NSEAD, the leading international business school, and the World Economic Forum today released the 11th annual Global Information Technology Report. The Report examines the networked readiness of 142 developed and developing countries worldwide - accounting for over 98 percent of the world's GDP. The index measures how these markets leverage advances in information and communication technologies (ICT) to drive economic productivity and social development.
The Arab countries continue to feature prominently in this year's Networked Readiness Index Ranking (NRI), with five in the top 40. Bahrain (#27) ranked first, followed by Qatar (#28), United Arab Emirates (#30), Saudi Arabia (#34) and Oman (#40). This reflects the information technology sector's increasing prominence in national agendas as a crucial instrument for global competitiveness, economic diversification, enhanced efficiency, and modernisation.
In this year's Networked Readiness Index ranking (NRI), four Nordic countries are among the ten most successful at leveraging ICT in their competitiveness strategies, with Sweden topping the list at #1. Singapore is in the #2 position. Other countries in the top ten are: Finland, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway, the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
"Over the past ten years, the information and communication technology industry has changed dramatically and its effects are increasingly transforming our economies and societies", said Soumitra Dutta, Roland Berger Professor of Business and Technology at INSEAD, co-editor of the report. "Echoing the rapid changes and consequences of living in a hyperconnected world, the framework we use to monitor, measure, and benchmark the deployment and impacts of ICT has evolved", Dutta said. "We have introduced a new set of metrics that assess not only the availability of technology, but also the ways in which economies put that technology to greater use to improve business innovation, governance, citizens' political participation and social cohesion. This year's report offers an enhanced view of how technology is incorporated into the fabric of each country."
The 2012 Networked Readiness Index uses 53 indicators to compute the impact of ICT on public policy. Changes have been made to the indicators to adapt the methodology to the pace of change in the technology sector and its subsequent impact on society. This year's GITR report therefore takes note of such items as mobile broadband subscriptions, while lessening the importance of previously significant indicators such as fixed-line penetration. The report also contains detailed country profiles for the 142 economies featured in the study, providing a snapshot of each economy's level of ICT uptake and the economic and social impact.
The Saudi Arabian government has recognised the importance of ICT as a key driver of its economic transformation. A committed and strong government effort (5th) to prioritise ICT (14th) coupled with a very favourable environment for business development has yielded fairly good results to get the country ready for ICT revolution, especially in terms of infrastructure development (36th).
"However, boosting higher levels of competition to reduce the costs of communications (85th) and improving the skill base by reducing adult illiteracy (98th) and increasing tertiary education participation (65th) should be the immediate priorities to further boost the uptake of ICT in the country," said Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director of INSEAD's eLab.
"Although many would consider that the phrase 'digital divide' is passé, GITR data shows that it remains a stubborn reality: in spite of the spectacular global spread of mobile telephony, poorer countries (especially in Africa) still suffer from a lack of infrastructure and connectivity. The advent of accelerating transformations in the way we generate, transmit, store, share and use data bears both the promise of new opportunities to bridge that digital divide and the threat of deeper ones in areas such as broadband, cloud computing, social media or big data." warns Lanvin, adding, "These are issues that countries need to be aware of, and for which appropriate policies will need to be designed as a matter of urgency."
Living in a Hyperconnected World explores the causes and consequences of living in an environment where the Internet is accessible and immediate; people and businesses can communicate instantly; and machines are interconnected, creating opportunities and at the same time new challenges. Mastering and leveraging the transformational impact on the economy, society, environment and healthcare are crucial for boosting economic competitiveness and well-being.
"Hyperconnectivity is redefining relationships between individuals, consumers and enterprises, citizens and the state, and we are beginning to see fundamental transformations in all areas of the economy and society," said Robert Greenhill, Chief Business Officer, World Economic Forum. "Traditional organisations and industry infrastructures are facing challenges as industries converge. This will inevitably have consequences for policy and regulation as regulators will have to mediate the blurring lines between sectors and industries and will be obliged to oversee more facets in a pervasive way," he added.
"Digital applications offer unprecedented potential for economic, social and political development," said Karim Sabbagh, Senior Partner and Global Head of Communication, Media and Technology Practice at Booz & Company, a report partner. "Policy-makers need to be aware of both growth and transformational opportunities, and how they can craft policies that promote ubiquitous digitisation in a timely manner. They must facilitate the creation of new models enabled by digitisation at a faster pace than the old models are breaking down," he added.
"We believe that in an emerging era of hyperconnectivity, ICT will enable a bold new chapter that is entwined with the sustained growth of the global economy," said Sun Yafang, Chairwoman of the Board, Huawei Technologies, one of the sponsors of the report. "The importance of ICT goes beyond its role as a driver of future economic growth as smart devices and cloud services continue to become a greater part of our daily lives. By strategically integrating ICT as part of overall economic growth plans, countries are in a better position to capitalise on the hyperconnected global economy and increase competitiveness on a global scale."
The Global Information Technology Report is the result of a long-standing partnership between INSEAD and the World Economic Forum's Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance and the Industry Partnership Programme for Information Technology and Telecommunications Industries. With a record coverage of 142 economies worldwide, the report remains the most comprehensive and authoritative international assessment of the impact of ICT on competitiveness and the well-being of nations.
The presentation of the NRI rankings is augmented by contributions from academics and industry experts, exploring the drivers and consequences for individuals, businesses and governments of living in a hyperconnected world.
Soumitra Dutta, Roland Berger Professor of Business and Technology, INSEAD, and Be?at Bilbao-Orsorio, Associate Director and Economist, Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance, World Economic Forum are Editors of the 2012 Global Information Technology Report.
Read the full report, watch interviews, access data and other materials at www.insead.edu/GITR. Stay abreast of the Report's findings: @INSEADLive
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Joe Chedid
Quelle/Source: Zawya, 06.04.2012
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