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As for the future, the aim is not to return to the « normality » of 2019, when the pace of progress on many SDGs would not have enabled us to meet the 2030 deadline, but to build back better.
With the pandemic, we found that countries with more developed digital infrastructures were often better equipped to meet immediate and medium-term challenges, such as providing health and education services online and using digital payment systems. The pandemic demonstrated the importance of technology and, in many ways, accelerated digital transformation. We looked at emerging trends in some key technologies in developing economies that have the potential to have a significant and lasting impact.
New or less expensive technologies have made geospatial data more accessible. Small island developing states exposed to immediate risks such as sea-level rise and extreme weather events induced by climate change, like the Maldives, use drones to map disaster risks.
In Peru, we are using spatial data to help the government draw up a plan to revive the forestry sector.
Satellite data can also be used to develop micro-insurance programs for farmers, where rainfall data and a mobile app enable automated, seamless payments to farmers in the event of crop loss due to significantly higher or lower than average rainfall. This can improve the resilience and livelihoods of many farmers in developing countries.
Innovative mechanisms are emerging in the field of financial technology, including the Gcash Forest, supported by the UNDP Biodiversity Finance Initiative in the Philippines. More than two million people have already signed up to the app since its launch a year ago, accumulating points by carrying out sustainable activities such as walking, forgoing paper bills or buying organic produce. Over 500,000 US dollars have been invested in tree planting to date.
In Lebanon, UNDP's AltFinLab has piloted the deployment of a crypto-currency called Cedar Coin. A tree is planted for every coin purchased. These are native species, and each type of cedar has its own price. The specific trees are recorded in a register using the blockchain.
Internet of Things" applications are expanding, from smart mobility and smart cities to smart agriculture, such as irrigation systems and value chain management. Smart meters are essential for scaling up renewable energies, both on- and off-grid, and are paving the way for other applications to reduce the risks associated with "green" energy investments in many developing countries. NGOs and academics are also exploring unique applications in project monitoring and learning cycles.
But we can't expect countries to reap the full benefits of technology without a reliable, affordable connection. Today, some 3.6 billion people still have no access to the Internet, the majority in developing countries.
To get off to a solid start, more people in developing countries need to innovate at local level. Sometimes, a cheaper, simpler solution will do the trick. At a hackathon in Rwanda, several teams of young engineers proposed using new technologies to transmit sensor data from remote areas with no internet coverage to the nearest internet point.
While the upward trend in corporate commitments to sustainability is well established, the important question to ask is whether these commitments are for the sake of brand image, or in the interests of mitigating climate change. It's not enough to carry on business as usual and then report on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) after the fact. Any real change must come from a detailed examination of the impact of its activities, at every level, from supply chain to production and beyond.
Private enterprise can play a decisive role in supporting local initiatives, given the vast human and other resources and influence at their disposal.
