SALTA /Argentina/, August 25. /TASS/. Ministers of the G20 group of nations, jointly with representatives of major international organizations, have prepared a set of recommendations to encourage the development of the so-called digital economies.
Those principles were set forth in a declaration, adopted as a result of the G20 Digital Economy Ministerial Meeting, which took place in Salta, northwestern Argentina, on August 23-24.
Russian Minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media Konstantin Noskov represented Russia at the meeting. In total, more than 30 delegations took part in the meeting, including G20 members and non-member states (Chile, The Netherlands, Singapore and Spain). The meeting was also attended by representatives of major international organizations, including the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), The World Bank Group (WBG), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The main issue on the agenda of the Salta meeting was how to use digital transformation benefits in economy, social sphere and state administration with maximum efficiency. The ministers also discussed ways to respond to opportunities and challenges of embracing emerging technologies, and methodologies to evaluate digital economies and technological infrastructure.
G20 principles of digital states
The minister are convinced that the work to digitalize the public administration sector should be intensified, because increasing the role of Information and communication technology (ICT) in this sector will increase its efficiency and effectiveness. To that end, G20 ministers, with support of the OECD, have formulated the principles of a digital government, which streamline the approaches to integrating digital technologies in the public administration sector.
According to those principles, state services should first of all be user-oriented and accommodate the needs of all users across society. States should do their best to offer data in an accessible, open and transparent form, but, at the same time, public administration sector systems should be well-protected. Besides, the state should increase the digital literacy of public servants, businesses, and citizens, and encourage them to interact more actively in the digital environment.
The states should also facilitate the formulation of business cases that identify expected economic, societal and policy benefits of implementing digital government strategies and a common methodology to monitor them. Besides, an efficient feedback is also required.
Digital economy measurements
Jointly with international organizations, G20 ministers have also prepared a draft document on measuring digital economy indices. The document brings together more than 30 key existing indicators and methodologies produced by major international organizations to monitor and assess the size and penetration of the digital economy, organized in four themes:
1) Infrastructure, including access to mobile and fixed networks, the development of Next Generation Access (NGA) networks, the dynamics of household and business uptake
2) Empowering society, including access to and use of digital technologies, people’s use of the internet, education, financial inclusion and interaction with government;
3) Innovation and technology adoption, including new digitally-enabled business models, the role of ICTs as an engine for innovation, and the adoption of ICTs and other emerging technologies by businesses;
4) Jobs and Growth, including indicators related to the labor market, employment creation, investment in ICTs, value-added, international trade, e-commerce, and productivity growth.
The toolkit also includes other studies, surveys, pilot initiatives, and various measurement efforts in G20 countries and international and regional organizations.
However, G20 officials note that a lot remains to be done to improve the methodology.
Bridging the digital gender divide
According to the participants of the Salta meeting, encouraging women’s participation in the digital economy supports stronger economic growth and enhances well-being. In this respect, G20 ministers paid special attention to recommendations on bridging the digital gender divide. Those recommendations include increaseing awareness and addressing gender stereotypes, promoting digital skills for women and supporting women’s entrepreneurship in digital businesses.
The participants of the meeting also discussed the process of digitalization in businesses (in particular, its role in the development of small-and medium-size enterprises). During the discussion, issues of using emerging technologies (such as Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and others) in industry and agriculture were also raised. Special attention was also paid to protecting customers in the digital sphere.
The officials also reiterated their support for the previously declared goal to promote universal and affordable access to the internet by all people by 2025.
The G20 leaders agreed on the importance of the digital economy during the 2015 summit in Turkey’s Antalya. The first meeting of ministers responsible for the development of digital economy took place in Dusseldorf in April 2017. The work on issues, identified in today’s declaration, will continue in the coming years, including during meetings to be organized under the presidency of Japan.