Our policies and alliances bring broadband meaningfully to the “forgotten five billion.”
Digital Divide
Every year for the past 10 years thousands of projects get launched to “close the Digital Divide,†but, guess what, every year the Divide keeps getting wider. Why? Because statistics show that the benefits of the digital economy continue to flow to the wealthy. Despite this, DDI believes that, at last, conditions have emerged to close the Digital Divide. How? Through deployment of what we call Meaningful Broadband. Use this link to understanding the meaning of Digital Divide, the movement’s evolution in distinct stages in past years, and why in a few pacesetting countries ICT stakeholders are now ready to join in historic collaborations to close the Digital Divide. Please note: This topic is not really about technology at all. It is about creating a more sustainable and equitable global economy. This is not a utopian fantasy. It is happening. Read on. Then join in.
Digital Divide Defined
Most ICT stakeholders have the mistaken view that the Digital Divide†is about access. The problem lies in how they define the term. For our definition, go here. For why this definition matters, go here.
Business and Government
For corporations “closing the Divide†became a matter of core business, not CSR. To find out why, go here. For governments, “closing the Digital Divide†now means disrupting the entrenched interests the surround unproductive state-owned enterprises. To find why, go here.
Lessons Learned
The movement to close the Digital Divide passed through four distinct stages before ICT stakeholders finally understood that only broadband can close the Divide. Here are the nine truths about how to close the Divide.
Statistics that reveal the Digital Divide and how to close it. |
Achieving “Political Will” : The factor that most keeps citizens from receiving the benefits of the internet is not what you’d imagine – not lack of investment capital, not corruption, not weak infrastructure. That stuff is fixable or can be circumvented. A deeper problem is that most governments are led by officials who lack political will to implement their own roadmaps for bringing broadband to the masses. Read More |
Recent Commentaries
Closing the Digital Divide is not just about giving to the poor the benefits of the rich. It is about creating a more equitable and balanced world economy.