Despite the ubiquity of Internet-connected devices, more than half of the planet still has yet to access the World Wide Web, says a new study published Monday by Facebook-led Internet.org.
The “State of Connectivity: A Report on Global Internet Access” report highlights the fact that there is a substantial gap in Internet connectivity in various developing countries worldwide. In addition to the fact that 60 percent of the global population has never once browsed a website, the report also noted that a little more than one-third (38 percent) of the world’s population uses the Internet at least once per year.
When the developed and developing world are compared, the report sees a dramatic gap.
According to the report, more than three-quarters (76.2 percent) of people in developed countries have access to the Internet, but only 29.8 percent of individuals in developing countries currently take advantage of the Internet.
North American and Europe/Central Asia had majorities of their citizens access the Internet, with 84.4 percent and 65.4 percent, respectively. The smallest numbers were situated in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, with 13.7 percent and 16.9 percent, respectively. East Asia/Pacific, Middle East/North Africa and Latin America/Caribbean were in the middle ranging from 39 to 47 percent ubiquity.
The report added that 80 percent of the world can afford the Internet, so there is some hope.
It has been outlined three primary factors for the paucity of Internet access to a considerable majority of people in third-world nations, including affordability, infrastructure and relevance.
“Many people are not online because they are either unaware of the internet or because there is limited relevant content in their primary language,” Facebook wrote in a blog post. “To provide relevant content to 80 percent of the world would require sufficient content in at least 92 languages.”
Furthermore, if governments, industries and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) refuse to collaborate on this matter then the problem of zero Internet connectivity could be permanent for billions of people.