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Public Tech
November 15, 2021

Putting the Cart before the Horse? An evaluation of the framework for National Open Digital Ecosystems

Our response to the MEITY white paper on National Open Digital Ecosystems ( NODEs) cautions against the development of such architectures in the absense of adequate regulatory frameworks, institutional capacities, and community engagement. It is more important for 'openness' to be a characteristic of government, than a software standard.
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Putting the Cart before the Horse? An evaluation of the framework for National Open Digital Ecosystems
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Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) has released a white paper introducing the concept of a National Open Digital Ecosystems (NODEs). The system is envisaged to be an 'open and secure delivery platform, anchored by transparent governance mechanisms, which will enable a community of partners to unlock innovative solutions, to transform societal outcomes’. 

While we recognise the potential of NODES to enable more citizen-centric public services, we draw attention to the importance of first developing robust adequate governance structures, institutional capacities, and community participation frameworks.  Our response highlights concerns around varying levels of digitalisation; underdeveloped institutions for data governance;  weak privacy and security infrastructure; and the absence of public deliberation around the purpose and governance of NODEs. Without addressing these issues, NODEs could amount to a case of putting the cart before the horse, with significant challenges for inclusivity, privacy, and accountability. 

This response was authored by the team at Tandem Research, the former home of the Responsible Technology Initiative

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Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels
illustration by:
Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels

Putting the Cart before the Horse? An evaluation of the framework for National Open Digital Ecosystems

Our response to the MEITY white paper on National Open Digital Ecosystems ( NODEs) cautions against the development of such architectures in the absense of adequate regulatory frameworks, institutional capacities, and community engagement. It is more important for 'openness' to be a characteristic of government, than a software standard.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) has released a white paper introducing the concept of a National Open Digital Ecosystems (NODEs). The system is envisaged to be an 'open and secure delivery platform, anchored by transparent governance mechanisms, which will enable a community of partners to unlock innovative solutions, to transform societal outcomes’. 

While we recognise the potential of NODES to enable more citizen-centric public services, we draw attention to the importance of first developing robust adequate governance structures, institutional capacities, and community participation frameworks.  Our response highlights concerns around varying levels of digitalisation; underdeveloped institutions for data governance;  weak privacy and security infrastructure; and the absence of public deliberation around the purpose and governance of NODEs. Without addressing these issues, NODEs could amount to a case of putting the cart before the horse, with significant challenges for inclusivity, privacy, and accountability. 

This response was authored by the team at Tandem Research, the former home of the Responsible Technology Initiative

Browse categories

Scroll right