Almost 60% of the world’s population — most of whom live in developing countries — are offline. Close to 70% of households in the developing world do not have Internet access, and while Internet penetration rates have increased dramatically in recent years, the pace of change seems to be slowing, according to the Alliance For Affordable Internet’s 2014 Affordability Report.
In summary of it report released recently, "Most of those who are not connected simply cannot afford to be. While many studies note that access prices are falling around the world, we find that the cost of fixed broadband remains about 40% of an average citizen’s monthly income across the 51 countries covered in this study, while the price for an entry-level mobile broadband package hovers at just above 10% of monthly incomes.
Other issues, such as lack of relevant content, and limited digital and language literacy, combine to entrench this divide even further.
At the heart of the report is the “Affordability Index”, unique composite Index scores each of the 51 countries included in the report on a scale of 0 – 100, based on both current penetration and usage rates and the policy and regulatory environment in place that could lead to further progress.
"A statistical analysis proves that high scores on the Affordability Index are strongly correlated with lower broadband prices. To help assess drivers in more detail, the overall Affordability Index is broken down into two sub-indices — (1) the infrastructure sub-index and (2) the access sub-index.
"This year, Costa Rica tops the overall rankings, followed by Colombia, Turkey, Malaysia and Peru — all middle-income countries. Rwanda secures the top spot among developing countries, followed by Nigeria, Morocco, Uganda and Kenya", the report states.
The Alliance For Affordable Internet’s 2014 Affordability Report is an effort to identify and quantify some of these challenges, and to identify what policy and regulatory drivers can lead to enhanced affordability. The report aim to understand why some countries have succeeded in making Internet access more affordable, accessible and universal, and what others can do to catch up quickly.
Other issues, such as lack of relevant content, and limited digital and language literacy, combine to entrench this divide even further.
At the heart of the report is the “Affordability Index”, unique composite Index scores each of the 51 countries included in the report on a scale of 0 – 100, based on both current penetration and usage rates and the policy and regulatory environment in place that could lead to further progress.
"A statistical analysis proves that high scores on the Affordability Index are strongly correlated with lower broadband prices. To help assess drivers in more detail, the overall Affordability Index is broken down into two sub-indices — (1) the infrastructure sub-index and (2) the access sub-index.
"This year, Costa Rica tops the overall rankings, followed by Colombia, Turkey, Malaysia and Peru — all middle-income countries. Rwanda secures the top spot among developing countries, followed by Nigeria, Morocco, Uganda and Kenya", the report states.
The Alliance For Affordable Internet’s 2014 Affordability Report is an effort to identify and quantify some of these challenges, and to identify what policy and regulatory drivers can lead to enhanced affordability. The report aim to understand why some countries have succeeded in making Internet access more affordable, accessible and universal, and what others can do to catch up quickly.
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