Prof. Willem Fourie, lead of the Policy Innovation Lab, recently participated in the final conference of the PRODIGEES (Promoting Research on Digitalisation in Emerging Powers and Europe Towards Sustainable Development) project, held in Mexico City. The event marked the culmination of five years of international collaboration on the role of digital technologies in advancing sustainable development.
Prof. Fourie contributed to three sessions. In the first, he responded to a keynote address by Pablo Enrique Yanes Rizo, Secretary of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation for Mexico City. He highlighted the difficulty of crafting effective AI policies that balance the promotion of innovation with the need for risk mitigation.
The following day, he co-organised and participated in a workshop on “Digitalisation in the Public Sector”. He was joined by representatives from the World Bank, Visor Urbano and the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS). Discussions focused on the complex nature of digital inclusion. While public interventions, such as those seen in India, have successfully reduced costs and expanded access, persistent barriers remain. These include the high cost of mobile data, particularly for marginalised groups, as well as issues related to trust, usability and accessibility for elderly and digitally excluded populations.
The workshop also addressed the digital skills gap in public administrations. Many governments face challenges in attracting and retaining skilled personnel. Participants agreed that for digital public infrastructure (DPI) to be effective, it must be open, trusted and underpinned by institutional models that blend internal capabilities with external innovation.
In the final session, Prof. Fourie joined a panel reflecting on the project’s outcomes and future directions. He emphasised the critical role of citizen agency—not only in advocating for improved digital services, but also in how individuals engage as informed users of both public and private digital platforms.