- Le News 

Day two of the 7th BRICS ICT Working Group meetings in Pune zeroed in on a big topic: how member countries can work together on digital public infrastructure (DPI) and online governance. Two key groups met as part of the ongoing talks, the Focus Group on Digital Public Infrastructure and the Digital BRICS Task Force.

The DPI Focus Group, set up under terms agreed in 2025, took stock of how far things have come. The group's chair gave an update, and each BRICS country shared how it's building and rolling out its own digital infrastructure. The takeaway: DPI is seen as key to delivering digital services that are affordable, inclusive, secure and built around citizens' needs. Countries agreed the work should be guided by shared values - openness, interoperability, digital sovereignty and national control, while still respecting each country's own laws, cybersecurity needs, and approach to privacy.

India used the meeting to showcase its own DPI setup and pitched two new ideas: a shared BRICS repository for digital public infrastructure, and pilot projects where member countries could test DPI solutions together. Both are meant to help BRICS nations learn from each other and collaborate more closely.

The group also looked back at webinars held earlier this year on building secure, inclusive digital telecom infrastructure, and talked about two bigger projects, a possible BRICS submarine cable network and closer teamwork on digital ecosystems.

Meanwhile, the Digital BRICS Task Force reviewed its own work and previewed what's coming at the Digital BRICS Forum 2026. It also discussed plans for two new expert groups — one on digital applications, the other on digital governance — meant to give countries a more focused space to swap ideas and build cooperation in those areas.

The working group's meetings wrap up Wednesday. After that comes the Digital BRICS Forum and Expo on August 20, followed by the 12th BRICS Communications Ministers' Meeting on August 21 — all part of a wider push to deepen BRICS cooperation on digital tech, telecom infrastructure, and governance

Source: https://ddnews.gov.in