The benefits of digitalization to people's lives are enormous ... but considerable uncertainty associated with the next digital shift call for more facts, dialogue and action by all stakeholders, -says a new United Nations report (17 pp.) entitled: "DIGITALIZATION, TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT".
While the report contributes to this dialogue and proposes ways in which the international community can reduce inequality, enable the benefits of digitalization to reach all people and ensure that no one is left behind by the evolving digital economy, it is calling for an adequate supply of skilled workers with strong cognitive, adaptive and creative skillsrequired to use digital technologies effectively.
Capacity Development is the engine to accelerate skills development. Countries should seek to collaborate and exchange experiences about both the benefits they have reaped from digitalization and the costs and problems encountered.
“These are still the early days of the digital economy. But already it is clear that it has had, and will continue to have, globally transformative impacts on the way we live, work and develop our economies.
The key messages of the Report are highlighted below:
"High-speed broadband access to increasingly powerful computing and storage capacity, and drastically reduced costs of ICT equipment and data management, have facilitated the process of digitalization. Key technologies underpinning the evolving digital economy include advanced robotics, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, big data analytics and three-dimensional (3D) printing ... At the same time, monitoring the digital divide remains important ...
... Many developing countries, especially the least developed countries (LDCs), are inadequately prepared to capture the many opportunities emerging as a result of digitalization
... There are also concerns over how data flows can be harnessed while at the same time addressing concerns related to privacy and security ...
... The overall effects of digitalization remain uncertain; they will be context-specific, differing greatly among countries and sectors. This makes it increasingly important for countries to ensure they have an adequate supply of skilled workers with strong cognitive, adaptive and creative skills necessary for “working with the machines" ...
... This requires effective cross-sectoral collaboration both within the government and with other stakeholders ... Governments should seek to seize opportunities presented by the digital economy in support of relevant sustainable development objectives.
... Coordinating cross-sectoral policies is challenging for any country, but especially for those with very limited resources ... in order to formulate evidence-based policies and strategies, there is a need to help developing countries, and especially LDC, build their capacity for collecting more and better data on relevant aspects of the digital economy...
... formulating policies for the digital economy is most urgently needed for those countries that currently are at a relatively low level of readiness to engage in it, and have limited experience with digitalization ...
... Rapid technological change presents a multifaceted policy challenge covering many areas ... The digital economy relies increasingly on the generation, storage, processing and transfer of data, both within and across national boundaries. Access to data and its analysis are becoming strategically important to enhance the competitiveness of companies across sectors.
Given the transformative impact of the digital economy, both developed and developing countries will be looking for ways to adapt their policies and strategies. In this context, it is important to avoid reinventing the wheel, where possible !
Digital Economy provides a valuable forum for member States to engage in multilateral policy discussions and to explore good practices in relevant Digital Economy policy domains.
Take a look at this EUROSTAT digital publication, that provides easily understandable statistics on several ICT-related topics and presents them using texts, interactive data visualisations and an animation.
The publication is divided into 4 chapters:
·Chapter 1 Profile of the digital society & businesses
·Chapter 2 E-commerce looks in detail at e-commerce.
·Chapter 3 Internet security & the cloud provides information about aspects related to privacy and the protection of personal information online
·Chapter 4 What is the digital single market about? gives some background information about the content and goals of the EU policy concerning the creation of the Digital Single Market.
It's been two whole years since 193 Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Since then, those countries have started implementing the 17 goals by ratifying the #ParisAgreement on climate change, committing to #SaveOurOcean and build sustainable cities, and much more. But what is the best part of the #GlobalGoals? They start with You ! Individual actions matter, whether it's by choosing to live a more sustainable lifestyle to exercising your right to vote. Thanks for being with us the past two years, and we look forward to the next 13 ! , - 17 UN Goals to Transform Our World.
- AIMS October 2017 e-newsletter focuses on upcomig free e-learning activities - - from AIMS community of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN) - - to enable and engage people in having access to scientific information !
- 12 October 2017 : FREE Conference in Tanzania : How to put the Principles for Digital Development into practice
- e-Agriculture SURVEY on the PRINCIPLES for DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT
- Skills for a Digital World
- CPT+10 : Ten directions to move Open Education forward