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FM Retno underscores importance of digital transformation for global economic recovery
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Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs attended Digital Economy Working Group Kick-off Meeting (Source: MOFA Indonesia)
W
ith a 15.5 percent contribution to the world’s GDP, the digital economy has the potential to support global economic recovery. Therefore, Indonesia’s Group of 20 presidency has made digital transformation one of its priority sectors.
"International collaboration and cooperation must continue to be encouraged so that digital transformation can contribute to global economic growth, including for developing countries," said Foreign Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi in her remarks at the Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) kick-off meeting on Tuesday.
The DEWG operates under G20 Sherpa Track, which is being held for the first time under Indonesia’s presidency. The DEWG aims to discuss collaboration on digital connectivity, digital entrepreneurship, reducing the digital skills gap and data flow. The kick-off meeting is the start of the DEWG series of meetings, with the main theme of “Achieving a Resilient Recovery: Working Together for a More Inclusive, Empowering and Sustainable Digital Transformation”.
Minister Retno identified three focuses of international cooperation that digital economy stakeholders in the G20 needed to pay close attention to.
The first was international collaboration to promote inclusiveness and bridge the global digital divide. Retno noted that 96 percent of the world's population who were not connected to the internet were from developing countries. She called on the G20 to become a driving force for global investment to build quality and affordable digital infrastructure.
The second was strengthening global cooperation in digital literacy, which is crucial to helping people fully benefit from the digital transformation. According to her, the two sectors that needed to be targeted for capacity building were local MSMEs and the government.
"International cooperation is very much needed to facilitate the strengthening of digital capacity for developing countries, including in the financing aspect," she continued.
The third was international cooperation to build a secured digital ecosystem. The losses from global data breaches could reach up to US$5 trillion by 2024. Therefore, the digital security aspect remains a big question. For this reason, Retno said privacy guarantees, secure payment mechanisms and clear consumer protection were important to rebuilding trust. The discussions in the DEWG, she said, would be an important beginning to strengthening the future global digital order and encouraging the sustainability of the discussion of the digital economy as a central issue in the G20.
The DEWG kick-off meeting was facilitated by the Communications and Information Ministry. This initial meeting was attended physically by the communication and information minister and virtually by the foreign minister and the coordinating economic minister. The series of meetings in the DEWG will lead to the Digital Economy Ministers Meeting (DEMM), which will be held on Sept. 1 and 2 in Bali.
