Impact of rapid technological change on the achievement
of the Sustainable Development Goals and targets
A/RES/73/17
Recognizing also that technological change has enormous potential to support
the advancement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by
providing them with opportunities to obtain and share information, gain access to
educational and health services, generate income, engage in networking and have
their voices heard,
Recalling its resolutions 72/200 and 72/228 of 20 December 2017 and other
relevant resolutions, including Economic and Social Council resolution 2018/29 of
24 July 2018 on science, technology and innovation for development, and noting the
developments in the work on emerging technologies by several United Nations system
entities,
Bearing in mind the reference to the critical role of science, technology and
innovation in achieving the Sustainable Development G oals and to new technologies
in the ministerial declaration of the 2018 high-level political forum on sustainable
development, 2 welcoming the report of the Secretary-General on harnessing new
technologies to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, 3 which was discussed at
the high-level segment of the Economic and Social Council, and noting the Secretary General’s strategy on new technologies,
Noting the meeting convened by the President of the General Assembly on
18 October 2018 on the impact of rapid technological change on the achievement of
the Sustainable Development Goals and the plenary meeting held thereafter,
Recognizing the need for Governments, the private sector, international
organizations, civil society, the technical and academic communit ies and all relevant
stakeholders to be aware of the impact of the latest developments in rapid
technological change on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, which
continue to require international and multi-stakeholder cooperation in order to benefit
from opportunities and address challenges in this regard, taking into account different
national realities, capacities and levels of development, and respecting national
policies and priorities, and welcoming in this regard the launch by the Secretary General of a high-level panel on digital cooperation that will present its
recommendations for effective and inclusive systems of digital cooperation among all
relevant actors in the digital space, in 2019, and also welcoming the
operationalization of the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries in
Turkey, by which the first Sustainable Development Goal target, target 17.8, has been
achieved,
1.
Encourages Member States to continue to consider the impact of key rapid
technological changes on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and
targets1 in order to benefit from opportunities and address challenges, promote the
development of national strategies and public policies, science, technology and
innovation road maps, capacity-building and scientific engagement, and share best
practices;
2.
Requests the Technology Facilitation Mechanism and the Commission on
Science and Technology for Development, through the Economic and Social Council,
to continue to consider, in a coordinated manner within their respective mandates and
existing resources, the impact of key rapid technological changes, such as artificial
intelligence, among others, on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals
and targets, and to align this endeavour with the follow-up cycle of the high-level
political forum on sustainable development in order to support the efforts of all
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3
2/3
Official Records of the General Assembly, Seventy-third Session, Supplement No. 3 (A/73/3),
chap. VI, sect. F.
E/2018/66.
18-20454