The Center for Citizen Cybersecurity – UNICARIBE was present at the Govtech 4 Impact World Congress 2026, held in the city of Madrid between May 5 and 7. It brought together institutional leaders, technology experts and public officials from different countries with the aim of advancing the digital transformation of administrations.

The congress stood out for its international vision and presence, with the participation of representatives from Spain, the United States, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Lithuania, Montenegro, Germany, Portugal and Brazil, among others. It was also attended by international organizations such as the OECD, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations, the European Commission and the Center for Citizen Cybersecurity, through its director, Marlon Molina.

Miguel Porrúa, coordinator of Digital Government and Data in the IDB’s State Institutional Capacity Division, commented that in all the countries served by the IDB in the Americas, the same needs and concerns are expressed, both at the central and local government level: how to take advantage of technologies to improve citizen services. Public-private collaboration now has a new dimension with entrepreneurship.

Artificial intelligence was the technology that focused the debate as an opportunity, but also as a concern for governments, mainly due to its rapid adoption, which poses a challenge to keep pace with its evolution while improving services to citizens. In this sense, cybersecurity was also presented as a topic increasingly present in the agenda of governments.

The relationship between government and citizens is increasingly closer thanks to technology. Organizations such as the IDB and the United Nations highlighted the role played by entrepreneurship initiatives and technology startups that seek to provide solutions to the needs of a changing environment. Fernando de Pablo, general director of the Digital Office of the Madrid City Council, closed the meeting by inviting the participants to return to their cities with the mission of asking themselves the right questions so that, through public-private collaboration, answers can be found to the challenges of the digital era.

Author:
Eng. Marlon Molina – General Director Center for Citizen Cybersecurity (CCC) – UNICARIBE