Turning digital divide into digital opportunity in PNG

L-R: Mr. David Decker, Chief ADOC PNG cordinator, Mr. Ian Hetri, Pacific Business Review reporter, Mr. Gia Huk, Director finance and administation , department of PM and NEC.

Digital inclusion is a vital tool for economic development. It is a powerful tool; the government can use to empower the citizens of PNG to actively participate in economic development of the country.

There is however, a yawning digital divide amongst the individuals, corporate as well as state owned entities. The digital divide in PNG is exacerbated by geography. Rural locations have little or no access to information communications technology (ICT). This situation is less tolerable because most of the inhabitants of PNG live in the rural areas making 85% of the entire population of the country. In urban locations, where access is more prevalent, the quality of available ICT is often very poor.

The problems PNG faces in terms of digital inclusions was made known to the ten APEC member economies that attended the ADOC 2013 workshop in Taiwan from the 15 to 16^th August this year. PNG though lacking relevant ICT policies to drive the digital inclusions agendas, its intention to share ideas and expertise necessary for a digital inclusive nation was made known by Mr. Gia Huk, director of finance and administration from the department of Prime Minister and NEC.

Mr. Huk in his presentation highlighted the problems in PNG hindering the process of digital inclusion. Key areas pointed out by Mr. Huk included lack of infrastructures, geographical limitations and no relevant ICT policy mechanisms to boost the growth of ICT sector to bridge the digital divide among, man and woman, old and young, children and handicapped and to turn those into digital opportunity.

The ADOC chief coordinator Mr. David Decker also highlighted key challenges faced by the ADOC centres in PNG. Mr. Decker said that financing the project is the greatest challenge PNG ADOC centre face.  The three PNG ADOC centres according to Mr. Decker will now charge minimal fees to sustain the project. The money collected will be used to provide training materials and other necessities for the participants since ADOC is a non-profit making organization.

Educating an individual in PNG is costly. As Such, ADOC project is an excellent vehicle the government can use to educate and empower the people of PNG, thus turning the digital divide into digital opportunity in PNG. This was the main agenda pursued by ten AODC partner economies in the recently concluded workshop in Taiwan. The workshop called for more private-public partnership that would create a conducive environment for more international collaboration in addressing ICT agendas in the local and international fronts.