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The Gender Digital Divide Primer

USAID (2020), 8 pp.

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Connecting with Confidence: Literature Review

Katie Drew, John Wannes, Aaron Martin, Silva Pelucchi

UNHCR (2020), 23 pp.

"Specifically, the review focuses on the means, barriers, and associated cybersecurity and privacy concerns that refugees face around connectivity. This includes but is not limited to mobile connectivity and social media, particularly in displacement contexts. While these subjects may at times inter ... more

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Assessing Internet Development in Kenya: Using UNESCO’s Internet Universality ROAM-X Indicators

Grace Githaiga, Victor Kapiyo et al.

Paris: UNESCO; Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) (2020), 167 pp.

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Digital Inclusion Across the Americas and the Caribbean

Laura Robinson, Jeremy Schulz, Matías Dodel, Teresa Correa, Eduardo Villanueva-Mansilla et al.

Social Inclusion, volume 8, issue 2 (2020), pp. 244-259

"This research brings together scholarship across the Americas and Caribbean to examine digital inclusion initiatives in the following countries: Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica, the United States, and Canada. Across the cases, several themes emerge that offer important indicator ... more

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Manual for measuring ICT access and use by households and individuals

Geneva: ITU (2020), xii, 335 pp.

Since ITU first published this Manual in 2009, the digital technology sector has evolved almost beyond recognition. The Internet is now accessed through a multitude of devices, including mobile phones, tablets and similar handheld computers. The impressive spread of mobile broadband networks has bro ... more

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The Last-mile Internet Connectivity Solutions Guide: Sustainable Connectivity Options for Unconnected Sites

John Garrity, Aminata Amadou Garba

Geneva: ITU (2020), xviii, 137 pp.

"There are several overarching reasons why billions of people remain offline, ranging from a lack of network infrastructure availability and affordable Internet services to gaps in skills and ability, the availability and cost of personal devices, and a perceived lack of relevancy. For example, over ... 750 million people (approximately 10 per cent of the global population) are not covered by mobile broadband (3G or higher).2 This lack of coverage is particularly concentrated in rural and remote areas. In addition to the coverage gap, usage gaps exist in places with broadband coverage. For example, while up to 31 per cent of individuals in Africa do not have mobile broadband coverage, around 45 per cent do not use mobile Internet even though they live in places with mobile coverage. Estimates also suggest that there are at least 88 countries worldwide where average prices for entry-level mobile broadband service are considered unaffordable (above 2 per cent of average monthly GNI per capita). The Last-Mile Connectivity Internet Solutions Guide was developed to support the design and development of programmes and interventions that address two of these main issues: the lack of Internet infrastructure availability in certain areas; high Internet service prices that make Internet connectivity unaffordable for local populations. The Solutions Guide presents a methodology for introducing sustainable, affordable connectivity solutions in unconnected and underserved geographies. Although the other challenges (e.g. digital literacy, personal devices and locally relevant content) are as important, they are not the focus here, as they are addressed in depth in other resources listed in the Annex 2. This Solutions Guide was developed to help accelerate actions by Member States to address last-mile Internet connectivity issues in situations that include a lack of network infrastructure and with a view to encouraging more affordable service delivery. It has been written from the perspective of localities and users in geographies without Internet access: the last-mile connectivity communities. The tools, service interventions and policy solutions therefore reflect how best to extend Internet access to those localities, taking into account their unique characteristics." (Executive summary) more

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Rural Broadband Policy Framework: Connecting the Unconnected. A Rural Broadband Policy Framework providing guidance to address the 'Digital Divide'

Washington, DC: Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI); World Wide Web Foundation; Association for Progressive Communications (APC); CIPESA (2020), 15 pp.

"The internet has revolutionised the way that many of us live our lives, enabling new forms of communication, fostering online communities, fuelling economic growth, and facilitating all manner of entertainment. Yet about half of the world’s population remains offline, and only about 19% of the Le ... more

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Connecting humanity: Assessing investment needs of connecting humanity to the Internet by 2030

Geneva: ITU (2020), vi, 25 pp.

"Nearly USD 428 billion is required to achieve universal access to broadband connectivity by 2030 at the global level. This amount includes significant investment in infrastructure, investments to design and implement policy and regulatory frameworks that incentivize and promote growth in broadband ... more

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Mobile Internet Connectivity 2020 Sub-Saharan Africa Factsheet

GSMA (2020), 2 pp.

