Digitization, Regulatory Barriers and Sustainable Development

The digital economy and digitization in general have long been touted as environmentally sustainable alternatives to physical commercial activity. The truth is more nuanced than that. Nevertheless, a broader framing of sustainable development, as outlined in the UN Sustainable Development Goals, indicates that sustainability goes beyond just environmental considerations and encompasses social and economic dimensions as well. The digital economy has the advantage of relatively low barriers to entry and reduced costs, which can lead to enhanced economic and social inclusion. However, the proliferation of digital protectionism through increasing regulatory barriers threaten the envisioned sustainable development dividends of digitization. In this paper, we identify and analyze these regulatory barriers, map and propose potential solutions, and argue that despite the decline in the World Trade Organization's formal negotiating power, it can still play a crucial role in convening and contextualizing international developments to ensure that the digital economy is leveraged optimally as a tool for sustainable development.