The Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-commerce and the Digital Economy,
Recalling paragraph 100 (r) of the Nairobi Maafikiano (TD/519/Add.2), which called for the establishment of an intergovernmental group of experts on electronic commerce (e-commerce) and the digital economy,
Recalling the Bridgetown Covenant (TD/541/Add.2), in which member States instructed UNCTAD to strengthen the work on assisting developing countries to systematically assess their state-of-play and readiness to engage and integrate into the digital economy, thus contributing to the closing of the digital divide, and to conduct work across its three pillars on the development dimension of the use of data and frontier technologies,
Emphasizing that following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the acceleration of global digital transformation, which was well under way, has played a critical role in mitigating the health, social and economic effects of the pandemic while offering many new opportunities, as well as accentuating challenges for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals,
Recognizing that the sharing of data, information and technology is crucial for the detection, prevention, treatment and control of the pandemic, but that such sharing has also led to increased concerns and risks related to data protection, misuse of data, privacy and human rights, as well as to misinformation and threats to cybersecurity,
Noting with concern that 37 per cent of the world’s population remains offline and that the pandemic has made the digital divide even more evident, as the most vulnerable and unprepared for digitalization have been disproportionately affected and been the least able to make use of digital solutions,
Highlighting that digitalization, though uneven, has been truly transformative, significantly altering many aspects of modern life and being at the centre of an economic transformation with opportunities and changing what is consumed, produced and traded,
Noting that digitalization also comes with challenges that require closing the digital divide between and within developed and developing countries, by enhancing the availability of digital tools and resources, to provide an opportunity for structural transformation and economic diversification and, thereby, provide options for improving the income and resilience of microenterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises and vulnerable groups, including women and youth,
Noting with concern that accelerated digitalization during the pandemic has reinforced the market concentration of global digital platforms and increased their power and responsibilities, with consequential impacts on consumer behaviour and competition and, in this regard, reiterating the importance of the role of UNCTAD in assisting developing countries in the implementation of the United Nations guidelines for consumer protection,
Recognizing that digital technologies can be key in the recovery by driving structural transformation in the pursuit of building equitable, sustainable, inclusive and resilient economies and societies,
- Encourages Governments and the international community to adopt policies to make use of the opportunities of the digital economy and to address the challenges of the digital divide between and within countries, including through a holistic and whole-of-government approach, so as to increase the resilience and capacities of countries to use digitalization to deal with crises and to ensure that the benefits of digital transformation are shared by all, while building a better future and accelerating the pace towards the timely accomplishment of the Sustainable Development Goals;
- Stresses that the need to support developing countries’ digital transformation, while taking account of the challenges and opportunities of new realities and swift technological change, has become an even more pressing policy priority as a result of the pandemic, requiring doubling down on efforts, including by boosting resources for such transformation, private and public and domestic and international;
- Notes that digitalization that ensures a more resilient, inclusive, environmentally sound and sustainable world requires inclusive international dialogue and cooperation, as well as continued strengthening of the participation of developing countries in relevant processes;
- Recognizes that efforts at the international level, with an emphasis on finding common principles and objectives, are needed to address interconnected global challenges, maximize the gains of the digital economy and digitalization, ensure an equitable distribution of the gains and minimize the risks involved;
- Calls on the international community to strengthen its support to developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and those further behind, to build their capacities to participate in and benefit from e-commerce and the digital economy;
- Calls on UNCTAD to continue supporting developing countries in their efforts to increase their readiness to engage in and benefit from e-commerce and the digital economy, for example through eTrade Readiness Assessments; the development of digital entrepreneurial skills and literacy, including for microenterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises; and consideration of the development dimension of digitalization across its three pillars of work.
