The world has changed significantly since 2000, when the countries of the world adopted the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). While strong economic growth in the developing world has helped lift millions out of poverty, global population growth, modern lifestyles and consumption are now stretching the limits of the planet’s resources. During this time, technological advances in information and communication technologies (ICT) have radically transformed the way people communicate and lead their lives; now ICT can play a vital, transformative role in helping to put the world on a more sustainable path.

Recent crises in the financial, global food and energy sectors have highlighted fragility in global systems, as well as weaknesses in governance and persistent inequalities among vulnerable or disadvantaged populations. In addition, constraints to development have become apparent, such as climate change, increasing environmental degradation and population growth. Together with complex societal issues like rising inequality, ageing, infrastructure, gender equality, childhood development and education, as well as a lack of decent jobs for youth, these challenges pointed to an urgent need for an integrated, single sustainable Post-2015 development agenda.

In September last year, the UN adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); a set of goals to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all as part of this new sustainable development agenda, refocussing on efforts to much better reach vulnerable or marginalised groups and tackling the interrelated root causes of poverty, inequality and environmental degradation. It must shift technology and behaviour towards sustainable consumption and production patterns to decouple continued growth and improved living standards from the unsustainable use of resources. Business-as-usual is simply not an option.

Innovative, scalable multi-stakeholder solutions are needed to deliver inclusive economic growth and a shift to sustainable patterns of consumption and production. The world needs to adopt a more integrated and comprehensive approach to development—and in this, ICT and broadband can make a major contribution.

Research conducted by the UN Broadband Commission for Digital Development shows that while national broadband plans increasingly recognise broadband’s role in socio-economic development, much more needs to be done to support this ‘invisible technology’ transforming our world. A regulatory environment that encourages widely accessible and affordable broadband deployment is the only way to realise its potential to advance sustainable development—for example through proactive policy on radio spectrum for mobile communication services.

National broadband plans increasingly do link broadband and ICT explicitly with the achievement of societal goals: 86% of these plans refer to its role in improving access to education and educational outcomes; 82% address how ICT can improve governance, although emphasis is mainly on accessibility to services and three-quarters of plans analysed refer to health. In contrast, however, child and maternal health were barely mentioned, indicating a need to raise awareness of the considerable potential for broadband and ICT to enhance such healthcare systems, strengthen primary health systems and build foundations for addressing non-communicable diseases, including mental health. Only 31% of plans refer to poverty reduction and food security, with fewer than 20% linking broadband and ICT with agriculture, and only 6% considering the use of these technologies ICT to monitor food safety.

These are not simply linear developments; it requires governments and communities to rethink policies and strategies. Collaboration need to replace the traditional silo-structured nature of organisations. Horizontal systems based on interconnection and sharing will need to replace them. While governments (on all levels) need to show vision and leadership, private enterprise should be the ones to develop investment and business models, of course in close cooperation with ‘smart’ governments. The trend in 2016 is clearly that far more emphasis should be given on grassroots developments from communities and cities, people are increasingly empowered with access to mobile phones, tablets, computers, the internet, apps and so on; they demand smart communities and smart cities and are more than ready to assist their governments in getting there.