SANTIAGO DE CHILE, 7 de April, 2009: Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a new online Statistical Information System on ICTs was launched by UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Created by UN-ECLAC’s Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean (OSILAC), it allows the general public to process data on access and use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in the region.
Given the potential of these technologies to generate productivity gains and improve the coverage of public services such as education, health and e-government, there is great need for quantitative information about the current state, the evolution, and the effects of ICTs in the region.
In response to this need, OSILAC designed the Statistical Information System, with the financial support of Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
This system can be used to generate news stories, since it makes it possible for journalists and others to compare ICT data and indicators from the household surveys of 17 countries in the region.
At the same time, it allows one to measure the digital divide in terms of access to and use of ICTs, according to socio-economic factors. For example: in 11 of the 14 countries analyzed, the richest segment of the population was more than 30 times more likely to have access to the Internet from home than was the poorest segment. In another 14 countries examined in the region, the average rate of home access to a computer in urban areas was nine times higher than the rate for rural households.
By quantifying such gaps or progress, it is possible to identify potential targets for public policies in those populations that illustrate the greatest disadvantages in the adoption and productive use of ICTs. As such, the system is a powerful tool for the formulation and evaluation of public policies and ICT-related strategies in the region.
Among the system’s 47 variables on ICTs are: frequency of Internet use, home access to a computer, use of the Internet for electronic banking operations, among others. Among its 20 socio-economic variables are: income, educational level, occupation, gender and geographical area (urban/rural). The system allows for comparisons over time, within countries, between countries, and at a regional level.
The data available in this system have been harmonized to enable their comparison, according to the indicators approved by the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development, which unites various international organizations and statistical offices around the world. Data confidentiality is maintained at an individual level, in keeping with United Nations recommendations.
Kilde: www.eclac.org
