Thank you for giving me the floor Mr/Ms Co-facilitator.

I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the EU and its Member States.

The transformative power of the digital revolution has the potential, under the right conditions and governance, to enhance sustainable economic development, foster social inclusion and empowerment, and address pressing environmental challenges.

Together we can harness the opportunities presented by digitalization while ensuring that no one is left behind, and people, businesses, public institutions and the planet are protected against immanent and potential risks. This is why the EU promotes a human-centric approach to digital transformation – placing people on a healthy planet at the core of digital economies and societies globally. 

Access to and empowerment through inherently sustainable Information and Communication Technologies can accelerate progress towards every one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring environmental sustainability, equitable education, resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrial transformation, fostering targeted innovation towards sustainable development and improving effectiveness of public administration and access to public services. It will also keep us on track with meeting the goals of the Paris agreement and Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

To accelerate progress on the SDGs, we advocate for the following key principles within the Global Digital Compact:

1. Advancing a human-centric digital transformation, which puts people and their universal human rights at the centre throughout the world by protecting and safeguarding all rights and freedoms as recognized by international human rights law. A human rights-based approach is closely linked to the emerging concept of digital humanism, which is to be understood as the pursuit of supporting people through digital technologies, especially artificial intelligence, and of protecting people from adverse effects of these technologies;
2. Striving for universal access to digital technologies, including meaningful connectivity, particularly in underserved regions or for all women and girls and marginalized, disenfranchised persons in vulnerable situations. Bridging digital divides, including the gender digital divide, will empower individuals and communities, enabling them to participate fully in the digital economy and society whilst advancing access to essential services;
3. Recognising that everyone has the right to education, training and lifelong learning and should be able to acquire all digital skills and competences, including media and information literacy and critical thinking, to take an active part in the economy, society, and in democratic processes, especially vulnerable groups;
4. Placing gender-equality at the heart of the Global Digital Compact, by ensuring that all women and girls have equal opportunities to participate in the digital transformation, and that digital technologies and online spaces are safe and accessible for all;
5. Upholding strong privacy, data protection and data solidarity standards, including by establishing robust regulations and frameworks to safeguard personal data, ensuring the responsible use of information and protecting individuals' rights in the digital realm; and facilitating data uses that create public value;
6. Safeguarding an environmentally sustainable digitalization that minimizes its environmental footprint from mining, basic digital infrastructure production and hardware production to energy demands and e-waste. Early risk mitigation in the build-up of digital infrastructure is a necessity to prevent harm to people and the planet. We need to leverage synergies between the digital transformation and green transition to deliver sustainability benefits across all three dimensions: economic, social and environmental and ensure that the digital transformation contributes to climate goals.
7. Encouraging innovation and supporting digital entrepreneurship, especially through an enabling environment that promotes start-ups, research and development, and collaborative partnerships to drive digital innovation for sustainable development;
8. Promoting multi-stakeholder engagement involving national authorities, human rights institutions, academia, civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, international and regional organizations, and the private sector to mobilize the whole digital ecosystem for sustainable development; We need to foster equal global partnerships, especially through international multi-stakeholder collaboration and knowledge sharing;

Through Global Gateway, the EU has taken significant steps in advancing the achievement of the SDGs. The Global Gateway serves as a comprehensive framework that enables the EU to work collaboratively with partner countries and organizations across the globe, harnessing the power of multilateralism to drive sustainable development. Through investment in digital infrastructure, capacity building initiatives, knowledge sharing, and financial support, the EU's Global Gateway paves the way for innovative solutions, promotes policy coherence, and empowers communities to actively participate in their own sustainable development.

In conclusion, The EU welcomes the Secretary Generals’ vision to steer digital change towards closing divides and accelerating the SDG implementation as expressed in his Policy Brief. By upholding the principles of universal meaningful connectivity, promoting digital skills, environmental integrity, putting people and their universal human rights at the centre of inclusive digital innovation, entrepreneurship and digital cooperation, we can accelerate progress towards achieving the SDGs and leave no one behind.

Thank you.