The National Digital Strategy of Mexico

The National Digital Strategy of Mexico outlines a comprehensive plan to advance the adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) across different sectors to promote economic, social, and political development.

Objectives:

• Government Transformation: Focuses on reshaping the relationship between citizens and the government through the use of ICTs. It includes initiatives like the creation of open government frameworks, digital land management policies, and tools for better data usage in public policy development.
• Digital Economy: Aims to develop a robust digital economy by promoting digital goods and services, fostering e-commerce, and ensuring financial inclusion via mobile banking services.
• Quality Education: Integrates ICTs into the education system by improving access to digital infrastructure in schools, expanding online educational services, and promoting digital cultural agendas.
• Effective Universal Health: Seeks to harness ICTs to improve health coverage, create electronic health records, and implement telemedicine and telehealth mechanisms.
• Public Safety: Focuses on using digital tools for crime prevention, enhancing civic participation, and mitigating natural disaster risks through ICTs.

Enablers: The strategy identifies five enablers that are essential to achieving its objectives:

• Connectivity: Expanding broadband infrastructure, promoting competition in the ICT sector, and ensuring universal access to telecommunications.
• Digital Skills and Inclusion: Promoting digital literacy with a focus on marginalised populations, gender equity, and digital safety.
• Interoperability: Ensuring that different ICT systems can communicate effectively, thus streamlining government processes and improving service delivery.
• Legal Framework: Harmonising legal frameworks to support digital transformation, including aspects such as data privacy, cybersecurity, e-commerce, and intellectual property.
• Open Data: Promoting transparency and civic engagement by making government data accessible and reusable by the public.

Strategic Goals:

• The ultimate goal is to position Mexico as a leader in digital transformation within Latin America and achieve parity with the average digitization levels of OECD countries by 2018.
• The strategy also aims to enhance Mexico’s international presence through better digital infrastructure and cooperation with other nations.

Importance for the National Development Plan 2013-2018: The strategy supports Mexico’s broader development goals, including peace, inclusiveness, quality education, economic prosperity, and global responsibility. It underscores how ICT adoption can directly impact national security, improve government transparency, create jobs, and enhance access to education and healthcare.