Rural people facing large-scale digital inequality
BIDS research director says
A huge part of the population, especially in rural areas, is still deprived of access to digital services due to their inability to purchase the required devices, according to an economist.
"So, people in rural areas are facing digital inequality on a large scale," said Monzur Hossain, research director of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).
"Along with the lack of devices, the slow connection speed in rural areas and its cost make the internet inaccessible for rural people," he added.
Hossain went on to say that data packages offered by mobile network providers in the country are not people friendly.
"For these reasons, we are lagging behind neighbouring countries like India and China in many indicators," he said.
Hossain made these remarks during his book launching ceremony at the World Literature Center in Dhaka yesterday.
The book titled, "Digital Transformation and Economic Development in Bangladesh", was inaugurated by Planning Minister MA Mannan.
The Bangladesh Evaluation Society (BES) organised the publication ceremony.
Hossain suggested the government could install free Wi-Fi hotspots in every village and educational institution considering the situation.
In addition, at least 50 per cent of the workforce related with Information Technology operations are still either semi-skilled or unskilled.
So, the government should give emphasis on building centres for the development of proper IT human resources, he said.
The book was published by an international publisher "Palgrave Macmillan" in September this year.
It highlights the links between digital transformation and economic development.