DIGITAL ECONOMY

INTRODUCTION

The South African Presidency of the G20 comes at a time of increased international focus on the digital economy, particularly its instrumental role in development and economic and social reconstruction following the COVID-19 pandemic. The recent United Nations (UN) Summit of the Future and its Global Digital Compact (GDC) set out objectives, principles, commitments and actions for a new global digital cooperation that will lead to more equitable and just outcomes. In 2025, the 25th review of the foundational framework for global digital cooperation provided by the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) outcomes is a pivotal opportunity for global action to strengthen and broaden efforts towards an inclusive digital economy and society that is people-centred and that meets the development aspirations of the international community.

The South African G20 Presidency follows a sequence of developing countries that have provided leadership to the G20. Since this will be the first time the G20 has come to Africa in its current format, this is an invaluable opportunity to consider the particular challenges and opportunities facing people on the African continent.

South Africa welcomes the opportunity to continue discussions with G20 members, international organisations, knowledge partners, and invited guests on how to harness the transformative power of digital technologies to bring about inclusive development for all. We will also continue to consider the importance of having suitable frameworks to guide their adoption of new technologies in a way that will optimise their benefits and limit potential harms.

In this context, South Africa looks forward to building on the achievements of past presidencies, focusing on the following key issues:

• Connectivity for inclusive digital development
• Digital public infrastructure and transformation
• Digital innovation ecosystems: unleashing the potential of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
• Equitable, inclusive, and just artificial intelligence (AI).

PRIORITIES

PRIORITY 1: CONNECTIVITY FOR INCLUSIVE DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT

Deliverables

• Workshop on modernising statistics and sustainable financing models
• Paper on regulatory, business, and community strategies to ensure the provision of connectivity as the foundational requirement for effective social and economic participation of citizens.
• Drawing on international experiences, develop a framework for analysing and measuring the socio-economic impact of, and funding models to achieve universal and meaningful connectivity through the connecting of government institutions and piloting the implementation of this framework to connect the unconnected.

PRIORITY 2: DIGITAL PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE (DPI) AND TRANSFORMATION

Deliverables 

• A virtual workshop on applications of DPI from G20 members and others, as well as a research or survey document providing an update on the different experiences and initiatives in DPI implementation globally and drawing on key learnings
• Development of possible instruments to support DPI implementation, such as a readiness self-assessment tool and roadmap, and DPI blueprints that reflect regional context for the development of sector-specific DPIs.
• Templates for cost-benefit analysis, among other tools, to measure benefits to the citizens and government in designing citizen-centric digital services using DPI.
• Guidelines on Integrated Governance Frameworks for Equitable DPI.

PRIORITY 3: DIGITAL INNOVATION ECOSYSTEMS AND UNLEASHING THE POTENTIAL FOR MSMES

Deliverables

• A showcase of MSME innovation in the ICT event for MSMEs from G20 members, working with the other government departments. It will speak to economic development, local solutions, and higher-value employment in the digital economy.
• A workshop on digital innovation ecosystems, drawing on international best practices and expertise.
• A future-orientated paper on MSMEs and digital innovation ecosystems
• Workshop on strategies, programmes, and initiatives for digitalising MSMEs and encouraging participation in the digital economy.

PRIORITY 4: EQUITABLE, INCLUSIVE AND JUST ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Deliverables 

• Workshop on AI and inequality
• Toolkit to reduce inequalities connected to the use of AI
• Guidelines for access to data for MSMEs and researchers, and promoting data sharing with and by the public and private sectors
• Workshop on generative AI and its evolving ability to produce high-quality deep fakes at a lower cost, and the impact on information integrity, and consideration of possible recommendations.
• Draw on international experience to identify key elements of strategies, policy and regulatory frameworks to assist countries to respond to AI.

International knowledge partners to include: the ITU, UNESCO, UN Development Programme, UN Industrial Development Organisation, OECD. Local Knowledge Partners are also being identified.