IT NEWS NIGERIA
e-Infrastructure: e- government services advancement helps to minimize the bureaucracy, reduce corruption and increase transparency of the public sector, say Digital Quality of Life Index 2020
IT News Nigeria:
Nigeria has ranked 80th position in the global e-infrastructure index, below Kenya in the Digital Quality of Life(DQL) Index 2020.
The global DQL Index 2020 study which focused on the quality of a digital well-being covered 85 countries, among 6.3 billion people or 81% of the worldwide population.
According to the study, “highly functional e-infrastructure enables people to use the internet more in their daily lives for a multitude of purposes, such as studying, e-commerce, entertainment, banking, and others. This strongly amounts to having a better digital experience.”
“The advancement of electronic government services helps to minimize the bureaucracy, reduce corruption and increase transparency of the public sector. Well-developed e-government also improves the efficiency of public services and helps people save time, having a notable influence on the quality of their digital lives”.
Eastern Asia, Europe & North America lead in e-infrastructure development.
How the study was conducted
Information points used to index the digital quality of life around the world were gathered from open data sources provided by the United Nations, World Bank, International Telecommunications Union, U.S. Department of State, World Economic Forum, Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés, Speedtest, Cable, United Nations University, and the International Development Research Centre.
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The report showed that countries in Central America and Africa lag behind in terms of ICT adoption and internet usage.
IT News Nigeria learned that the quality of the internet connectivity highly depends on its speed and stability. Slow and unstable connection inhibits daily use and diminishes work efficiency, while fast and stable internet allows to communicate better, enjoy high quality content, and more. Consequently, it directly impacts the quality of one’s digital life.
And in terms of high inequality in affordability, people in 75% of the researched countries have to work more than the global average to afford the internet
The overall affordability is measured combining the affordability of the cheapest mobile and broadband plans available in a country.
The affordability of the internet connection directly impacts its accessibility. A less affordable internet has a negative effect on the overall digital wellbeing and vice versa.
COVID-19 impacted the internet stability
49 of 85 countries experienced drops in mobile and 44 in broadband speed due to WFH setting
Internet speed (mobile and broadband) is higher in countries with high ICT adoption rates and internet usage
European Union countries lead in protecting people’s personal data
Countries stagnate in improving e-infrastructure once they reach higher than average GDP per capita level.
Strong e-security positively correlates with well developed e-government, except for Eastern European countries
DQL Index 2020 offers a unique insight into the overall digital quality of life based on five core pillars. The affordability of the internet connection directly impacts its accessibility. A less affordable internet has a negative effect on the overall digital wellbeing and vice versa
