Agencia de Gobierno Electrónico y Sociedad de la Información y del Conocimiento

19 - Democratic digital governance

Brief description of the commitment: Establishment of a permanent inter-institutional working group to promote the development of public policies for digital governance based on guaranteeing human rights and strengthening democracy. This group will focus on the governance of digital platforms, the integrity of information and disinformation, and the protection of online civic space, and will generate recommendations on public policies to address the challenges Uruguay faces in a manner consistent with international human rights law, the promotion of technological innovation for a people-centered information society oriented towards sustainable development, and integrating a multi-stakeholder approach.

Organization leading the commitment: Agency for Electronic Government and Information and Knowledge Society (Agesic).

Responsible for the commitment: Daniel Mordecki, Executive Director. Contact: direccion@agesic.gub.uy 

Technical head: Virginia Pardo, Director of the Information Society Area. Contact: virginia.pardo@agesic.gub.uy 

Stakeholders

1. Government: Executive Branch.
2. Civil Society: Organizations specializing in the subject matter.
3. Other actors: Judicial Branch, Legislative Branch, Electoral Court, National Human Rights Institution and Ombudsman (INDDHH), private sector, international organizations related to the subject of the commitment.

Implementation period: March 2026 - June 2029.

Problem definition

What problem does the commitment intend to address?

The acceleration of digital technologies is reshaping societies, generating new opportunities and capabilities, but also challenges, risks, and impacts on human rights and the implementation of democracies. These effects require coordinated responses from public policies that promote digital governance based on human rights.

Disinformation, hate speech, information bubbles, policies and practices for algorithmic content moderation and curation, the collection of data from users of digital platforms and their interactions, the digital divide, and the differentiated impacts of technologies on children and adolescents are, among others, some of the global problems that affect freedom of expression on the Internet and other rights.

The challenges have been amplified in recent years by artificial intelligence and the mass use of digital platforms, such as social networks, search engines, messaging applications, among others, which have an increasingly relevant role in people's daily lives, shaping public space and debate.

In Uruguay, internet use reaches 92% of people over 14, and 84% use it on a daily basis [1].

The complexity of the mentioned problems requires strengthening institutional capacities to:

• Identify the particularities and priorities they pose in the national scenario.
• Develop responses that enable addressing it with comprehensive and coordinated approaches from public policies, encompassing relevant regulatory and institutional aspects and the building of citizenship in the digital environment.
• actively engage multiple stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector, academia, and international organizations.

What are the causes of the problem?

According to diagnoses made by expert organizations on freedom of expression from both the universal and regional human rights protection systems, the problems are multi-causal.

Among other factors that challenge freedom of expression on the Internet, the following have been highlighted: the concentration of the global digital environment in the hands of a few private actors, the business model of digital platforms, insufficient transparency and accountability regarding online content moderation policies and practices and the collection and processing of personal data from user interactions ; the digital divide and exclusion, the information literacy deficit; and disproportionate state measures and regulations that infringe upon freedom of expression.

In the words of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression:

Digital tools such as generative artificial intelligence; content recommendation algorithms based on social characteristics protected through the monitoring of personal data on the habits and behaviors of users; content removal, prioritization and reach reduction algorithms designed by non-diverse teams and oriented to increase the visibility of content that generates greater interaction, added to targeted advertising with a tendency to deepen pre-existing biases and convictions, have not only influenced the experiences of users and the information environment, but have also facilitated the greater volume, amplification and replication of extremist, disinformation, hate speech and violence in general (RELE – IACHR, para. 32) [2].

Furthermore, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression has warned that:

The growth of disinformation in recent times cannot be attributed solely to technology or malicious actors. It must be understood in the context of other factors, including: a traditional media sector struggling due to digital transformation and competition from online platforms, and threatened by state pressure in some parts of the world; the absence of robust public information regimes; the low levels of digital and media literacy among the general population; and the frustrations and grievances suffered by a growing number of people, fueled by decades of economic deprivation, market failures, denial of political rights, and social inequalities, which make some individuals more susceptible to manipulation (UN, 2021, para. 20) [3].

In particular, for the case of Uruguay, a recent report by civil society indicates that:

Uruguay presents a fragmented and unsystematized legal system regarding the different regimes applicable to platforms. On many occasions, the approach has been reactive, without a comprehensive perspective that considers the particularities of digital platforms as objects of regulation and without studies that evaluate the possible impacts of regulatory proposals” (Datysoc – Observacom, 2025, p 4-5) [4].

Description of the commitment

What has been done so far to solve the problem?

In 2024, the member states of the United Nations adopted the Global Digital Compact, in which they committed to “fostering an inclusive, open and secure digital space that respects, protects and promotes human rights.”[5]

Uruguay participates in various regional and international forums and spaces working towards global governance of the Internet and emerging technologies.

A multi-sectoral dialogue process is currently underway. This process, driven by civil society and led by the Data and Society Lab (Datysoc) and OBSERVACOM, with support from UNESCO and Agesic,  aims to promote broad national agreements that will serve as the basis for democratic regulation of large digital platforms, aligned with international human rights law and appropriate to our country. This dialogue is guided by UNESCO's Guidelines for the Governance of Digital Platforms, adopted in 2023.

What solution does it propose?

To create a permanent inter-institutional work environment, made up of public institutions with diverse purposes, that enables a comprehensive and coordinated approach to promote the development of policies for digital governance based on the guarantee of human rights - including, among others, freedom of opinion and expression, access to information, privacy, protection of personal data, participation, equality and non-discrimination - and the strengthening of democracy.

The work in this area will focus on the governance of digital platforms, the integrity of information and disinformation, and the protection of online civic space.

Its purpose will be to generate public policy recommendations for a comprehensive and multidimensional approach that enables the use of regulatory frameworks, endorses institutionality and features capacity building for democratic digital governance, aligned with international human rights law, the standards developed by the expert bodies of the United Nations systems, the Inter-American System for the Protection of Human Rights, and the commitments assumed by the country through its various processes and forums.

It will develop mechanisms to gather the perspectives and contributions of multiple stakeholders, through exchange forums and other formats to engage actors from the ecosystem of civil society, the private sector and academia.

It will promote the generation of studies and evidence that support policy definition and contribute to strengthening understanding, discussion and public participation on the subject, for the construction of an inclusive, open and safe digital space that respects, protects and promotes human rights.

What results do we want to achieve by implementing this commitment?

To ensure an inter-institutional environment that makes it possible to address the prioritized issues in a comprehensive manner.

To implement mechanisms so as to integrate the multi-stakeholder approach into the design of public policies for digital governance.

To promote public policies for digital governance with a focus on human rights and democratic strengthening.

Commitment analysis

How will the commitment improve citizen participation in defining, implementing, and monitoring solutions? 

It will create opportunities for dialogue and exchange among multiple stakeholders in order to gather input for policy recommendations.

[1] Survey of Uses of Information and Communication Technologies (EUTIC) 2024.