ICTworks

Since their inception in 2014, the Principles for Digital Development have been endorsed by over 300 organizations globally – including donors, multilateral institutions, civil society organizations, and for-profit companies – as a compass for best practices in digital transformation.

Numerous development cooperation agencies reference the Principles in their procurements, program design, and staff development. The Principles are now a common frame of reference across the development sector.

Updated Digital Principles

As the digital development ecosystem matures and evolves, we must ensure the Digital Principles remain a valuable resource for the good of people and communities across the world. DIAL and its partners updated the Principles to reflect the realities of today’s world, where technology touches every aspect of society.

• Understand the existing ecosystem
• Share, reuse, and improve
• Design with people
• Design for inclusion
• Build for sustainability
• Establish people-first data practices
• Create open and transparent practices
• Anticipate and mitigate harms
• Use evidence to improve outcomes

The updated Principles for Digital Development serve as a compass for those working to promote sustainable and inclusive development in today’s complex digital landscape. Through a new Preamble and iterations to the 9 Principles, the updated version better emphasizes the need to:

• Above all, Do No Harm
• Prioritize radical inclusion and local ownership
• Elevate issues related to data governance and empowerment
• Use open approaches to innovation, such as interoperability
• Speak to government officials, policymakers, and the private sector

Using these Principles as a starting point, policymakers, practitioners, and technologists will be better equipped to ensure that all people can benefit from digital initiatives and from the broader digital society.