Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

The Government of Bahrain recognises the importance of ICT in realising the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The ICT sector is crucial to deliver quality goods and services in the areas of healthcare, education, finance, commerce, governance, and agriculture. It is also an important vehicle for creating new jobs, tackling climate change and supporting the development of sustainable cities and communities.

To realise the benefits of ICT in achieving the UN SDGs, Digital Government Strategy 2022 advocates a Whole of Government approach to digital investments. The digital initiatives recommended in the strategy are reviewed against the backdrop of how they impact the constituents of Bahrain, the environment, and the economic growth of the country.

The Digital Strategy 2022 identifies three tracks for utilising digital technologies to achieve SDG targets:

• Track 1: Digital Technologies for Sustainable and Equitable Growth
• Track 2: Digital Technologies for Energy & Environment
• Track 3: Digital Technologies for Quality of Life, Education & Capacity Building

The key initiatives under digital technologies for sustainable & equitable growth are as:

• Augmenting connectivity
• Strengthening fintech & e-banking
• Encourage remote working
• Enhance Smart manufacturing

These initiatives contribute to the following UN SDGs:

• Ensuring equal access to economic resources and basic services (1.4)
• Ensuring women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership (5.5)
• Enhancing the use of enabling technology, in particular ICT (5.b)
• Achieving full and productive employment and meaningful work (8.5)
• Reducing youth unemployment (8.6)
• Strengthening the capacity of domestic financial institutions and expanding access to banking (8.10)
• Facilitating sustainable and resilient infrastructure development (9.a)
• Increasing access to ICT and providing universal access to the Internet (9.c)
• Developing quality, reliable, sustainable, and resilient infrastructure (9.1)
• Promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialisation (9.2)
• Upgrading infrastructure and retrofitting industries with clean technology (9.4)

The key initiatives under Digital Technologies for Energy & Environment are as:

• Smart energy
• Smart water management
• Smart conservation
• Smart building

These initiatives contribute to the following UN SDGs:

• Increasing water-use efficiency (6.4)
• Increasing the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix (7.2)
• Doubling the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency (7.3)
• Reducing the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including air quality and waste management (11.6)
• Achieving sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources (12.2)
• Increasing awareness of sustainable development and lifestyles (12.8)

The key initiatives under Digital Technologies for Quality of Life, Education & Capacity Building are as:

• Digital government
• Real-time disaster warnings
• E-health
• E-learning
• Smart mobility, including smart logistics, traffic control, and optimisation

These initiatives contribute to the following UN SDGs:

• Reducing maternal mortality and ending deaths of children (3.1 & 3.2)
• Reducing death from non-communicable diseases e.g., diabetes (3.4)
• Achieving universal health coverage (3.8)
• Improving health workforce training (3.c)
• Equal access to quality pre-primary education (4.2)
• Equal access to affordable technical, vocational, and higher education (4.3)
• Increasing the number of people with relevant skills for financial success (4.4)
• Building and upgrading inclusive and safe schools (4.a)
• Providing access to safe, affordable, accessible, and sustainable transport systems (11.2)
• Developing effective, accountable, and transparent institutions at all levels (16.6)
• Ensuring responsive, inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making at all levels (16.7)
• By 2030, providing legal identity for all, including birth registration (16.9)
• Ensuring public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements (16.10)
• Strengthening relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, for building capacities at all levels, in developing countries in particular, to prevent violence and combat terrorism and crime (16.a)