Karnataka Showcases Digital Public Infrastructure to African Union

Bengaluru, Sep 1 (PTI) The Karnataka government on Tuesday hosted a high-level delegation comprising senior officials from the African Union and several African countries as part of an exposure visit to India to understand the country's experience and progress in the field of Digital Public Infrastructure, officials said.

Some of the African countries part of the delegation were from Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Zambia, they said.

The delegation was visiting India with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and comprises senior officials representing the digital/ICT (Information and Communications Technology) sector and relevant line ministries from the participating countries, officials said.

According to an official statement, during their visit to Bengaluru, the delegation held discussions with Shalini Rajnish, Chief Secretary of Karnataka government, Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Principal Secretary to Govt. DPAR(e Governance), T Bhoobalan, Chief Executive Office, Centre for e-Governance and other senior officials.

The interaction provided an opportunity to showcase Karnataka's experience in leveraging digital technologies and digital platforms to strengthen governance, improve public service delivery and promote inclusive development, it said.


The delegation was briefed on Karnataka's approach towards the design, implementation and scaling of digital initiatives at the State level, officials said.

Discussions focused on the role of Digital Public Infrastructure in enabling efficient, accessible, transparent and citizen-centric delivery of government services, they said.

The officials noted that the Centre for e-Governance, Government of Karnataka, has played an important role in supporting the State's digital transformation journey and strengthening the use of Information and Communication Technology in governance and public service delivery.

Over the years, Karnataka has emerged as one of the leading States in the country in the adoption of e-Governance initiatives, it said.

"The Centre for e-Governance (CeG) has contributed to the development, implementation and management of several technology-enabled platforms and digital systems supporting government departments and citizens," it stated.

The government of Karnataka reiterated its commitment to supporting knowledge exchange and collaboration with national and international partners in promoting innovative, inclusive and scalable digital solutions, officials added.