Digital divide still persists
The WSIS process has recognized the preponderant role of information and communication infrastructure for socio-economic development. Consequently a number of projects have been carried out worldwide, many of which have brought significant improvements in connectivity, enabling environment and capacity building in various countries. Nevertheless the problem of digital divide still remains an important issue that requires much more work to be done, particularly focusing on those countries which still demonstrate difficulties in infrastructure development and suffer from the negative effects of a widening digital gap.

Dimensions of digital divide
The ITU statistics show that many areas are still lacking even basic communication infrastructure, particularly in small villages and rural communities. The disparities observed 20 years ago between and within the countries of “the missing link” still persist, and the problem of the digital divide still remains an important issue.

The following statistics about Africa, based on data from 2005 ¹, demonstrates the dimension of the digital divide.

• Africa with about 13.8% of the world's population, has about 163 million telephone subscribers (cellular= 136m and fixed= 27.4m), compared with the world’s total 3.4 billion subscribers.
   
• Teledensity (fixed telephone lines per 100 inhabitants) is 3.07 compared with world average of 19.4; significant variation exists between the sub-regions and between urban and rural areas;
   
• The waiting time for a fixed telephone line is as long as 6 years in central Africa , compared with 2 years in north Africa;
   
• The largest towns in each country, with 12 to 22% of the total population, account for as high as 77% of total main telephone lines in 2004. It is apparent, that if all the urban centers were included, the picture would be even worse;
   
• The number of Mobile subscribers in African countries exceeds 136 million comparing with the world number of subscribers 2.2 billion. Mobile tele-density amounts to 15.2 for Africa compared to the global average of 34;
   
• Total price for access to the internet is about 170% of Gross National Income (GNI) per capita in Africa compared to the 62% world average; this situation magnifies the challenge for African countries given the linkage between GNI per capita and economic growth; the cost of 20 hours Internet usage per month is US$47.09 compared with US$14.95 in the USA.
   
• PC penetration is 2.2 per 100 inhabitants compared with 6.4 in Asia and 35.3 in the Americas;
   
• The number of internet users per 100 inhabitants for Africa is 3.7 compared with world average of 15.25 (Asia 9.7, Americas 34.2, Europe 32.0, Oceania 53.0);
   
• Penetration of Broadband per 100 inhabitants amounts 0.00103;
   
• Low investments - Africa accounts for 4% of global investments in this sector (estimated at US$8 billion in 2005); and
   
• A significant portion of inter-African traffic (70%) still transits through outside the continent. 
  
  

Facilitated efforts
Due to the outcomes of the development and plenipotentiary conferences the ITU was mandated to undertake necessary actions for further improvement and expansion of telecommunication infrastructure and for providing better access to and to improve the quality of ICT services. Also WSIS process designated the ITU to facilitate the Action Line C2 aimed at development of information and communication infrastructure and to co-facilitate WSIS Action Lines C4 and C6.

In this respect the ITU, in close collaboration with other stakeholders, intends to explore and mobilize international resources and opportunities for the expansion of connectivity in different regions. Coordinated efforts that complement ongoing initiatives with a special focus on underserved areas can make a significant difference within a short time-frame and should be discussed in more detail. 
 

Obstacles and Challenges
There are a number of possible reasons why infrastructure gaps persist. They include:

• Policy formulation for ICTs is usually split amongst different government departments and Ministries with minimal coordination;
   
• Incomplete liberalization in some countries maintains high connectivity prices;
   
• Poor intra-country and inter-country interconnectivity;
   
• Rural access still lags far behind urban access;
   
• Poor IP and inadequate infrastructure; and
   
• Lack of technical and managerial skills for effective development and management of the sector coupled with brain drain of highly skilled and educated staff. 

Addressing the Challenges
Possible solution to the above challenges could include consideration of:

• Policy and regulatory reforms in countries with multiple operators;
   
• Harmonization of policy and regulatory frameworks on regional and sub-regional levels to improve enabling environment;
   
• Creation of an integrated, cost-effective and rationalized national, regional and international broadband backbones and access networks;
   
• Deployment of an affordable basic telecommunication infrastructure in underserved areas;
   
• Fostering investment on telecommunication infrastructure, by various stakeholders from private and public sector;
   
• Facilitating implementation of large scale projects;
   
• Building capacity for further improvement and extension of connectivity.

¹ ITU World Telecommunication Database 2007