India has entered into eight memorandums of understandings (MoUs) with countries such as Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname, Antigua, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Papua New Guinea and Mauritius, offering them the India Stack and digital public infrastructure (DPI) at no cost and with open-source access.

These nations now have the opportunity to adopt and utilise these resources within their borders, further developing their unique innovation ecosystems, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship said here on Tuesday.

Interacting with media, he discussed the significant outcomes of the Digital Economy Ministers’ Meeting held last month and highlighted how, in a historic move, under India’s Presidency, G20 Digital Economy Ministers reached a groundbreaking consensus on how to effectively shape DPI of the future.

Chandarsekhar said that the consensus between nations focused broadly in three key areas — DPI, Cybersecurity and Digital Skills.

“DPIs, for the first time ever, reached a global consensus and what ought to be their definition, framework and principles. This is an exciting conversation that has gained momentum in the context of the G20. India is now a case study, as a nation that employed and deployed technological tools for progress and growth,” he told reporters.

Countries that have lagged behind increasingly see this as a way to follow India’s lead in DPIs, an open-source digital infrastructure, and using it to create the same impact that India has, he said.

“Through these G20 conversations, we have further understood how DPIs are a powerful mechanism for inclusion, especially for countries in the global south,” the Minister said.

Apart from DPIs, he spoke about how nations have prioritised cybersecurity as well, emphasising its importance for a fast-paced growing economy.

“On cybersecurity, the G20 digital economy Ministers have had wide-ranging discussions on why it is important for businesses to be protected. Cybersecurity is an important issue for all countries in the world because the digital economy is becoming an increasingly larger component of economic progress and the global economy,” he said.

On consensus of digital skills, he said that in a post-Covid digital world, it is necessary for nations to ensure that digital skills are taught and nurtured among the youth.

“India’s talents are focused on creating digital skills for our youth. This is something that has resonated during this discussion. Many countries are interested in partnering with each other and with India to create digital-ready, future-ready skill to deal with the ongoing challenges in the coming techade,” Chandrasekhar added.

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