Digital governance refers to the practice of setting and enforcing rules and policies related to an organisation’s digital activities, with the intention of protecting against legal issues, cyber attacks, disruption and remaining agile during times of change.
Emerging market countries require a digital governance model that offers clear alternatives to China’s authoritarian and fragmented internet model.
The Internet’s Impact on Global Politics
Digital tools provide people with greater access to information, global connections and avenues for holding their governments accountable. However, the rapid pace of technological change may outstrip legal safeguards and oversight, potentially creating unintended consequences for individuals, businesses and public institutions alike.
CSIS has long advocated for enhanced global stewardship to ensure digital technology promotes human rights, inclusive sustainable development and international stability; yet no global frameworks for digital governance exist yet.
The United States needs to assert itself as a key standard-setter in this regard, capitalizing on the momentum generated by Turkey and Germany’s G20 presidencies to push for a multilateral digital policy forum. Such a forum would enable it to align emerging market democracies’ interests with those of itself to prevent authoritarian regimes spreading throughout cyberspace while creating globally interoperable common rules and standards – essential steps towards avoiding bifurcated Internet.
The U.S. Needs to Cleverly Leverage Multilateralism
Digital governance is the framework governing an organization’s digital operations and platforms, such as its website presence and social media channels, data ownership policies and compliance with essential digital standards. Companies seeking to stay ahead of complex legislation and compliance such as GDPR and CCPA find digital governance crucial in keeping up with a shifting legal environment.
The Biden administration has expressed an eagerness to reinvigorate multilateralism within its foreign policy doctrine, and there has been bipartisan agreement in Congress that the US must lead in setting global technology standards to protect an open Internet from any form of influence from illiberal powers. Furthermore, these efforts must include engaging emerging markets through trade agreements which highlight U.S. values and principles on issues like cross-border data flows, privacy protections, trust issues, and security protections.
Thus, the United States can establish a club of market democracies as an alternative to China’s authoritarian and fragmented internet. To do this, existing multilateral institutions should be reconfigured as standard-setting bodies that promote governance models responsive to democratic values while remaining resilient against illiberal influences.
The U.S. Should Engage with Developing Countries
Realizing digital governance requires collaboration from numerous partners. Each must be educated on its best practices. According to Admincontrol research, 94% of board directors worldwide feel they require further digital governance training but only 58% say they actually receive it.
Developing countries need assistance with both the digital aspects of their regulatory structures and institutions as well as with upgrading analog infrastructure and integrating it with the global digital ecosystem. To accomplish this task, the Biden administration should utilize bilateral channels, lead multilateral institutions effectively and use the USMCA Digital Trade Chapter for galvanizing global democracies while creating consensus around principles to support a free, open and interoperable Internet.
It should also promote these standards through existing and new free trade agreements, while devising a plan for countering China’s efforts to institutionalize control over global Internet.
The U.S. Needs to Defend the Free and Open Internet
Digital governance entails all activities being carried out ethically and helps companies avoid incurring costly cyber breaches. Furthermore, it serves to keep company information confidential and private – especially crucial in financial industries where data breaches may lead to massive financial losses.
Decentralized governance models tend to be less effective, as individual departments set their own policies and standards without consultation with one another or coordination across departments. Such an arrangement may result in inconsistencies and inefficiencies as well as hinder coordination across divisions.
The Biden administration must reassert multilateralism as an integral element of its foreign policy doctrine, using bilateral channels and its leadership role in international institutions to galvanize global democracies into creating a framework for digital regulation that safeguards a free and open Internet. Furthermore, governance standards through trade agreements with developing countries should be promoted so they may choose an approach which curtails illiberalism while satisfying public privacy worries without overextending limited state capacities.