80 Percent of the Global Youth Population Is Online, Says ITU Report

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies (ICTs) based in Geneva, Switzerland, published its ICT Facts and Figures 2017 report that says 830 million young people are online, representing 80% of the youth population in 104 countries. In developed countries, 94% of young people aged 15-24 use the Internet compared with 67% in developing countries and only 30% in Least Developed Countries (LDCs).

The report further notes that "out of the 830 million young people who are online, 320 million (39%) are in China and India. Nearly 9 out of 10 young individuals not using the Internet live in Africa or Asia and the Pacific."

Proportion of youth (15-24)

using the Internet, 2017 (estimated):

ITU

Encouragingly, the proportion of young people aged 15-24 using the Internet (71%) is significantly higher than the proportion of the total population using the Internet (48%). Moreover, according to the report, young people represent almost one-fourth of the total number of individuals using the Internet worldwide. In LDCs, 35% of the individuals using the Internet are young people aged 15-24, compared with 13% in developed countries and 23% globally.

The report, however, discouragingly says the digital gender gap continues to persist: "The proportion of men using the Internet is higher than the proportion of women using the Internet in two-thirds of countries worldwide." In addition, "There is a strong link between gender parity in the enrollment ratio in tertiary education and gender parity in Internet use. The only region where a higher percentage of women than men are using the Internet is the Americas, where countries also score highly on gender parity in tertiary education."

What is more, "The proportion of women using the Internet is 12% lower than the proportion of men using the Internet worldwide. While the gender gap has narrowed in most regions since 2013, it has widened in Africa. In Africa, the proportion of women using the Internet is 25% lower than the proportion of men using the Internet. In LDCs, only one out of seven women is using the Internet compared with one out of five men."

Under the chapter "Broadband is Increasingly Mobile," the report explains that mobile-broadband subscriptions have grown more than 20% annually in the last five years and are expected to reach 4.3 billion globally by end 2017. Despite the high growth rates in developing countries and in LDCs, there are twice as many mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in developed countries as in developing countries, and four times as many in developed countries as in LDCs."

Moreover, "The global number of fixed-broadband subscriptions has increased by 9% annually in the last five years and 330 million new fixed-broadband subscriptions have been added. Higher growth will be needed to bridge the divide between developed and developing countries: there are 31 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in developed countries against 9 in developing countries."

Lastly, in a press release announcing the publication of the report, ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao said: "ITU's ICT Facts and Figures 2017 shows that great strides are being made in expanding Internet access through the increased availability of broadband networks. Digital connectivity plays a critical role in bettering lives, as it opens the door to unprecedented knowledge, employment and financial opportunities for billions of people worldwide."

Do you agree with Mr. Zhao? What ICT products or services should be developed for the youth population? What can be done to eliminate the digital gender gap?

Aaron Rose is an advisor to talented entrepreneurs and co-founder of great companies. He also serves as the editor of Solutions for a Sustainable World.