400 leaders and experts in social security and information and communication technology (ICT) from 127 institutions in 78 countries, registered for ICT 2024. The conference was hosted by the Social Security Administering Body for the Health Sector (BPJS Kesehatan) of Indonesia and was built around the theme of Data-driven transformation for a smart, resilient and inclusive social security.

Discussions stressed the importance of data as a key asset for social security administration, together with analytical technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Solid and secure data combined with such technologies are powerful tools for expanding and strengthening systems, schemes and services, leading to smart, resilient and inclusive social security and societies.

Increasingly, data-driven transformation is a wider public sector and public services ambition. Social security institutions need to work with others to develop national data infrastructure systems. The knowledge, experience and data that social security institutions possess is very valuable and means that they can play a key role in developing these systems.

Some key takeaways from the ICT 2024 conference were:

• Solid and secure data, and data management, is a fundamental asset for developing excellence in social security management and service delivery.
• AI can become a game-changer for achieving social security objectives. Applications have shown clear use cases which are accompanied by institutional capacity developed to manage its use.
• Agile methodologies enable the implementation of customer-centric applications, but they require a transformation within organizations.
• Cybersecurity and digital operational resilience are key areas of concern for social security institutions, especially in protecting core institutional data.
• ICT strategies and transformation need to be defined and managed at the highest level of the institution.

Chief Executives Officers, working with Chief Information Officers and ICT managers, are increasingly leading digitalization and data-driven transformation processes in social security institutions. They are aware of the strategic need to apply emerging technologies while reinforcing cybersecurity and institutional resilience. They also need to have a good understanding of newly developed ICT products and solutions.

The ICT 2024 conference included eight plenary sessions, 10 parallel sessions, 20 demonstrations in the Innovation Zone, and four tutorials. The success of the Innovation Zone and the new tutorials, demonstrated the value of sharing practical and concrete solutions within short and dynamic sessions was appreciated by ISSA members.

The ISSA Guidelines on Information and Communication Technology provide important guidance to ISSA members on many issues. These will be updated by late 2025. In the meantime, the International Social Security Association (ISSA) will continue to analyse, address and discuss ongoing developments, such as the webinar series on AI, implemented in partnership with the Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance (UNU-EGOV) at the United Nations University.

At the same time, ISSA will continue to use its participation in international forums to address broader issues and challenges. ISSA plays a key role in these forums, as the only global organization representing the institutional perspective in social security, it contributes actively to the United Nations network and works closely with international and regional organizations and platforms.

The 17th International Conference on Information and Communication Technology in Social Security demonstrated that this topic is more important than ever. While developments are happening more quickly, ISSA member institutions have also demonstrated that they are making use of ICT in smart ways, as they are building resilient and inclusive social security to make sure no one in is left behind.