 | Issue: | Asia-Pacific II 2001 |
| Article no.: | 9 | |
| Topic: | Universal Access to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Asia-Pacific Region | |
| Author: | Hamadoun Ibrahim Toure | |
| Title: | Director | |
| Organisation: | Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) | |
| PDF size: | 28KB |
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Article abstract
The ‘Digital Divide’ is acute in the Asia-Pacific region. The newer the technology the greater the gap. In the developed countries 20 per cent use the Internet, but less than one per cent use the Internet in the developing economies. A variety of statistics attest to the seriousness of this situation. The major barrier to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) access is economic, but community Internet access centres, skill development programmes and pertinent local language content can do much to bridge the divide.
Full Article
Access to ICT is emerging as a leading policy issue in many countries around the world. The discrepancy in access to ICT-or the so-called ‘Digital Divide’ is perhaps most acute in the Asia-Pacific region where leading edge technologies exist side-by-side with rural poverty and urban marginalisation. This paper highlights the dimension of the Digital Divide in the region. It explores barriers preventing widespread access to ICT and looks at some of the policies governments are adopting to reduce the divide. Before proceeding, it is useful to define what is meant by access to ICT. One definition comes from an ICT policy organisation in the region, the Malaysian National Information Technology Council (NITC). They identify three dimensions surrounding ICT access: 1) the physical possession or availability (e.g., through office, school or public location) of ICT equipment; 2) the ability to pay for ICT products and services (e.g., telephone line, personal computer (PC), Internet subscription); 3) and the skills to use ICT effectively. The NITC also points out that there will always be people that perceive no need for ICT. Just as there are people who do not drive, it is unrealistic to assume there can be 100 per cent use of ICT (although 100 per cent availability of ICT may be a desirable social goal). Digital Gaps There are large gaps in ICT access between developed and developing economies in the Asia-Pacific region. What is worrying is that the gap for newer technologies such as the Internet is larger than that for traditional technologies such as telephony. For example, while the level of telephone access is ten times greater between developed and developing economies in the region, for Internet access it is 28 times. Regional variations in Internet availability and infrastructure is striking. While over one fifth of adults are online in the developed economies of the region, less than one per cent are using the Internet in the developing countries. Australia has four times more Internet host computers (one million) than all developing countries in the region combined (241,000), even though Australia’s population is less than one per cent of that of the region’s developing countries. There are as many Internet users in the tropical city-state of Singapore (900,000) as there are in all of its southern neighbour Indonesia, even though the latter has 50 times the population. New Zealand has 300 times more international Internet bandwidth (155 Mbps) than Bangladesh (512 kbps) even though the latter has 30 times as many people. There is also a digital gap within countries. The disparity is a particular problem in countries with large rural areas such as Malaysia where some 43 per cent of the population is classified as rural. Internet penetration is 35 times higher in the capital Kuala Lumpur than north central peninsular state of Kelantan. Reducing the rural Internet gap is a challenge for governments since rural areas are harder to wire and often lack basic infrastructure prerequisites such as electricity. For example, while 100 per cent of peninsular Malaysia is electrified, around 25 per cent of households in Eastern Malaysia have no electricity. The situation is far worse in less developed countries in the region such as Nepal where some 85 per cent of households are without electricity. Digital Barriers The major barrier to ICT access is economic. There is a direct and obvious relation between Internet access and income. This is not surprising considering it costs money to purchase ICT equipment and services. Unlike domestically produced goods and services, ICT prices are not generally related to local cost levels. For example, after stripping away taxes and other hidden costs, the price of a PC is roughly the same across the world even though income levels are not. The relation between income and access has a number of implications. First, it implies that in the near term, ICT access is best achieved through shared facilities such as cyber cafes and other types of public Internet locations. Second, the direction of the relationship between income and ICT access is unclear. If access cannot improve until incomes rise, then perhaps policies should focus on raising incomes. However it may just be that ICT will boost income. Also, though the relationship between access and income is close, it is not perfect. This means there are other factors besides income that affect ICT access. The flip side of income is the cost of ICT access. The higher the price to purchase ICT equipment and services, the more income that will be needed. Internet access prices vary tremendously across the region. Some of the variation is partly explained by the cost of access. Pacific Island states in general pay much more for inter-national Internet connectivity because they have fewer choices (rare connections to fibre optic cables and scarce satellite coverage). Another factor is competition. For example, monopolisation of inter-national Internet gateways often results in higher prices. In Nepal, once the VSAT market was liberalised-which allowed ISPs to establish their own international Internet connectivity-Internet access prices dropped to the lowest level in the South Asia region. Internet dial-up access prices are also often based on historical telephone structures. This can result in situations where users pay more for telephone usage than ISP charges when accessing the Internet. Some countries have reduced this problem through the introduction of so-called ‘free’ Internet access where users only pay the telephone charge (e.g., Singapore). Other countries, such as New Zealand, have been luckier since there is a tradition of free local calls. This model influences more experimentation since users are not concerned about expensive telephone bills. One concern is the impact tariff rebalancing-the lowering of international telephone tariffs and raising the price of local calls-will have on Internet pricing. There are a number of ‘soft’ factors which also influence Internet diffusion. Many of these are related to the socio-cultural situation of the country and can include literacy, language, IT skills and willingness to adopt new technology. The widespread use of English has often been cited as a barrier for non-English speaking countries. However the situation is more complicated than that in the Asia-Pacific region. While it is true that ‘anglophone’ economies such as Australia and New Zealand tend to have higher Internet penetration, this may be more because of income rather than language. An interesting case is presented by the Republic of Korea, one of the world’s fastest growing Internet markets, where local content is almost exclusively in the Korean language. Digital weapons Countries in the region are adopting a number of policies, programs and projects to combat the Digital Divide. Government Governments have a three-pronged role to play in ICT. One is as a user of ICT in its own right. A computer literate civil service understands ICT and can therefore develop appropriate and practical plans and projects for the country. Furthermore, the computerisation of internal processes makes government more efficient and trans-parent. For example, applications such as electronic procurement save money and reduce corruption. The second ICT role of government is as a developer of content to stimulate ICT use. There are many government services that could be placed online that would attract users. In Singapore, citizens who submit their tax forms online are given a filing extension. As a result around one quarter of all tax submissions are now made online. Government can also give a big push to the development locally-relevant content and applications. A third role for governments is as a promoter of ICT. In order to do this effectively, awareness must exist at the highest level of government about the importance of ICT. Furthermore, a plan is needed on how to move the country to an Information Society. The government must also work to change or develop legislation that promotes ICT investment and use. In the area of infrastructure, governments need to liberalise markets to attract investment and reduce costs for users. They also needed to champion digital legislation in areas such as computer crime, copyright protection, privacy, consumer rights and legality of electronic documents in order to create confidence. PCs A major barrier to individual access to ICT has been PC ownership. In many countries, the cost of a PC is high relative to income, and made further so by high taxes and other hidden costs. Some countries have taken steps to make PC ownership easier for citizens. In the Republic of Korea, the government adopted a three year ‘Internet PC’ plan in 1999 as part of its Cyber Korea 21 that provides for low-cost PCs bundled with Internet access. Singapore, with one of the highest home PC penetration rates in the world (59 per cent in 1999), has a plan targeted at low-income households, different ethnic groups and the late adopters of infocom technology. Projects include donation of used computers with free Internet access and basic training to some 30,000 low-income households. In Malaysia, the government recently allowed citizens to withdraw money from their retirement fund to purchase PCs. Universal access With nearly one in three Asians classified as poor, it will be some time before a majority of the region’s inhabitants can afford individual access to ICT. The development of public Internet facilities is thus of major importance for expanding access in the region. Shared facilities such as cyber cafes are a significant way of accessing the Internet for many developing countries in the region. Some ten per cent of China’s Internet surfers access the Internet from cyber cafes compared to just two per cent in Singapore where incomes are higher and home access is much more prevalent. In the Republic of Korea, it is reported that over 43 per cent of users access the Internet from cyber cafes. This has helped push that nation into the second largest Internet market in the region. South Korea has over 15,000 ‘PC rooms’, which have introduced users to the Internet and given them a taste for high speed: one factor driving broadband access in that country. Skills development Computer literacy is essential for effectively using ICT. Governments thus need to adopt programmes targeted at building computer skills. They also need to implement programs for developing skilled IT labour through universities and other facilities in order to develop and expand their ICT industry. This will also ensure that ICT is sustainable in the country by having a local labour force that can adopt and develop software to meet national needs. One of the most effective ways of doing this is to put computers and Internet access in schools as the young are quick adapters of technology. It also maximises investment since the facilities can be shared by a number of students. Indeed a number of countries in the region are working to accelerate the provision of ICT to schools. For those short of resources, multilateral and bi-lateral assistance agencies have been eager to fund ICT for schools projects. The private sector can also be tapped for educational assistance. For example, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), working with Cisco, has established ten ‘Network Academies’ throughout the region. Local content Too often, one notices cybercafes in the region that are primarily populated by the students or foreigners. Many local citizens seem oblivious to what ICT can offer them. One way of making the Internet more relevant is through the development of locally relevant content. A pioneering effort is underway near Pondicherry in southern India. Some half dozen ‘Village Knowledge Centres’ have been established in different villages under the leadership of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, financially assisted by Canada’s International Development Research Centre. Relevant content is a key objective of the project. Communities were questioned about what kinds of applications would best meet their needs. This has been translated to village relevant content including agricultural input costs and market prices, government programmes for the poor, bus and train schedules, and health information. Ocean wave heights from the US Navy and Indian thermal fish mapping data was made available to one village heavily reliant on fishing. There was also demand for entertainment especially cricket information. In order to get around illiteracy and technophobia, villagers can create audio and video computer files and have them attached to e-mails for transmittal to relatives. One measure of the Village Knowledge Centres’ success is usage. Some five per cent of the villages’ inhabitants are using them compared to a nationwide Internet usage penetration of 0.3 per cent. And they are not just for the village elite as some 16 per cent of users live below the poverty line. Conclusion There are a growing number of regional and international initiatives for reducing the Digital Divide. For example, regional organisations such as the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity, Association of South East Nations and Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum have ‘e-initiatives’. The Group of 8 issued a Charter on Global Information Society at its July 2000 summit in Okinawa, Japan. The Charter called for the creation of a Digital Opportunity Task Force (DOT Force) aimed at integrating efforts to bridge the digital divide into a wider international approach. Hopefully these initiatives, combined with efforts of national governments, will help to expand ICT access in the region.
