Digital infrastructure networks—such as 5G, fiber networks and data centers—underpin how societies and industries function around the world. From economic gains in GDP and innovation, to increased employment levels and accessibility to healthcare and education services, the benefits of digital infrastructure are meaningful and widespread. Indeed, governments everywhere currently invest a significant amount of capital in digital infrastructure; however, truly capitalizing on the benefits of these investments requires that governments meet three key imperatives for the future.
Marsh McLennan’s report Building the Fourth Utility—Government Imperatives for Digital Infrastructure explores these three areas—sovereignty, sustainability and resilience—where governments can play a unique role in safeguarding services from threats and challenges that private-sector participants are rarely empowered, structured, and incentivized to address alone. Each chapter highlights two primary issues within each as well as proposing possible avenues — informed by selected policy examples from across the world (see interactive map below) — for addressing them. Each segment then concludes with a section on government watch points that discusses the broader implications of and considerations behind the recommendations.