Building Vibrant ICT Centric Innovation Ecosystems - Session1: An insight into “ICT-centric economic growth, innovation and job creation”

The vital role of ICTs as a catalyst for development is acknowledged in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, stating “the spread of information and communications technology and global interconnectedness has great potential to accelerate human progress, to bridge the digital divide and develop knowledge societies.”

Innovation has been recognized as a powerful engine for development to address social and economic challenges and steer global concerns for policy makers and citizens alike. Innovation is also essential to accelerating digital transformation and fosters the sustainable growth for the digital economy.

This session will focus on the main highlights of the evidence-based research carried out by world renowned scholars on ICT-centric economic growth, innovation and job creation from various aspects such as governance, education, job creation, industrial transformation and socio-economic growth through digital and emerging technologies in the converged ICT ecosystem. Successful partnership and approaches among multi-stakeholders will be explored and debated on the opportunities and challenges for accelerating digital transformation through ICT-centric innovation in cross-sectors or industries from finance, education to health among many others, in order to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).