The focus of this year’s International Day of Democracy (IDD) on Artificial Intelligence (AI) invites us to consider the complex relationship between democracy and digitalization. Digitalization offers significant opportunities to enhance democracy, such as increasing participation and facilitating collective action, particularly among young people. It also allows governments to serve people more effectively and efficiently. However, technological advancements pose threats as well, including the risk of exclusion, particularly gendered exclusion, due to unequal access, challenges to privacy, misinformation and disinformation, and online hate speech that disproportionately targets women and marginalized groups. There is much good analysis of these issues. Indeed, an AI chatbot can, with very few prompts and in a few seconds, produce an excellent blog which weighs the pros and cons of digitalization for democracy, urging the development of appropriate frameworks and safeguards. 

The chatbot is not wrong. Addressing the risks of digitalization through multi-stakeholder approaches is critical. Most significantly, the Global Digital Compact to be agreed at the upcoming Summit of the Future, promises to provide guidance on how best to harness the potential of digital technologies while addressing its risks, to build a more open, free, inclusive and secure digital future for all. The Summit of the Future is preceded by action days, with specific focus on a digital future for all, as well as youth participation, highlighting the importance of these themes.  

It is welcome that narratives of opportunity and risk are now well known, which is why AI chatbots can reproduce them so effectively, and that there is growing consensus in the responses of the international community on the importance of guardrails. These bring an important counterbalance to unrelenting ‘techno-optimism’. However, as digitalization becomes ever more pervasive, this IDD is a good opportunity to reflect further from a democratic perspective on how digitalization is affecting people in their everyday lives, as well as the relevance of democratic principles for the governance of digitalization. Two key areas for reflection are information ecosystems and the development of digital public infrastructure (DPI). 

Trustworthy and reliable information is a necessary condition for peaceful and inclusive societies. It allows for informed public debate and constructive public discourse. Disinformation is polluting information systems at a speed and scale never seen before, while information echo chambers are hardening, further impeding meaningful dialogue. Spurred on by advances in new and emerging technologies, such as AI, the threats have quickly escalated, with disinformation spreading lies, widening polarization and increasing people’s distrust in democratic institutions and each other. UNDP, as part of the UN family, urges government, tech companies, advertisers and the PR industry to address the monetization of content and personal data that boosts disinformation. The United Nations Global Principles for Information Integrity provide a series of recommendations aimed at fostering healthier and safer information spaces that champion human rights, peaceful societies and a sustainable future. UNDP also works with countries to understand and respond to these challenges. In the Western Balkans, we raise awareness of the impact of digital platforms on public deliberation, and in Uruguay, we advance digital literacy, particularly for young people.

DPI is now widely considered a critical enabler of digital transformation and is helping to improve and broaden public service delivery. Designed and implemented well, it can help countries achieve their national priorities and accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals. However, as others have argued, there is nothing intrinsic in DPI that creates inclusion, transparency and trust, so it is important to interrogate the values that underpin DPI and be clear about how to create and maximize public value. For this reason, UNDP and the Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology are consulting widely to develop universal safeguards for DPI, to ensure that it is safe, trusted and inclusive for all. UNDP is also supporting rights-based and inclusive digital transformation in countries, including through governance frameworks for digital legal identity systems which ensure inclusion and respect for human rights, such as in Namibia and Somalia. 

In this rapidly evolving landscape, ensuring that digitalization supports democratic principles requires public participation and democratic oversight. UNDP works with partners to support different stakeholders in societies to play their roles effectively. This includes working with electoral management bodies and others on issues of misinformation, including through convening the Action Coalition on Information Integrity in Elections and developing a massive open online course (MOOC) on the impact of AI on elections and freedom of speech. UNDP also works with parliamentarians to ensure that they fulfil their legislative, representation and oversight functions effectively on issues such as legal identity, or frontier digital issues such as AI.

In a few days, world leaders at the Summit of the Future, being held in New York City, will consider how to protect the needs and interests of present and future generations, including through a “Pact for the Future”. Digitalization will be central to realizing those ambitions. Let us make sure its value is maximized, for the benefit of all, by ensuring it is designed and governed in ways that reinforce democratic principles. UNDP stands ready to play its part in translating these aspirations into reality in people’s lives.