New Connectivity Technologies and their Implications for Scientific Discovery and Digital Sovereignty in the Global South is a technology profile commissioned by the International Science Council (ISC) under the Science Systems Futures programme, funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada. Authored by Carlos Vargas Pedroza of Societās Partnerships, the report analyzes how satellite networks, 5G/6G systems, edge computing, and quantum communications are transforming scientific infrastructure in the Global South — and how nations can exercise connectivity sovereignty to prevent deepening technological dependency.
About the Report
"Connectivity sovereignty is the prerequisite for scientific self-determination. Nations that exercise agency over their digital infrastructure will shape the future of scientific discovery, institutional capacity building and equitable global collaboration. Those that do not risk deepening their external dependency on these technologies, remaining perpetual data sources that are systematically excluded from the analytical, publishing and value-capture stages of the research cycle."
What the Report Covers
This technology profile examines how new connectivity technologies (NCTs)—satellite networks, 5G/6G systems, edge computing, and quantum communications—are transforming the infrastructure of global science. Organized into three strategic clusters, the report analyzes each technology's function for science systems:
- The access cluster — Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites and delay-tolerant networking (DTN), which extend connectivity to remote and underserved locations.
- The control cluster — 5G/6G wireless networks and edge computing, which enable real-time data processing at the point of collection rather than routing it to distant data centres.
- The future cluster — Quantum communications, which promise unprecedented security for sensitive scientific data flows.
The profile also examines how seven nations across Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East are navigating the United States–China technology duopoly through diverse strategies—from local manufacturing to geographic leverage and multilateral NREN governance—drawing lessons directly applicable to Global South science, technology, and innovation (STI) organizations.
Why It Is Important
The urgency is structural. The Global South generates vast amounts of scientific data yet holds less than 10 percent of global data centre capacity, with over 99 percent of international data flows transmitted through submarine cables largely controlled by foreign operators. When research data flows through this infrastructure, host nations lose control over how it is analyzed, who publishes first, and whether findings serve local priorities—a dynamic the report characterizes as scientific data colonialism.
NCTs also fundamentally reshape research collaboration. Low-latency satellite links and high-bandwidth wireless networks now enable real-time co-authoring, shared virtual laboratories, and remote instrument access—opening new pathways for South–South and South–North scientific partnerships that are less dependent on routing through infrastructure hubs in the Global North. The risk, however, is that without strategic action, these same technologies could deepen dependency on foreign platforms and algorithms rather than reverse it.
The Contribution It Makes
The report introduces the analytical framework of connectivity sovereignty—defined as the capacity of a state or institution to own, control, and regulate the transmission infrastructure that moves research data across its territory and borders. Rather than treating connectivity as a purely technical challenge, the profile treats it as a governance and sovereignty problem requiring synchronized strategy across infrastructure, policy, and innovation ecosystems.
From a comparative analysis of seven national cases, the report identifies four enabling conditions for equitable technology adoption and translates these into an actionable strategic roadmap for STI agencies, research institutions, and private sector partners. The central message: digital self-determination is not isolation — it is the agency to collaborate globally while governing locally.
About the Science Systems Futures Project
ISC Centre for Science Futures — Science Systems Futures Initiative (2024–2027)
This technology profile was commissioned by the International Science Council (ISC) as part of its Science Systems Futures initiative—a three-year research and policy program (2024–2027) led by the ISC's Centre for Science Futures and funded by Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
The Centre for Science Futures is the ISC's strategic foresight unit, responsible for examining how structural forces—geopolitical, technological, and institutional—are reshaping the global science system. The Science Systems Futures program sits at the intersection of all three, asking a single governing question: how are emerging technologies transforming the practice and organization of science, and what does this mean specifically for science systems in the Global South?
The program operates from a foundational premise: that the benefits of technological change are not automatically distributed equitably. Institutions in the Global South face compounding structural barriers—limited infrastructure, underfunded research ecosystems, inequitable access to platforms and publishing channels, and digital dependencies that can replicate colonial dynamics in new forms. The Science Systems Futures initiative is designed to generate the analytical tools and policy frameworks that STI organizations, research institutions, and funders need to navigate this landscape deliberately.
The initiative develops four in-depth technology profiles—structured analytical briefs that provide policy-makers, research funders, and academic institutions with a rigorous assessment of each technology: its scientific opportunities, its risks and dependencies, and the enabling conditions required for equitable uptake in the Global South. The complete series includes:
- New Connectivity Technologies and their Implications for Scientific Discovery and Digital Sovereignty in the Global South (this report)
- Extended Reality Technologies and their Implications for Science Systems in the Global South
- Data Storage and Sharing in Global South Science Systems
- Robotics and Artificial Intelligence in Global South Science Systems
The program is grounded in primary engagement with Global South STI actors. A key milestone was a strategic retreat held in Nairobi, Kenya in May 2025, in partnership with the African Academy of Sciences, which convened institutional leaders to identify how emerging technologies could be governed in the public interest. The technology profiles were developed from this foundation, combining academic review with policy-relevant analysis, and are feeding into a broader synthesis report expected in late 2026.
The ISC is an international non-governmental organization with a global membership that brings together 250 international scientific unions and associations, national and regional scientific organizations, science academies, research councils, regional scientific organizations, and international federations. It works at the global level to catalyse change by convening scientific expertise, advice, and influence on issues of major importance to both science and society.