Respecting human rights in the digital sector

The rapid growth of the digital sector brings new opportunities for advancing human rights through access to information and more transparency, but it may also undermine them through digital risks such as privacy violations, surveillance, exposure to harmful content, and the spread of disinformation. Ahead of Human Rights Day celebrated on 10 December, we had a conversation with Finnfund’s Senior Environmental and Social Adviser Sylvie Fraboulet-Jussila and Senior Investment Manager Kuutti Kilpeläinen to learn more about navigating human rights in the digital age.

Did you know, Human Rights Day is celebrated annually around the world to commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a milestone document in the history of human rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a list of 30 Articles specifying an individual’s basic rights and fundamental freedoms.

Q: To start, how are human rights and the digital sector connected?

Sylvie: Human rights and the digital sector are very much interconnected because technology affects how people access information, express themselves, and participate in society. On the one hand, digital technology can promote human rights through inclusion and transparency, yet on the other hand it also poses risks— potentially undermining human rights if misused or inadequately regulated.

For example, regarding the right to no discrimination, digital technology can empower marginalized groups, however, unequal access, surveillance and biased algorithms can create or perpetuate discrimination. With regards to the right to freedom of opinion and expression, digital platforms enable individuals to access diverse sources of information and to share their opinions, but algorithmic suppression and online censorship on the other hand can limit the visibility of different contents. Digital harassment can lead to self-censorship. Furthermore, social media can help the realisation of democratic/political rights by enabling political and public participation, however, disinformation campaigns risk undermining democratic processes. So, the same digital technologies that support freedoms and opportunities may also enable digital repression and restrict freedom.

Q: What does the digital investment landscape at Finnfund currently look like?

Kuutti: Digital infrastructure and solutions are central to Finnfund’s strategy, and our goal is to double investments in digital technology by 2027, currently outstanding investments are amounting to over 100 million euros in total. Finnfund invests in digital infrastructure to expand digital access and improve connectivity across emerging markets globally. Our focus is on strengthening backhaul and last-mile networks, such as fiber and data centers, to enhance connection quality and make services more affordable. In digital solutions, we aim to boost productivity and enable access to digital goods, products, and services that drive financial inclusion and promote gender equality.

For example, our investment in Fibertime bridges the digital divide by offering high-quality low-cost internet services in low-income areas in South Africa where the alternative has been high-cost mobile services. According to a study done by Stellenbosch University, fiber internet has shown to have meaningful impact on economic participation. Specifically, low-cost high-quality connections have helped workers transition into more stable jobs. By lowering the cost of entry to digital tools and platforms, home fiber supports and helps to facilitate upward economic mobility and entrepreneurship. The study found that fiber access was associated with a more than twofold increase in the probability that someone was self-employed. This is significant for women, who often turn to entrepreneurship and micro-enterprises as a means of economic empowerment, especially when formal employment opportunities are limited or inflexible.

Q: How is Finnfund managing human rights in the digital sector?

Sylvie: Human rights are at the heart of what we do as a development financier and impact investor. We’ve built a human rights perspective into how we invest and then manage investments, following the United Nations Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights as our compass. Furthermore, our human rights statement adopted in 2019 is an integral part of our Sustainability Policy.

Our human rights due diligence aims to identify, assess, monitor and address the potential adverse human rights impacts caused by our investments. And it starts with a human rights risk screening of each investment and their context, also with regards to the digital sector. We then tailor our human rights assessment on a case-by-case basis, based on initial screening, potential impact severity, and sector risks.

Kuutti: In terms of the digital sector, it is important to consider digital risks, which are potential negative impacts on people and the environment that arise from the design, development, and use or misuse of digital services and products.

Q: Could you elaborate on digital risks and human rights and how Finnfund is addressing them?

Kuutti: Digital risks in terms of human rights include, for example, cybersecurity threats such as identity theft, and cyberattacks that compromise safety and access to essential services. Another example is disinformation and manipulation, including the spread of false information that undermines democratic processes and informed decision-making. Privacy violations meaning collection, misuse, or leakage of personal data without consent, threaten the right to privacy, whilst surveillance and tracking can restrict freedom of expression and association and may lead to imprisonment, or even more serious consequences.

Sylvie: At Finnfund, these risks are identified and assessed during the investment process in digital infrastructure or solution projects, with the support of external experts when needed. For example, we recently hired external experts to map the risks of cybersurveillance and lawful interception in several countries. We also commissioned a salient human rights assessment at sector level for the digital infrastructure and solutions sector.

Cybersecurity and digital risks are within the scope of both technical and environmental and social due diligences. Once issues are identified, for example risks pertaining to data breaches or to surveillance etc., our investees are required to put adequate mitigation measures in place, which are tailored to the investment and to the identified risk and can for example include certification to specific information management standards; specific procedures, reporting or technical solutions. We also want to support our investees in addressing digital risks and human rights, as this is a prerequisite to attaining all the good that digital infrastructure and solutions can bring to people.

Happy Human Rights Day!

Read more

Human rights – Finnfund

Digital infrastructure and solutions – Finnfund

Finnfund’s follow-on investment to Fibertime Group advances digital inclusion in South Africa with the help of Nokia technology – Finnfund

Driving women’s digital inclusion is essential to gender equality – Finnfund

Universal Declaration of Human Rights | United Nations

Sylvie Fraboulet-Jussila Senior Environmental and Social Adviser sylvie.fraboulet-jussila@finnfund.fi

Kuutti Kilpeläinen Senior Investment Manager, Head of Digital Infrastructure and Solutions portfolio kuutti.kilpelainen@finnfund.fi