Digital Square Global Digital Goods: Global Goods Guidebook

Global goods are digital software health tools that are adaptable to different countries and contexts to help address key health system challenges. Mature digital health global good software is free and open source software, supported by a strong community, funded by multiple sources, and designed to be interoperable. It has been deployed at significant scale, used across multiple countries over an extended period of time, and demonstrated effectiveness. Global good software takes many shapes and forms, often works in conjunction with other global good software, and can fulfill many of the technology needs of a health system. Many of these characteristics are drawn from the Principles of Digital Development

Digital Square is committed to supporting adaptable digital health tools that can be used across different countries and contexts. These tools, or global goods, matter because they cut down on fragmentation and duplication, accelerate scale and health impact, thereby saving lives and improving the health of people around the world. There are three types of global goods:

• Software—A software tool that is free, open source, and used to manage, analyze, or transmit health-related data, with proven utility in several settings.
• Services—A software as a service (SaaS) tool that is used to manage, transmit, or analyze health-related data. These tools can be freely accessed and adheres to open data principles.
• Content—A resource, toolkit, or data standard that is available under an open license and that is used to improve or analyze health data management processes.