Excellencies,
Distinguished Participants,
It is an honour to address the Digital Security Forum of the 2023 Global Digital Economy Conference.
I commend the organizers for adopting a holistic approach that recognizes digital technology, digital government, digital economy, and cybersecurity as integral parts of a complex digital ecosystem.
Digital technology has been driving innovations and enhancing productivity across many sectors. It is in turn driving a growing digital economy that has been powering growth and creating manufacturing and service jobs. And digital government has provided an enabling framework for businesses and services to flourish.
The ever-expanding digital ecosystem has a critical role to play in advancing development goals at all levels.
Robotics, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, the Internet of Things and cloud and mobile computing have huge potential for supporting human well-being and the SDGs.
In his Special Edition of the Progress Report on SDGs, the UN Secretary-General has called for incentivizing digital partnerships with the private sector and other stakeholders to produce applications that further SDGs progress. And he has underscored the need for major investments to strengthen public sector capacity and build appropriate digital infrastructure, making digital transformation work for everyone.
But the evolving digital transformation has been accompanied by mounting risks that threaten to overshadow its benefits.
The misuse of digital tools has brought a rise in misinformation, disinformation, hate speech, cybercrimes, and the militarization of cyberspace.
We must take steps to address these issues, and balance the trade-offs between cybersecurity and online safety, including through regulatory measures. We must develop a more comprehensive pathway on our digital transformation journey that enhances cybersecurity, respects personal privacy, and protects critical digital infrastructures that underpin digital government and digital economy.
The United Nations is keenly aware of this imperative. The UN family is seeking synergies within its work on norm and standard setting, ethics of artificial intelligence, data governance, regulatory sandboxes, and capacity-building.
The ongoing development of a Global Digital Compact is expected to set out principles, objectives and actions for advancing an open, free, secure and human-centred digital future. Through digital cooperation under the framework of the Global Digital Compact, UN member states will have the opportunity to close digital divide and enable the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Your deliberations here at the Global Digital Economy Conference can provide a timely input to the elaboration of the Global Digital Compact.
The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), which I head, is ready to work with all participants to contribute to a global digital future for all.
UN DESA publishes biennially the United Nations E-Government Survey and supports Member States in building capacity for innovation and digital transformation.
We also support the UN Secretary-General in convening the annual Internet Governance Forum – or the IGF in short.
The 18th meeting of the Internet Governance Forum is scheduled to be held in Kyoto, Japan from 8 to 12 October 2023, with an overarching theme of “The Internet We Want - Empowering All People.”
This year’s IGF will discuss artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, avoiding Internet fragmentation, and advancing cybersecurity and global digital governance, including data governance, and cooperation, human rights and sustainability.
I invite all participants to join these discussions and contribute to UN efforts to enhance digital transformation for a sustainable and inclusive future.
I wish you all great success at this important Conference.
Thank you.