Challenges and Opportunities of the Internet of Things for Global Development to Achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

Internet of Things (IoT) makes a significant contribution to development in economical, social and ecological terms. In this work, the current context to successfully apply IoT in developing countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of United Nations is studied. Potential and opportunities of the IoT in the developing world as well as the current challenges of IoT in developing countries are reviewed. The research methodology is focused on the IoT context in the developing world as well as profitable IoT projects carried out in developing countries, using the SDGs as a reference. Key features as a technical challenges, environmental conditions or social differences are studied to contextualize IoT in developing countries. Finally, the combination of low-cost IoT and pay-as-you-go is presented as the best scenario to better disseminate the Internet of Things for Development (IoT4D) to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. INDEX TERMS Internet of things, developing countries, sustainable development goals, IoT4D.

IoT for Global Development to Achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: The New Scenario After the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Based on the results, the 95% of the projects could be categorized as small/medium sized and the 70% of these IoT4D projects were dived by the private initiatives (80% originated in the Americas and Europe). The work "Challenges and Opportunities of the Internet of Things for Global Development to Achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals" (12), studied the context and identified the challenges for IoT4D to reach billions of people living in developing countries, to speed up economic growth and social development. As a result of this extensive study, the authors presented by combining costeffective IoT and Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) as the perfect duo to better disseminate IoT4D and achieve the SDGs.…”

“…To combine IoT technologies, seamless digital payments, and pay-as-you-go was a pattern in the developing world that obtained excellent results. To integrate IoT systems to the requirements of developing countries employing open-source tools and novel financing models was presented as a key strategy in achieving the SDGs (12). Now, one year later, the COVID-19 pandemic has touched each and every SDG in significant ways: the scenario has totally changed, the assumptions taken are no longer valid and the pandemic challenges the global commitment toward vision 2030 (17).…”

“…A high presence of monitoring for the work-from-home initiative, the integration of new smart payments for reducing personal contact involved in cash payments and the increased demand of laptops have fostered the growth of the IoT marked. In early 2020 a work entitled "Challenges and Opportunities of the Internet of Things for Global Development to Achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals" was published (12). This work was focused on the study (based on literature published until 2019) of the context in developing countries and the challenges found to successfully applying IoT.…”

A Comprehensive Study of the IoT Cybersecurity in Smart Cities

“…The world population is expected to exceed 60% in urban areas [51], so city planning must consider the problems of social, economic, and environmental growth. The urban agenda for sustainable development, published in 2015, defines the guidelines to cover the social and ecological aspects until 2030, based on the achievement of 17 SDG objectives [11], [52]. In this aspect, IoT represents a critical element in the deployment of smart cities as a strategy for SDG compliance [53].…”

“…Nevertheless, IoT solutions have fueled economic growth and have also contributed to social, environmental, and commercial aspects. According to the World Economic Forum, IoT projects have contributed to the 17 sustainable development goals (SDG) [11]. This hyper-connectivity and continuous availability of IoT solutions allow the development of smart cities, but they also increment cybersecurity threats and attacks [12].…”