India calls for stronger BRICS cooperation on digital infrastructure
India has called for greater cooperation among BRICS countries on open-source and interoperable digital technologies, presenting its digital public infrastructure model as a potential foundation for economic development across the Global South.
India has called for stronger cooperation on open and interoperable digital infrastructure among BRICS countries, highlighting its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) model as a scalable approach that could support economic development across the Global South.
Speaking at the BRICS ICT Track in Pune on 20 August, Union Minister of State for Communications Dr Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani outlined India’s transition towards population-scale digital systems covering areas such as digital identity, payments, banking, verifiable documents and consent-based data sharing.
Pemmasani pointed to platforms including the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and DigiLocker as examples of how interoperable digital systems can operate at scale. He also highlighted the role of telecommunications infrastructure in supporting India’s digital expansion, including the continued rollout of 4G and 5G networks and investment in fibre connectivity through the BharatNet programme.
India is seeking to position this model within broader BRICS cooperation, particularly through the development and adoption of open-source and interoperable technologies. Pemmasani argued that digital public infrastructure should be treated as a core requirement for developing economies rather than as an optional investment.
