on our lawmakers to ensure that they take the correct decisions, to ensure that we invest in education and infrastructure and increase access within the countries and across different countries. But for us to be able to do all this, we need a strong public-private partnerships. It is clear that digital technology. you actually have more knowledge and capacity in private hands, and therefore government cannot do this thing alone. So we need to get all the people together to be able to, internationally, to be able to come up with a way forward that is going to be sustainable. Thank you very much.

Moderator:
Thank you. Thank you so much. Over to Honourable Caroline Edstadler.

Ms Karoline Edtstadler :
Thank you so much for the invitation, and I would like to agree with you. We are lagging behind, but it’s never too late to turn to action, and I would say I conclude right the same way as I started this conversation, by mentioning again that this is a watershed moment, and that big challenges are always accompanied also by chances and changes, and I would say we should really take this moment and get to action, and there is one action I don’t think so that we discussed it in detail, I would like to mention that. As democracies, as rule of law and human rights based societies, we should really get actions also through our parliamentarians, because they are representing us, and of course the governments. I’m representing also the Austrian government in this regard, and I think we should really take the moment and set the right measures. It’s not up to the economic enterprises to set the measures, but it’s up to the parliamentarians and to the governments, and together we can do that in a way like we are doing this today, sharing our experiences, our expectations, also what we already achieved, because don’t always blame what we are not have to achieve in the future, and what has not been done so far, but let’s also see what we already achieved, and I think this is a lot when we are thinking back to the boost of digitalization, also during the face of this horrifying pandemic, and let’s use this also for the future, so it’s never too late, let’s get to action now.

Moderator:
Thank you so much Madam Minister, and for the final thoughts, over to His Excellency the Under-Secretary-General, Mr. Joon Hwa Lee.

Mr Junhua Li:
Thank you, it is a great pleasure to join the panelists. to share our own perspectives. Eight years ago, the world leaders agreed to launch this 2030 agenda, 17 SDGs. We know, we recognize that we are left behind. But certainly, there’s still hope. It’s the time for action. It’s time for change. How to revitalize the SDGs? Absolutely, digital serves as one of the most powerful means or instruments. And then how to do it? Three points from me. First, accelerate the digital application for SDGs. Focused on achieving SDG-specific targets and added values for developing countries and vulnerable communities. We must ensure that equality and inclusion would still remain at the center of the digitalization. Second, enhance infrastructure and digital capabilities. The special focus should be given to how to bridge the gaps or digital divide between the countries, especially for those countries in vulnerable situations like LDCs, SEADs, and LLDCs. And also, we need to think about how we inject a more focus for the local community to make the digital solution for the local community and the local economies. Last but not least, strengthen digital cooperation across all countries. We must ensure that safe, inclusive, secure, and affordable digital access for every country for all the individuals. That is our mantle, our promise to the old countries, to all individuals. Thank you.

Moderator:
Thank you so much, Your Excellency. And I believe this very much addresses the much raised queries, concerns, and the gaps, the challenges that we talked about in course of our discourse and an observation that’s so general in all of the stakeholder community. It’s, trust me, it’s been a distinct honor for me to be moderating this very, very enriching panel. And I cannot thank you so much to each and every panelist herein for sharing your very valuable time and for the value that you’ve added to this very, very pertinent discussion. Thank you for granting me this honor. And ladies and gentlemen, this deliberation is meant to be a path forward. We have challenges, we have limitations, shortcomings that are multiple realities to address to, but then the idea, the gesture, and the aspiration of us all is to look forward. So this, the session certainly is a way forward and not that digital solution. is a magic wand, not so, and coming from, I mean, reaping from the reflections of the panels, if we’re looking at digital solutions to add impetus to the pace of development, of our development, certainly more care, more precision planning and strategizing our action will help us attain the needful and avoid the unwanted, and the emphasis certainly has been on the increased investment of actions, innovations, ideas, thoughts, and most of all, collaboration and cooperation amidst all stakeholders, entities at all tiers. Said this, and with this notion, I rest my mic herein. Thank you to the members in the audience as well for being a great part of this celebration. And as we end, may I invite all our distinguished members in the panel to kindly take to the left of the stage for a quick group photo opportunity. And as I thank my fellow moderator, I also have this privilege of inviting Ms. Jewel up on stage for this group photo opportunity. Thank you. Thank you so much. That’s all from this discussion. Thank you.