Over $400bln required to bridge ‘digital divide’: Saudi-based ISDB chairman

Over $400bln required to bridge ‘digital divide’: Saudi-based ISDB chairman

The chairman of Jeddah-based Islamic Development Bank (ISDB) said on Wednesday that huge investments and more government efforts are required to help close the huge disparities in internet access worldwide.

Speaking at the World Government Summit in Dubai, Mohammad Sulaiman Al Jasser highlighted that while the ongoing pandemic has accelerated digital transformation in many countries, about half of the world’s population still lack access to the internet. He said connectivity is worse in least developed markets, as well as in developing countries, where only less than half of the population have internet access.

The digital gaps are so wide that an estimated $428 billion is needed to connect the remaining offline population to the internet by 2030, Al Jasser added, citing data from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

“Over one billion new internet users have been added globally over the last five years, yet close to half of the population (over 3.7 billion) does not have access to internet. While nearly 87 percent of people in developed countries have [internet] access, only 44 percent in developing countries have access. The situation is worse in least developed countries,” Al Jasser pointed out.

ISDB supports social and economic development efforts of its 57 member countries.

Digital transformation

E-commerce