UNDP and Exponential Science Foundation launch Government Blockchain Academy for public sector innovation

15 September 2025 — Istanbul / London — The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Exponential Science Foundation announced the creation of the Government Blockchain Academy — a new global initiative designed to drive innovation in the public sector through blockchain, AI and other advanced technologies. The Academy will provide training and implementation programs to help governments transform processes and address key challenges.

Main pillars of the Academy

1. Digital finance and inclusion — developing secure digital payment systems and expanding access to financial services.

2. Transparent governance and anti-corruption — resilient records, digital transactions, tamper-proof data.

3. Supply chains and accountability — traceability, decentralized verification in procurement and logistics.

4. Climate resilience — smart contracts, digital tokens, transparent financing of climate projects and carbon credit tracking.

5. Digital identity — trusted and verifiable credentials improving access to public and social services.

Timeline and launch

The Academy will begin work with its first partner countries in 2026, while curriculum development and stakeholder engagement will start in 2025. The official announcement will take place at TOKEN2049 in Singapore on October 1–2, 2025. As part of the launch, an industry roundtable will bring together protocol developers, infrastructure providers and partners to support the initiative.

The Academy will provide government teams with:

• step-by-step support from identifying use cases to co-developing solutions with experts and partners;

• access to online courses, workshops and leadership forums;

• incubation tools, expert advisory and tailored recommendations for technology adoption;

• a global hub for learning, dialogue, experimentation and policymaking focused on digital security, inclusion and sovereignty.

“At UNDP we believe institutional innovation is key for governments to experiment and implement frontier technologies. The Blockchain Academy helps transform experiments into real changes, strengthening transparency, inclusion and resilience,” said Irena Cerovic, Innovation Team Leader, UNDP Europe and Central Asia.

“This is not just an educational project. It is a collective roadmap for public innovation,” emphasized Professor Paolo Tasca, Executive Chairman of Exponential Science. “By bringing diverse partners under one framework we ensure governments have the tools and talent to lead digital transformation.”

Why this matters

• Growing interest in blockchain for governance shows that technologies like Web3 and digital identity are becoming part of national strategies.

• For many countries, especially developing ones, blockchain and AI can significantly increase transparency, reduce corruption and improve access to essential services.

• This is an opportunity to set standards for the public sector on technology adoption including regulations, data protection and public-private cooperation.

Source: innovation.eurasia.undp.org