According to Tsai, the nation's Internet penetration rate was 37 percent last year, the fourth in the world next only to the 48 percent in Singapore, followed by the 41 percent in the US and the 39 percent in South Korea.
Tsai said that since the forming of the National Information and Communication Initiative in April last year, government agencies have made coordinated efforts to promote the concept and realization of e-government, e-society and e-business.
He said that Taiwan's progress in e-government has been recognized in a global information technology report on networked readiness prepared by the Center for International Development at Harvard University and the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
In the networked-readiness index prepared by the two groups, Taiwan ranked seventh in effective e-government and 17th in e-commerce, while on the network use component index, the ranking is 10th among 80 countries.
The report points out that Taiwan's tele-density and mobile penetration are among the highest in Asia. With a well-developed information infrastructure, high level of information and telecommunication technology penetration, and export-driven economy, the country maintains the advantages for the development of e-commerce, according to the report.
The report also noted such initiatives as the Government Service Network, to which some 1,000 agencies have access.
Taiwan's rankings:
- The country placed fourth in the world for Internet penetration last year, with a rate of 37 percent.
- It ranks seventh in effective e-government in the networked readiness index and 17th in e-commerce.
- It ranks 10th among 80 countries in the network use component index.
