Quad to create inclusive, open and sustainable Digital Public Infrastructure

The Quad in its last Saturday’s summit emphasised on Digital Public Infrastructure critical role in creating a secure, reliable, and interoperable digital ecosystem. They affirmed the principles of inclusivity; interoperability; modularity and extensibility; scalability; security and privacy; collaboration; governance for public benefit, trust, and transparency; grievance redress; sustainability; human rights; intellectual property protection; and sustainable development for the development and deployment of DPI.

The Quad also recognised the potential of digital technologies in shaping the future of societies worldwide and offering opportunities to accelerate the realisation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the achievement of its Sustainable Development Goals. "While leveraging the potential of digitalisation, we also underscore the importance of fostering an inclusive, open, sustainable, fair, safe, reliable and secure digital future in furtherance of our shared prosperity and sustainable development," according to a statement.

DPI is an evolving concept described as a set of shared digital systems that are secure, reliable and interoperable; built and leveraged by the public and private sector to provide equitable access and improve public service delivery at scale; governed by applicable legal frameworks and enabling rules that provide for a level playing field and fair competition to drive development, inclusion, innovation, trust, and competition, and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms


The Quad expressed their affirmation to follow the principles of Inclusivity which include eliminating or reducing economic, technical, or social barriers to enable inclusion, empowerment of end-users, last-mile access, and avoiding erroneous algorithmic bias; Interoperability by using and building on open standards and specifications with a technology-neutral approach, wherever possible, while accounting for appropriate safeguards and keeping in view the legal considerations and technical constraints. Modularity and Extensibility imply a building block or modular architecture to accommodate changes/modifications without undue disruption, the release said. Scalability by using flexible design to easily accommodate any unexpected increase in demand and/or to meet expansion requirements without changing existing systems. Security and Privacy by adopting an approach that embeds key privacy-enhancing technologies and security features within the core design to ensure individual privacy, data protection, and resilience based on standards offering appropriate levels of protection.

Collaboration by encouraging the participation of community actors at different stages of planning, designing, building, and operating to facilitate and promote a culture of openness and collaboration.