Digital skills within the Public Sector: A missing link to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Antonio Cordella; Francesco Gualdi; Mindel van de Laar

doi:10.3233/IP-230008

Digital skills within the Public Sector: A missing link to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Antonio Cordella, Francesco Gualdi^*, Mindel van de Laar

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Academic literature has mostly discussed digital skills concerning end-users’ capability to access and use single technologies. Against this background, the paper sheds light on a missing element: the digital literacy of those who frame ICT-mediated policies that pursue sustainable development. The paper offers a novel conceptualization of digital skills as the capabilities to understand the socio-technical assemblages that emerge in social contexts after the adoption of ICT-mediated policies. Exploring the case study of the United Kingdom’s Government Digital Service, the paper argues that empowering public administrators and civil servants with these digital skills is paramount to design, implement, and manage ICT-mediated policies that aim to achieve Sustainable Development Goals.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	13-33
Number of pages	21
Journal	Information Polity
Volume	29
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3233/IP-230008
Publication status	Published - 20 Feb 2024

Keywords

digital services
Digital skills
Public sector
Sustainable Development Goals

Access to Document

10.3233/IP-230008

Cite this

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title = "Digital skills within the Public Sector: A missing link to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)",

abstract = "Academic literature has mostly discussed digital skills concerning end-users{\textquoteright} capability to access and use single technologies. Against this background, the paper sheds light on a missing element: the digital literacy of those who frame ICT-mediated policies that pursue sustainable development. The paper offers a novel conceptualization of digital skills as the capabilities to understand the socio-technical assemblages that emerge in social contexts after the adoption of ICT-mediated policies. Exploring the case study of the United Kingdom{\textquoteright}s Government Digital Service, the paper argues that empowering public administrators and civil servants with these digital skills is paramount to design, implement, and manage ICT-mediated policies that aim to achieve Sustainable Development Goals.",

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N1 - Funding Information: This paper is based on ideas and concepts that were developed in the cooperation on “Compendium of frameworks on best practices and regulations on advanced digital skills and digital literacy: Priority issue 2 – Digital Skills and Digital Literacy (KOMINFO, Indonesia)”, commissioned by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for Indonesia’s G20 Presidency. We would like to thank Dr. Atsuko Okuda for leading the cooperation with the ITU. We also thank Serdar Türkeli and Fauzan Ansyari (UNU-MERIT) who worked with us on that project. data:

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AB - Academic literature has mostly discussed digital skills concerning end-users’ capability to access and use single technologies. Against this background, the paper sheds light on a missing element: the digital literacy of those who frame ICT-mediated policies that pursue sustainable development. The paper offers a novel conceptualization of digital skills as the capabilities to understand the socio-technical assemblages that emerge in social contexts after the adoption of ICT-mediated policies. Exploring the case study of the United Kingdom’s Government Digital Service, the paper argues that empowering public administrators and civil servants with these digital skills is paramount to design, implement, and manage ICT-mediated policies that aim to achieve Sustainable Development Goals.

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KW - Public sector

KW - Sustainable Development Goals

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