The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed weaknesses in health and care systems and global public health responses, some of which can be addressed through data and digital science. The Riyadh Declaration on Digital Health was formulated during the Riyadh Global Digital Health Summit, Aug 11–12, 2020, a landmark forum that highlighted the importance of digital technology, data, and innovation for resilient global health and care systems.

Our panel of 13 experts articulated seven key priorities and nine recommendations (panel) for data and digital health that need to be adopted by the global health community to address the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and future pandemics.