* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Without access to the Internet for the poor, can the Sustainable Development Goals be achieved?
Over the last five years the cost of broadband globally has dropped an impressive 65 percent. In the past year, mobile broadband has become up to 30 percent more affordable around the world. The largest decrease in prices occurred in the least developed countries, where average prices for all types of mobile-broadband services fell by more than 25 percent.
This is a solid indicator that governments understand that connected citizens are central to socio-economic development and that to achieve this the issue of broadband affordability must be tackled head on. Yet, the digital divide persists and even widens.
Back in 1985 the ITU’s Maitland Commission published a ground breaking report known as the “Missing Link” which highlighted the growing telecommunications divide between developed and developing countries and addressed a call to world leaders for equitable access to telephone, satellite and digital technology.
The commission argued that families and communities throughout the developing world should be connected to the growth-driving force of the digital world. This call instigated a concerted international effort to bridge this “digital divide”.
Since that time there has been an explosion of mobile phone use, and the Internet has changed the lives of millions of people. Technology has been developing at an unprecedented rate and shows no sign of slowing, with more and more innovations appearing almost daily. It means developing countries have to run faster and faster, not just to catch up but just to keep up.
As a result the digital divide between developed and developed countries continues to grow, leaving 3.9 billion people — over half the world’s population —still offline. Currently, only 15.2 percent of individuals in least-developed countries have Internet access. Compare this to 81 percent of individuals living in the developed world – a very stark and worrying contrast.
Things didn’t have to turn out this way. You may not be able to eat a mobile phone, but it’s been clear to leaders of developing countries for decades that having one is extremely helpful in the struggle to find life’s necessities when you live on less than $1.25 a day.
Since pledging to do so in 1985, the developed world missed opportunities to help leaders of the least developed countries substantially invest in information and communication technologies (ICTs) and broadband networks. As a result, the poorest countries fell further behind as ICTs became the engine of global and sustainable economic growth.
'OXYGEN OF THE DIGITAL ECONOMY'
Broadband provides high speed access to the Internet and all the services and applications that it offers. It is the oxygen of the digital economy and investment in the provision of broadband will be essential for the implementation of every one of the 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) the UN adopted in 2015 to improve the state of the world by 2030.
The targets set in 2015 for bridging the digital divide in the least developed countries by 2020 already look likely to fall short, but through the continuing international efforts, focusing on effective people-centered, private-public partnerships, broadband innovations can play a critical role in achieving greater connectivity and more sustainable economic and social development.
Important too is the critical work carried out by ITU to harmonize the use of wireless technologies, such as mobile phones and satellites, and developing international technical standards to bring the benefits of greater affordability and accessibility to a world-wide market.
Together through enhanced partnerships and innovation we have developed at ITU comprehensive capacity building and digital inclusion programmes, to help all countries, including the poorest, maximise their selection and use of new technologies, deal with cybersecurity issues, use ICTS effectively to tackle climate change adaptation and mitigation, and provide accessibility to persons with disabilities.
Various forms of financing are provided to countries in special need for the development of new rural connectivity infrastructure, upgrading old systems and developing the human capacity needed to sustain and maintain these increasingly important utilities. This assistance also includes the design and review of early warning and emergency telecommunications plans and the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
Technology’s greatest strength has always been its ability to solve problems, and to help individuals tackle the most pressing needs of their communities. We need to prioritize bringing the world of knowledge to the 3.9 billion disadvantaged people that are currently without a broadband connection, so that they too will be empowered to take advantage of the problem-solving tools they are currently excluded from, and are in a better position to carve out a more prosperous and positive future for themselves and their communities.
Houlin Zhao is secretary-general of ITU.
