Digitisation spearheads development

In the 21st century, digital technologies are having an enormous impact on societies, daily life and ways of working, which is why the European Union (EU) is making efforts to streamline the green, digital transition.

Thus the EU sponsored the virtual Digital 4 Development Hub (D4D) event, which was held in close collaboration with DG DEVCO and DG CNECT.

“The pandemic has shown how much our lives depend on digital technologies. With the Digital4Development Hub, Team Europe is forging strong relationships around the world to make the digital revolution an opportunity for everyone”, said the president of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, at the event.

The event ushered in a new era of EU-led international digital partnerships. In addition to European Heads of State and Government, representatives of the public and private sectors and civil society participated in the meeting and discussed how to set up the EU Partnership with the African Union on the subject of the digital transformation.

Spain is one of the member countries of the D4D which, along with Germany, Belgium, France, Estonia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Sweden, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Finland, have signed a Letter of Intent to cooperate within the framework of the D4D Hub towards a sole European digital development strategy . The D4D Hub will set up regional branches in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as in the eastern part of the EU.

FIIAPP is involved in more than 70 recent actions to support digitisation through projects and programmes in Latin America, its neighbours and Sub-Saharan Africa .  The Foundation is an implementing agency and a key institution in Digital Agenda matters thanks to the high level of digitisation of Spanish government agencies and its participation in programmes like Ukraine Digital,EL PAcCTO, EL PAcCTO:Support for AMERIPOL ,Bridging the Gap, ARAP Ghana, EUROsociAL+, EUROCLIMA+ or I-CRIME, as well as numerous Twinnings.

Furthermore, FIIAPP has developed the platform Connect FIIAPP where it can continue to develop the activities of both the Foundation and the projects it manages virtually, so as not to stop learning and sharing experiences and to offer partner institutions a space for cooperation on the web.

Also, the emergence of COVID-19 has boosted digitisation programmes so that institutions can continue to provide essential services to citizens (e-governance) in line with one of the priorities of the Von der Leyen Commission for the EU’s external action, in particular for cooperation in the development of the new 2021-2027 financial cycle of the EU (Digital Alliance) and ensuring digital recovery.