Economics & Trade Relations

Washington File

04 May 2001

Estonia, Korea Top List of E-Ready Among Mid-Income Economies

(Report shows progress toward closing "digital divide") (540)

Washington -- Estonia and South Korea are the most "e-ready" -
farthest along in integrating the Internet into their societies -- of
53 mid-income economies, according to a report endorsed by the World
Bank and United Nations.

The report summarizes what lower-income countries are doing to shrink
the "digital divide" -- the gap between rich countries' increasing
access to commerce, learning and society on the Internet and much less
access in poorer countries. The world's largest economies plus Russia
(G-8) want to eliminate the divide and established a digital
opportunity taskforce (DOT force) in July 2000 to look at ways to do
that.

Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan,
Peru, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela and Vietnam also have
"significant actions underway" to improve their e-readiness, according
to the report.

"For developing countries, it is crucial that we take our place in the
digital economy and not be left behind," said Ambassador Percy
Mangoaela, Lesotho's ambassador to the United Nations (U.N.)
and chairman of the U.N. Working Group on Informatics at a Washington
press conference on the report. "This report shines a beacon on who is
leading the way to full connectivity."

"Ready? Net. Go!: Partnerships Leading the Global Economy," released
May 3, focuses on what countries are doing to expand their e-readiness
and highlights examples from which other countries can learn.

E-readiness is "the essence of globalization," said the World Bank's
Bruno Lanvin, executive secretary of the G-8 DOT force. The world's
leading donor nations and the World Bank "recognize that information
technology is a key component of economic growth and development," he
said.

Economies were evaluated according to five attributes:

-- Connectivity: Affordable access to reliable networks is available
to people at all levels of society throughout the country.

-- E-leadership: E-readiness is a government priority, and quality
partnerships involving government, business and nongovernmental
organization's (NGOs) are promoting Internet access for all citizens.

-- Information security: Intellectual property rights and privacy are
legally protected and a legal framework exists to prosecute computer
crimes and authorize digital signatures.

-- Human capital: Enough people have the right skills to build a
knowledge-based society.

-- E-business climate: National policies and financial systems support
e-business.

Examples of e-readiness initiatives around the world were highlighted:

-- Korea has begun a five-year project to expand the country's
fiber-optic network.

-- Estonia's cabinet conducts meetings online.

-- Brazil funded research to develop a low-cost personal computer for
low-income people and is looking for a partner to build the product in
Brazil.

-- High school graduates in Jordan will be required to be literate in
English and computers.

-- Mexico is planning to connect all its hospitals via the Internet to
allow healthcare practitioners in remote areas access to medical
information.

The report was prepared by McConnell International consulting group in
collaboration with the World Information Technology and Services
Alliance. An initial report was published in August 2000. Both are
available online at www.mcconnellinternational.com.

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Website:
http://usinfo.state.gov)