Our work
A directory of distributed, nonaligned organisations and experts
Polylat engages independent in-country advisors, consultants, think tanks or other localised, specialised research institutions that NGOs, UN agencies, public institutions and impactful private organisations require but struggle to access.
We provide services to civil-society organisations such as:
Oxfam International
Public Citizen
Friedriech-Ebert-Stiftung
Rockfeller Brothers Fund
Open Knowledge Foundation
IT for Change
Open Society Initiative for Europe (OSIFE)
We support governments and the social sector in developing countries, notably by intervening with institutions such as:
UNESCO
International Telecommunications Union
UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF)
World Summit on the Information Society Forum (WSIS)
UN-Habitat
We provide procurement of advisory and strategic services such as:
- Real-time field intelligence
- Intercultural context analysis
- Multi-country policy mapping
- Global horizon scanning and predictive analysis
- Spinning up global go-to-market, policy development or diplomatic teams
- Trusted verification of AI-generated knowledge
- SDG-aligned strategies and environmental impact assessment
- Research translation for international academic publication
- Privacy-enhanced digital transformation and cybersecurity advisory
The purpose of the association is set out in Article 2 of its Articles of Association. Polylat's assistance is aimed primarily at helping developing countries, is in line with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda, particularly:
- Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
- Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
- Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
- Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
- Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
- Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
- Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable developmen
We are not just another international public-sector expert consultancy
We also internally conceive, manage and advance innovative, mission-driven multilateral projects with the aim of permanently building or rebuilding capacity in public institutions in the Global South, for example, the Sovereign Debtors' Clubs.
Projects contributed to or fora attended by our members, including some forthcoming fora:
| 2025 | June | Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) Spain |
| 2024 | November | UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 29) Baku, Azerbaijan Brazil G20 Summit Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| September | UN Summit of the Future New York City, USA |
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| August | African Conference on Debt and Development (AfCoDD III) Dakar, Senegal |
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| July | First session of the Preparatory Committee for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
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| February | African Union Summit Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
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| January | 19th Non-Aligned Movement and South Summit Kampala, Uganda |
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| 2023 | October | Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund Marrakech, Morocco |
| 2022 | September | ITU & UNESCO Broadband Commission Working Group on AI Capacity Building Paris, France AI and Digital Transformation Competencies for Civil Servants |
| April | UNCTAD eCommerce Week Geneva, Switzerland Opening the Data of Money: Digital Cash as Digital Sovereignty ITU World Summit on the Information Society Forum (WSIS) Geneva, Switzerland Civil Servant 2.0: Which Competencies will the Civil Servant of the Future Need, and How Do We Get There? |
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| 2021 | December | UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF) Katowice, Poland Overcoming Knowledge Gaps for Effective Policy Polylateralism and Geneva: How Communities Shape Internet Governance Technology Sovereignty and Public Investment |