On the morning of March 27, the International Communication Research Institute of East China Normal University, together with the Global South Academic Forum and the BRICS Innovation Base Digital Economy Research Center, officially released the “BRICS Digital Sovereignty Index Report” during the Zhongguancun Forum. This achievement has been included in the excellent achievement release plan of the Zhongguancun Global High-End Think Tank Alliance (hereinafter referred to as the “Alliance”).
As a much-anticipated highlight of this forum, the “BRICS Digital Sovereignty Index Report” adopts the Digital Sovereignty Index (DSI) framework proposed by our institute and employs a five-level maturity model for research. The results show that digital sovereignty development among BRICS countries is distinctly differentiated: China leads comprehensively in data governance, infrastructure, spatial governance, and digital capabilities; Russia stands out in spatial governance and policy frameworks; India demonstrates strong performance in digital capabilities, leveraging its talent pool and ecosystem advantages. Most newly expanded member countries are still in the initial stages regarding infrastructure and core technologies, highlighting common challenges faced by the Global South. The report, using a quantifiable digital sovereignty assessment system as its methodology, innovatively outlines the common challenges in the digital transformation process of the Global South, receiving high attention and positive recognition from participating experts.
During the Zhongguancun Forum, the BRICS Innovation Base Digital Economy Research Center, a partner of the Global South Academic Forum, and the Alliance officially signed a strategic cooperation memorandum at the Global Science and Technology Innovation High-End Think Tank Forum. Dr. Shameem A. Nawber, Deputy Director of the Center, accepted the plaque for the “Digital Economy Innovation Center (Xiamen) of the Zhongguancun Global High-End Think Tank Alliance” on behalf of the Center. This cooperation focuses on four core areas: jointly building high-end think tanks, enabling industrial implementation, promoting talent exchange, and establishing regularized mechanisms. The two sides will adhere to the principles of “resource sharing, mutual complementarity of advantages, win-win cooperation, and pragmatic efficiency,” focusing on key areas such as artificial intelligence, to jointly build a cooperation platform linking BRICS countries and global innovation networks.
Since its establishment in 2007, the Zhongguancun Forum, as a national-level platform for global scientific and technological innovation exchange and cooperation, has provided authoritative guidance for global science and technology innovation development and China’s original innovation, and has formed deep exchanges with Global South countries. Starting from this point, the Global South Academic Forum will continue to work with its partners to deepen core research on digital sovereignty, collaboratively promote the construction of an international academic network, help build an open and collaborative global innovation ecosystem, and continuously contribute “BRICS wisdom” to establishing a more equitable and inclusive new order for the global digital space.
(All images were provided by the original author(s).)