On 17 May, the world marks World Telecommunication and Information Society Day. The day sheds light on a distinctive strand of President Macky Sall's candidacy for Secretary-General: the digital transformation of the United Nations.
An organisation of 37,000 staff needs better tools than yesterday's, and his vision makes digital technology a lever to modernise it, in service of three goals. Transparency comes first: results and the use of resources must become visible. Paperless processes should then lighten procedures accumulated over decades. Last comes a culture of results, which measures the real effect of programmes in the field.
President Macky Sall also has a broader ambition: inclusive governance of artificial intelligence. The rules of AI are being written now, and if the Global South remains a spectator, it will live under norms designed without it. The candidate sees the UN as the legitimate forum to build a framework in which every region weighs in on the technological choices that will shape this century, for the sake of fairness as much as collective security.
In Senegal, President Macky Sall led a national digital strategy and made digital infrastructure a pillar of the country's development. He launched the new city of Diamniadio and its technology park, home to modernised public services as well as digital companies. This concrete experience gives weight to his project for the Organization, as does his whole record.
Specialised media have taken note: in April 2026, the outlet SocialNetLink described the candidate's technological vision for the UN as "algorithmic diplomacy". The phrase reflects a shift, since tomorrow's diplomacy will also play out in data, platforms and algorithms. The Organization must prepare for it now.
"Trust is built through constancy, fairness and efficiency," President Macky Sall says. Applied to the digital agenda, this standard draws a clear roadmap, one that pairs modern tools with fair rules and with measurable results. The full vision is available at www.mackysall.net.