Key messages:

• The Commission welcomes the appointment by the President of the UN General Assembly of the Permanent Representatives of Rwanda and of Sweden as Cofacilitators to lead the intergovernmental process on the Global Digital Compact and conduct the consultations with Member States and Stakeholders on the proposal and the development of the GDC.
• The Commission welcomes the initiative of the United Nations SecretaryGeneral to propose a Global Digital Compact and recognizes therefore the need for coherent and coordinated UN effort and process leading into the ‘Summit of the Future’ outcomes in 2024.
• The Commission appreciates the multistakeholder character of the consultations thus far and calls for continued opportunities for multistakeholder engagement throughout the process of development of the Global Digital Compact.
• The Commission calls for the Global Digital Compact to be anchored in the vision of a connected, inclusive and sustainable world.
• The Commission reiterates the importance of respecting existing UN agencies and bodies’ mandates given by Member States in digital and ICTs and the commitments already made by Member States and all relevant stakeholders, also through conferences, processes and UN-led fora like WSIS.
• The Commission expresses the need to ensure consistency between existing multilateral and multistakeholder fora and mechanisms, avoiding duplication and ensuring that efforts complement, build on and reinforce existing frameworks and successful activities, which have proven to be impactful.
• Any new efforts proposed in the GDC should complement the broader UN digital cooperation landscape already established and should include all relevant players from the digital ecosystem.
• The Commission, as a multi-stakeholder leadership platform, has established a solid foundation and strong case to continue its role as a pre-eminent thought leader on digital and can play an important advisory role for the GDC, especially in the consultation period before its adoption by UN Member States at The Summit of the Future.