[news release] The cost of Internet services has inched downward across the globe in 2022, according to Facts and Figures, the annual worldwide overview on the state of digital connectivity from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
Aim of getting the whole world connected remains elusive despite increased web use amid pandemic
[news release] An estimated 2.7 billion people – or one-third of the world’s population – remain unconnected to the Internet in 2022.
We hear the phrase “digital transformation” a lot these days. It’s often used to describe the process of replacing functions and services that were once done face-to-face by human beings with online interactions that are faster, more convenient and “empower” the user.
A decent internet connection – essential for many basic tasks in the COVID-19 era – is out of reach for 90 per cent of people in low- and middle-income countries, a report has warned.
Nearly 3 billion people – or 37% of the world’s population – have never used the internet, according to the United Nations, despite the Covid-19 pandemic driving people online.
Improved Internet connectivity and skills have helped many countries to cope with the health and economic crisis from COVID-19. Yet the pandemic has raised the bar for the digital transition and underscores the need to close the digital divides that risk leaving some people and firms worse off than others in a post-COVID world, according to a new OECD report.
This report has been produced at the request of the Australian Government to support advancement of the 2017 G20 Roadmap for Digitalisation: Policies for a Digital Future, in particular its dimension on supporting the equitable participation of women in the digital economy. It aims to provide policy directions for consideration by all governments, including G20 economies’ governments through identifying, discussing and analysing a range of drivers at the root of the digital gender divide. In bolstering the evidence base and drawing attention tocritical policy areas, the analysis complements the important initiative of the 2018 Argentinian G20 Presidency to share those policies, actions and national practices that have had a significant and measurable impact in bridging the digital gender divide, and supports Argentina’s approach of mainstreaming gender across the G20 agenda.
The creator of the web says coronavirus has highlighted the importance of internet connectivity as a basic right.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee says too many young people do not have internet access and the digital divide has widened during the pandemic.
[news release] A new policy brief from ITU and the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), finds that high costs for Internet access relative to income remain one of the main barriers to the use of information and communication technology (ICT) services worldwide. Taking income differences into account, a mobile broadband subscription with at least 1.5 gigabytes (GB) of data costs around four times more in developing countries than in developed ones.
Many young people have embraced the convenience of digital technologies such as online shopping, car hailing, digital payments, and telemedicine. But many elderly without a grasp of the latest knowledge are at risk of being left behind.