Digital technologies are at the forefront of development. Driven by the private sector, these technologies enable users to not just make calls, but receive price information for their goods and services, transfer money by mobile banking, and obtain health information that saves lives.
Even though new technologies are spreading rapidly around the world, 65% of people living in developing countries still lack access to the internet. Of the 25 least connected countries in the world, 21 are in Africa but the pace at which the internet is growing in Sub-Saharan Africa is also one of the fastest in the world.
Improved mobile and broadband access is one of the most fundamental enablers of private sector growth and job creation today, especially in the emerging markets, and can quickly increase the inclusion of people once cut off from economic growth.
In ICT, properly structured PPPs can play a key role in giving local populations access to the latest technologies, increasing the efficiency of communications, and reducing the cost of services.