Harnessing Technology for the Global Goals: A framework for government action

The document argues that while the COVID-19 pandemic reversed gains on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies offer a significant opportunity to accelerate progress if responsibly steered by governments. It proposes a six-pillar leadership framework—covering vision, governance, R&D, finance, skills, and collaboration—to help public sector leaders overcome barriers such as poor data access, lack of infrastructure, and inadequate market incentives. The framework includes a 'tech for good' checklist and case studies from Malaysia, Colombia, Kenya, Botswana, and Sierra Leone to illustrate how governments can integrate technology into national development strategies and public services.

• Technological applications already in deployment could potentially enable over 70% of the 136 targets within the Global Goals.
• The COVID-19 pandemic significantly hindered progress on the Global Goals, causing the first increase in global poverty in decades with an estimated 71 million people pushed into poverty and keeping 90% of students out of school due to closures.
• Governments face several systemic barriers to scaling technology for the Global Goals, including poor data quality and access, insufficient basic infrastructure, a lack of viable business models for public goods, and the risk of exacerbating existing socio-economic inequalities.
• To effectively deploy technology, governments should adopt a leadership framework consisting of six key areas: vision and strategy, governance and accountability, innovation, research and development, finance for commercialization, people and skills, and collective action and collaboration.
• Public sector leaders can stimulate the market for 'tech for good' by updating procurement policies to include sustainability standards and ESG assessments, investing in foundational digital and physical infrastructure, and providing financial incentives for Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies.
• The transition to a technology-driven economy requires active government intervention in the labour market, including reskilling the civil service, implementing labour market reforms, and establishing social safety nets to protect low-skilled workers from automation.

APA

World Economic Forum (2021). Harnessing Technology for the Global Goals: A framework for government action. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Harnessing_Technology_for_the_Global_Goals_2021.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Harnessing Technology for the Global Goals: A framework for government action. 2021. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Harnessing_Technology_for_the_Global_Goals_2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Harnessing Technology for the Global Goals: A framework for government action |date=January 2021 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Harnessing_Technology_for_the_Global_Goals_2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2021harnessing, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Harnessing Technology for the Global Goals: A framework for government action}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2021}, month = jan, url = {http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Harnessing_Technology_for_the_Global_Goals_2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }