Digital & Data Governance

During this year of changing priorities in Europe with the transition to a new mandate, our approach will continue to have at its core the opportunities and challenges posed by digital technologies. In the context of elections in Europe, we will discuss the impact of technologies, in particular AI, on democracy and inclusion. We will also examine how new technologies such as generative AI are reshaping the relationship between citizens and governments, in particular regarding the digitalisation of public services.

Building on the European Year of Skills in 2023 and Friends of Europe’s findings on this topic, we will dive into processes around civic and digital literacy the EU needs to invest in, so as to ensure that no one is left behind from public services and citizens across all member states acquire the competencies to be engaged civically using various digital tools, as a matter of necessity for democracies to survive and for trust to be regained. Digital tools have a unique potential to strengthen democracy, however, the risks to democracy are proportional if the EU relies solely on regulating tech companies, for instance, via the considerable leaps made by the DSA or the DMA, without ensuring a coherent approach to preparing its citizens for democracy and the future of work in the age of AI and virtual worlds.

Pursuing the path of the digital and green transition, we will focus on the possibilities and threats of virtual worlds for climate, health, security and industry. From a healthcare perspective, with digitalisation critical for making healthcare services available, more accurate and highly performing across the EU, we will consider ways for the EU to deliver on its Digital Decade target of giving citizens access to their health data by 2030, together with the potential opportunities and challenges virtual worlds pose for citizens. From a security perspective, the programme will address the security of the supply chains that these technologies require.

Access to connectivity infrastructure will remain a key point of discussion in 2024 and Friends of Europe will aim to take forward the recommendations from the Connected Europe activities and dive deeper into the current challenges and potential solutions to achieving the target of gigabit connectivity by 2030. Innovation made possible by connectivity will also stay high on our agenda. We will look into how the EU can foster innovation in its new mandate and what balance it needs to strike between regulation and innovation to enhance its competitiveness, ensure the protection of its values and keep a human-centric approach in a successful digital green transition.

In the context of Friends of Europe’s Renewed Social Contract for Europe, the Digital programme will continue to pay close attention to the roles, responsibilities and expectations of various actors in society, together with the threats and especially the opportunities digital technologies create, and will aim to foster the synergies and innovative ideas that will help Europe meet the targets of its Digital Decade.

As part of Friends of Europe’s work on digital, the Making Space Matter initiative acknowledges the continued need for discussion, debate and awareness-raising on space policy. In the context of a new European mandate threatened by the rise in populism, intensifying climate and security threats, we are looking at the opportunities and risks posed by new technologies and developments in the space sector. It is essential to continue laying the foundation for meaningful engagement, synergies and collaborations with stakeholders in relevant sectors and reinforces the commitment to space as a cross-sectoral key issue. This new phase of our partnership with the European Space Agency aims to mainstream space throughout our other areas of expertise where space is relevant.