"There are now more than 3.8 billion mobile internet subscribers globally, representing 49% of the world’s population. However, adoption has not been equitable, with mobile internet adoption standing at 26% in Sub-Saharan Africa at the end of 2019. The region accounts for almost half of the global ... more

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Exclusión y deriva: Dinámicas fronterizas de la digitalidad

Johanna C. Ángel Reyes, Joseba Buj (eds.)

México, DF: Universidad Iberoamericana; Taurus; Fundación Telefónica (2020), 192 pp.

"[Este libro] presenta ocho capítulos que se muestran críticos frente a las posibilidades y promesas de la cultura digital, denunciando que la red ha reproducido las formas de desigualdad del mundo analógico. Los autores proponen una reflexión crítica frente a ciertos discursos que se presentan ... more

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Media and Information Literacy Index. Country Report Namibia

Dennis Reineck

Bonn: Deutsche Welle DW Akademie (2020), 25 pp.

"Young Namibians are embracing the digital transformation, according to indicative findings from the present MIL INDEX country study. Interestingly, the youths that took part in eight focus groups conducted at the end of 2018 in Windhoek and Rundu are immersed in digital communication but are aware ... of the ambivalent nature of the news and information sources they find on social media and related Internet services. The importance of a critical mindset when navigating the World Wide Web was stressed by the eight experts interviewed as part of the study. This MIL INDEX study addresses five dimensions of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) according to DW Akademie’s MIL model: access, analysis, reflection, creation, and action. The focus groups conducted for this study reveal that there is a rural/urban divide in terms of access and use of media. The more rural (and older) groups use radio and television on a regular basis, while the more urban (and younger) groups tend to regard traditional media as yesterday’s media. This shift is in line with the rise of social media. Information uptake is coincidental and journalistic content is intermingled with all sorts of trivia when consumed in social networks. Smartphones are regarded by many as a substitute for newspapers, radio, and television. Amongst those who continue using traditional media, radio is turned to more often for information while TV is regarded more as an entertainment medium. Considering analytical skills, there is a certain disenchantment of the Namibian youths with journalistic media, the reporting being considered not close enough to the interests and issues of the youth. But it was interesting to find that the focus group participants’ appraisal of media in terms of trustworthiness is the exact opposite of their consumption patterns. While the discussions documented frequent use of social media these are evaluated as least trustworthy, whereas newspapers are rated highly on the trustworthiness scale but were hardly ever read. There is an awareness of the ambivalent quality of news and information on social media, but the youths cannot always name sources they consider produce high-quality information. The results in the reflection dimension are ambivalent. The youths can recount numerous cases of cyberbullying and disinformation (“fake news”). But the accompanying survey shows that while they reject hate speech and disinformation, there is a certain willingness to accept cyberbullying as given. This is echoed in the focus groups where participants’ advice is often to ignore hateful messages, rather than do something about them. However, the groups do discuss many other strategies in coming to terms with and combatting cyberbullying and disinformation. Rarely do they reflect the motivations that lie behind such behavior. It was also interesting to note that disinformation is mainly discussed with regards to online rather than traditional media." (Executive summary) more

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Ghana’s E-Learning Program During Pandemic Presents Access Challenges for Many Students

Mavis Zupork Dome, Daniel Armah-Attoh

Afrobarometer (2020), 9 pp.

"Afrobarometer findings show that radio and television are the most widely accessible platforms for students seeking to participate in MoE/GES e-learning programs, although rural and poor households are at a disadvantage when it comes to owning these devices. The data show relatively low rates of ac ... more

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The Digital Divide

Jan van Dijk

Cambridge: Polity Press (2020), vi, 184 pp.

"Contrary to optimistic visions of a free internet for all, the problem of the 'digital divide' - the disparity between those with access to internet technology and those without - has persisted for close to twenty-five years. In this textbook, Jan van Dijk considers the state of digital inequality ... more

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Measuring Digital Development: Facts and Figures

Geneva: ITU (2020), 17 pp.

"Facts and Figures 2020 reveals that people in rural areas continue to face greater challenges than people in urban areas in terms of remaining connected during the lockdown, especially in developing economies. Large swathes of the rural landscape are still not covered by mobile broadband networks, ... more

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Taking Stock: Data and Evidence on Gender Equality in Digital Access, Skills and Leadership
Deep Insights

Araba Sey, Nancy Hafkin (eds.)

United Nations University (UNU); Equals Global Partnership (2019), 338 pp.

