Technology Justice: a new paradigm for the SDGs

By Amber Meikle

We are now entering the final few months of discussions that will cement global development targets for the next 15 years. As discussions on goals and targets conclude and we look towards the vital task of implementation, Practical Action is launching a new series of policy briefing papers that capture the learning from our programme and policy work with technology and development.

The first paper, launched today, introduces Technology Justice: a new paradigm to inform the design and implementation of these Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The critical link between technology, poverty reduction and wellbeing is now well understood. For many people, technology is so pervasive that it is hard to imagine life without it, and harder still to keep up with the constant technological change and innovation. Yet, at the same time, billions of people living in poverty around the world lack essential technologies that could help them to meet their basic needs.

This stark inequality in how the costs and benefits of technology are shared is not just bad luck, but an injustice that results from choices made in how technology is innovated, disseminated and used. These choices largely ignore or exclude the poor.

In our new paper, we put forward recommendations on how to ensure development planning and approaches address three key global technology injustices: inequitable access to existing technology; innovation that ignores the poor; and unsustainable use of technology. We evaluate current global technology mechanisms and the role the private sector can play to realise Technology Justice in order to ensure that when the SDGs end in 2030 we can celebrate a world free of poverty.

You can read the paper here.

Let us know what you think!