What it’s about
This OECD policy paper explains how governments can treat core digital systems – such as digital identity, payments, data-sharing platforms, digital post and key data registries – as shared “public infrastructure.” When these building blocks are secure and interoperable, they let agencies and businesses plug in services quickly and give people seamless, trusted access to both public and private offerings.
The paper sets out the main upsides: efficiency and cost savings, easier data exchange, better user experience and inclusion, scalability, resilience in crises and faster innovation. It then shows what it takes to realise those gains: clear national frameworks (“stacks”) that govern DPI, strong public-private collaboration, sustainable funding models and built-in safeguards for privacy, security and equity
When to use it
- Early strategy work, to map digital foundations and set a coherent DPI framework
- Designing or upgrading components like digital ID, payment rails or data-sharing layers, including funding and partnership models