"1. While gender gaps are observable in most aspects of ICT access, skills and leadership, the picture is complex. There are large regional variations: some countries are close to parity or have even reversed the gender gap on some indicators, while others still have persistent gaps. Individual coun ... tries can have both large and small gaps, depending on the indicator being measured. Interpreting the gaps requires careful and contextualised analysis. 2. Barriers to gender digital equality are generally related to one or more of the following: 1) availability of infrastructure; 2) financial constraints; 3) ICT ability and aptitude; 4) interest and perceived relevance of ICTs; 5) safety and security; and 6) socio-cultural and institutional contexts. Most of these barriers cut across issues of access, skills, and leadership, although they may manifest in slightly different ways. While research has documented these barriers, the evidence from different sources is sometimes contradictory, even within the same country contexts. 3. There is no one conclusive strategy for eliminating gender digital inequalities. Recommendations generally call either for targeting specific contributing factors of gender digital inequality (such as affordability or recruiting practices), or for reshaping deeply ingrained social norms and practices (such as gender stereotypes) that are at the root of gender inequalities. As with the evidence on barriers, research results are sometimes contradictory or nuanced. 4. The dominant approaches to gender equality in ICT access, skills, and leadership mostly frame issues in binary (male/female) terms, thereby masking the relevance of other pertinent identities. Insufficient research has been done on the implications of ICTs for intersectional identities. Data collection should move from binary sexdisaggregation towards finer degrees of status disaggregation in order to recognise multiple and interacting identities (such as sexuality, poverty, class, education, age, disability, and occupation). 5. To ensure privacy and safety as well as full participation in the digital economy, women should have equal opportunities to develop adequate basic and advanced digital skills. Cyberstalking, online harassment, image manipulation, privacy violations, geotracking, and surveillance can compromise women’s and girls’ safety both online and offline. In addition, some evidence suggests the digital transformation of labour may be widening gender wage gaps. These outcomes can be averted with the right types of training combined with social and institutional change. 6. Developments in digital technologies open new pathways to gender diversity and inclusion; however, lack of attention to gender dynamics and differences hampers the potential for true progress. For example, evidence suggests that most women’s work in the digital economy, particularly in the Global South, reinforces existing social divisions. Moreover, artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, designed largely by men, tend to ignore the negative gender implications of their designs. Research, government policy and design principles should include gender awareness and analysis, for example by building in data and privacy protections and avoiding gender stereotypes." (Key findings, page 19-20) more

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Assessing Internet Development in Brazil: Using UNESCO’s Internet Universality ROAM-X Indicators

Paris: UNESCO; Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br); Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) (2019), 197 pp.

"The development of the national environment of the Internet in Brazil is strong and positive, and in line with international standards when considering the regulatory framework. However, there are enforcement problems in some areas and significant shortcomings in access and connectivity for citizen ... more

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Internet Health Report 2019

Mozilla Foundation

Bielefeld: transcript Verlag (2019), 116 pp.

"This report is structured according to five overlapping themes that we consider a helpful framework for assessing internet health: privacy and security, openness, digital inclusion, web literacy, and decentralization, but it’s designed so you can read the articles in any order." (Introduction)

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Digital Media Inequalities: Policies Against Divides, Distrust and Discrimination

Josef Trappel (ed.)

Göteborg: Nordicom (2019), 288 pp.

"Inequalities are the unwanted companions of media and communication. Traditional analogue mass media were criticized for creating inequalities by being biased, serving hegemonic interests, and accumulating far too much power in the hands of mighty industrial conglomerates. Under the digital regime, ... more

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Das neue digitale Landleben: Smart und innovativ statt abgehängt und analog

Anke Knopp

Frankfurt am Main: Wochenschau-Verlag (2019), 182 pp.

"Was hilft gegen die Landflucht? Digitale Strategien können ländliche Räume vitalisieren. Die Autorin begibt sich auf einen Landspaziergang durch zukünftige digitale Welten: Glasfaser, Offene Daten und Sensoren im Internet der Dinge tauchen ebenso auf wie smarte Mobilität, Roboter in der Gesund ... more

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Good Data

Angela Daly, S. Kate Devitt, Monique Mann (eds.)

Amsterdam: Institute of Network Cultures (2019), 370 pp.

Taking Stock: Data and Evidence on Gender Equality in Digital Access, Skills and Leadership Deep Insights

Taking Stock: Data and Evidence on Gender Equality in Digital Access, Skills and Leadership
Deep Insights