To go by the rhetoric dished out by the administration every so often on the country's digitisation, one cannot but paint a picture of a highly advanced system of information and communication technology (ICT) guiding the nation soon. However, the World Bank's just published report titled 'World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends' has taken the gas out of the balloon of expectation, if not punctured it. Noting the ICT as the fastest growing sector in the world, the WB finds in its study that Bangladesh ranks fifth among nations of which a vast majority does not have access to internet. Ninety per cent of its population is not connected with net. Even more surprising is the fact that the share of employment in the ICT sector is less than 0.5 of the total in the country.
This lack of internet penetration points to an unpalatable truth of digital dividend versus digital divide. The WB notes that the internet price in the country is unaffordable for the majority of the people. The report, however, has appreciated the call rates of cell phones, which it finds one of the cheapest in the world. But use of mobile phone is one thing and staying connected with the internet is a completely different proposition.
Sure enough, of the 148 million people out of a total 159 million-strong population, who do not have access to the internet here, a large number will be unable to get connected even if the facility was cheapest in the world or provided free of cost. Not many have computers or smart phones. And even if they had in their possession this wonder gadget, they could not derive benefits from it because of their illiteracy or lack of required education.
Equally true is the fact that the young generation, mostly students in rural areas, is quite capable of handling the new technology and making the most of the facility but in the absence of gadgets and infrastructure, their access to the technology is either severely limited or even beyond question. Creation of infrastructure and reaching the service at the doorstep of all potential users or beneficiaries remain a hope against hope.
Clearly, digitisation suffers from the same old rich-poor divide. But here is a technology that has the stunning history of rags-to-riches involving more people than perhaps any number its preceding innovation or technology ever was responsible for. So, digital divide here imposes a limit to reaping the potential digital dividends. What then holds Bangladesh back when its leaders could rightly spot the merit of digitisation of the country so early?
In case of mobile phone too, Bangladesh initially suffered a similar stumbling block when a set cost dearly -as much as six digit -and call rates were also outrageously high. But with the dismantling of the monopoly of two mobile companies through inviting competitors, the call rates have drastically come down. Similarly opening the market for cell phone companies the prices of sets also started falling but with the appearance of Chinese sets on the scene, the prices registered a precipitous fall.
In case of the internet service too, a similar move towards establishing a competitive market could do the trick. But involved here is the sensitive issue of cyber security. The Bangladesh Bank heist has exposed only one area of vulnerability. There are other areas including information on the country's defence that is treated as a guarded secret and must not be compromised.
This is however no argument against reducing the cost of internet use. There are both advantage and disadvantage of starting late when it comes to technology. The element of advantage concerns skipping the experimental phase and/or adopting the latest versions. But this may backfire at times when hesitation only holds back a nation when others or neighbours seize the opportunities. In case of outsourcing by the Silicon Valley in the United States of America, Bangalore of India outpaced others in the world. When that city in India boasted its own version of Silicon Valley, Bangladesh simply failed to take stock of its ICT strength and use its computer geeks.
Any innovation or technology has its influence on multi-layers of society. True, internet service penetration at its highest will not bring everyone under its coverage but it will do something else more important. This is a collective stimulus. When society becomes increasingly familiar with a certain advanced technology, its young members in particular take no time to make good use of it. Quite a few extraordinary talented children among them work wonder and by a sudden pull revolutionise its application.
If this is one important aspect, another no less amazing achievement takes place unaware. The average citizens also get used to the advanced system brought readily usable to them. How many people spend sleepless nights with the intricacies of machines or gadgets they use in their daily life? But they know how to take advantage of those. The web could serve people at the bottom rung in the same way if it was made readily available. An illiterate person could get its benefits at a minimum cost if the pricing too was brought down within reach. There indeed lies the wonder of technology.
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