On June 12-13, 2023, the Global DPI Summit 2023 was held as the part of the side event of third meeting of G20 (Group of Twenty) Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) in Pune, Maharashtra.
- It was inaugurated by Union Minister of State (MoS) Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) in the presence of Ministers from 9 countries namely Suriname, Armenia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Antigua and Barbuda, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Malawi and Trinidad and Tobago.
Key Theme:
Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for Ease of Living, Ease of Doing Business and Ease of Governance
Aim:
i.To bring together brilliant minds, creative thinkers, and passionate advocates of DPI from around the globe
ii.To embrace DPI as a catalyst for growth, inclusivity, and citizen’s welfare
Objective:
i.Build a pragmatic understanding of DPI
ii.Showcase the remarkable DPIs of G20 members and invited countries and their impact on the national and global digital economy
iii.Deliberate on critical success factors with key stakeholders
iv.Share the know-how and best practices of DPI
Participants:
The summit was attended by 150 foreign delegates from around 50 countries and over 250 delegates in-person and more than 2000 persons attended the summit live.
Signing of MoU between India and 4 Nations:
The event saw the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and the four countries of Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname, and Antigua and Barbuda on sharing INDIA STACK i.e. successful digital solutions implemented at population scale.
- India Stack is a set of digital infrastructure components that enable the delivery of various digital services to Indian citizens by utilizing Aadhaar, eSign, Digilocker, and Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
Highlights:
i.The summit had a Global DPI Exhibition which showcased and demonstrate India Stack initiatives such as UPI, Aadhaar, DigiLocker, UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance), and many more.
- Overall, Twelve initiatives from under the Digital India Flagship Programme showcased the best practices in implementing DPIs.
ii.A total of 10 Panel Discussions on sector agnostic and sectoral DPIs were held which are as follows:
Day 1
i.Overview of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)
Chaired by: Melford Walter Fitzgerald Nicholas, Minister of Information Communication Technologies, Utilities and Energy, Government of Antigua and Barbuda
ii.Digital Identities for empowering people
Chaired by: Eliud Okech Owalo, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of ICT and The Digital Economy, Kenya
iii.Digital Payments and Financial Inclusion
Chaired by: Mohammed Khamis Abdulla, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information Communication and Information Technology, Tanzania
iv.DPI for Judicial Systems and Regulations
Chaired by: Mark Ramkerrysingh, Chairman (Vice President Rank), Trinidad and Tobago
Day 2
i.Digital Document Exchange for efficient service delivery
Chaired by: Gevorg Mantashyan, First Deputy Minister of High Tech Industry of the Republic of Armenia
ii.Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) for DPI
Chaired by: Moses Kunkuyu Kalongashawa, Minister, Ministry of Information, Malawi
iii.Digital Education and Skilling
Chaired by: Parvashi D Maharahaje, Assistant Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information Technology and Communication, Mauritius
iv.Parvashi D Maharahaje, Assistant Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information Technology and Communication, Mauritius
Co-Chaired by: Rahaingonjatovo Nirina, Chief Digital Officer, Ministry of Digital Development, Digital Transformation, Posts and Telecommunications of Madagascar, and Kanaka Dasaratha Herath, State Minister Of Technology, Ministry Of Technology, Sri Lanka
v.Digital Agriculture Ecosystem
Chaired by: Damchen Zangmo, Dy.Chief ICT Officer, GovTech Agency, Bhutan
vi.Building the Global DPI Ecosystem
Chaired by: Walter Eduardo Morales Vega, Board Advisor, Central Bank of Uruguay
Key Notes:
i.It should be noted that the Secretary Alkesh Kumar Sharma of MeitY is a Chair of G20 DEWG
ii.This Summit is in alignment with the core theme of India’s G20 presidency viz. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam- ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’
Recent Related News:
i.India’s and Asia’s first mobile biosafety level-3 (BSL-3) laboratory named ‘Rapid Action Mobile BSL-3 Advanced Augmented Network (RAMBAAN)’, designed to investigate emerging viral infections was showcased at the second G-20(Group of 20) Health Working Group meeting held in Panaji , Goa.
ii.During the European Union(EU)-India Aviation Summit 2023 held from 20th to 21st April 2023 in New Delhi, Delhi, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation of India (DGCA India) signs a deal with European agencies to deepen the ties between India and European Union(EU) in the aviation sector.
About Armenia:
Capital– Yerevan
Currency– Armenian Dram
Prime Minister– Nikol Vovayi Pashinyan
