How to create a truly digital public 

Synopsis: Technological solutions for social services should be more citizen centric. At present these solutions are more suitable for elite class instead of marginalised class.  

Introduction 

Government has recognized the power of technology in ensuring inclusion at a massive scale. Technology is being used for social services such as receiving vaccines and rations to paying for cooking gas and applying for fertilizer subsidies.  

However, the technology of such services is not designed, keeping in mind the ordinary citizens of the country. It is more suitable for “elite” citizen I.e., male, urban, upper class. The term used in law, un-ironically, is “reasonable man”. 

What are the issues in technological designs of services? 

Accessibility and trust deficit: Large segments of Indians either do not trust or don’t have access to the digital model of services and hence rely upon trusted human intermediaries.  

Gender digital divide: social commerce entrepreneurs are not able to take the benefit of technology due to gender divide.  

What are the suggestions to make digital spaces truly public? 

Encouraging human-centric design: A shift from the default “build first and then disseminate” approach is required. Designs should be human-centric and its assessment by users should be mandatory before its rollout. For example, UPI payments app, BHIM and Postman Savings products have been successful among non “digital natives” due to their simple and pro-poor designs.  

Using trusted human interface: Local intermediaries like community leaders and civil society organizations and existing networks like ASHAs should be used to bridge the digital divide. These intermediaries are trusted by those who are not comfortable or don’t trust the technology.  

Institutionalize an anchor entity: This entity will bring together innovators, policymakers, civil society organisations and researchers to ensure citizen-centricity in GovTech. One such platform is Citizen Lab in Denmark.  

Source: This post is based on the article “How to create a truly digital public” published in The Indian Express on 30th Oct 2021.