The digital economy is inextricably linked to global economic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The promise of digital transformation to improve lives and livelihoods also poses new challenges and risks to democratic freedoms and human rights in the absence of governance consensus on technology norms and standards. This leaves ample room for the spread of the surveillance economy, digital authoritarianism, disinformation, cyber-attacks, and new forms of social control.
The private sector, from local business communities across emerging markets to large multinational companies, have an essential role to play in ensuring their economies and societies can usher in inclusive, human-centered digital transformation while taking full advantage of the innovative tools increasingly at their disposal. Entrepreneurs and MSMEs make up significant portions of many countries’ GDP and yet remain conspicuously absent from conversations where norms and standards are shaped. At the same time, global companies have a responsibility to respect human rights and are well placed to contribute to sustainability goals in the absence of global norms and standards.
In order to realize the United Nations’ goal to leave no one behind by 2030, local and global businesses and civil society can leverage democratic governance to shape ecosystems that ensure inclusive digital transformation and protect human rights online.
This session seeks to bring together practitioners and experts from Indonesia, Tunisia, Uganda, Peru, and the Netherlands to discuss private sector and civil society efforts to promote democratic governance and incentivize business contributions to tackle our greatest digital challenges. The core of the discussion will focus on how local and global business and civil society can work cooperatively with government to ensure inclusion, economic resilience, and digital rights are core to our shared future. These insights will help inform C20 recommendations to the G20 on digital economy priorities.
See the rest of the C20 Summit agenda and register here.
Panelists
- Ms. Felippa Amanta, Head of Research, Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS), Indonesia
- Ms. Lourdes O. Montenegro, Lead Digital Inclusion Benchmark, World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA), Netherlands
- Ms. Paola Gálvez, Strategic Advisor of Digital Regulation, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Peru
Moderator
- Louisa Tomar, Senior Program Officer, Global, Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE)