Launch of the Publication ICT for Sustainable Development: Recommendations for Public Policies that Guarantee Rights
UNESCO - 10/7/2019 - [gif]
Assunto: Publicações TIC
Within the framework of the United Nations High Level Political Forum 2019 (HLPF), the UNESCO Regional Office in Montevideo and Cetic.br launch a document written in conjunction with public policies recommendations that seek to make the connection among ICT and the sustainable development Agenda.
ICT without any doubt represent an unprecedented revolution in the history of humankind, often called the 4th Industrial Revolution. They have transformed social, commercial, political and cultural relations in the lives of human beings and society in general, opening a new field of possibilities and opportunities for developing freedom of expression, access to information, transparency and surveillance by citizens regarding development processes and dynamics.
Nevertheless, digital technology has also posed a number of problems, ranging from technical standards in Internet Access infrastructure to ethical concerns about the use of social media.
For both reasons, it is necessary to analyze and understand the situation from a political economy perspective that includes different aspects related to regulatory frameworks, access policies and safeguarding of rights, in order to ensure that ICT contribute to development in terms of sustainability, inclusion and social justice.
The implementation of the 2030 Agenda defined by the United Nations, through each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), will be facilitated with the proper application of ICT, particularly emphasizing the key idea of leaving no one behind.
The Agenda deems that ICT play a facilitating and supportive role, particularly in skill development. However, to make this be the case, some global challenges need to be considered.
The above mentioned text aims to address concrete questions in this debate: How can ICT foster the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals? What public policies are necessary to boost the use of ICT as tools for the development, protection and promotion of human rights and democratic consolidation, and, in turn, avoid the potential for these same ICT to produce opposite effects?
These two key questions guide the document, which deepens a discussion of the utmost relevance that gains new characters every day: Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Big Data, etc.
This policy paper is part of a coordinated effort of Cetic.br and the UNESCO Regional Office in Montevideo, in partnership with other partners, to deepen the debate on the importance of ICT in reaching the objectives of sustainable development, including a MOOC on the subject.
