The holy book tells us that the poor will always live with us in our societies. It means you can never wish away the poor even if you are offended by their existence. No magic wand will obliterate the presence of the poor, except concerted efforts to change their status. Apart from individual efforts, nations and societies are challenged to do something about their poor, to elevate their standard and give them an acceptable modicum of reasonable living. It is common knowledge that nations that fail to take decisive action run the risk of plunging their population into multidimensional poverty. The telecom sector is more civil in this respect, quite urbane in the way it categorises poverty. You will hear expressions like access gap, the digital divide, the unconnected, the unserved and underserved but never anything related to the telecoms poor who have to be accommodated and helped by the system to get connected to the rest of humanity. There is digital poverty all over-within communities, within states and even within nations-but it is never so called because the operators are more careful in using words that can shade their potential customers.
Nations and international organisations have continued to make pointed efforts to reduce the communities of the digitally disadvantaged. The other day, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) announced that commitments under its Partner2Connect (P2C) Digital Coalition have surpassed $100bn, thus “exceeding a milestone in the global effort to expand global Internet connectivity and bridge the digital divide.” Ironically, the UN agency for digital technologies stated that, with one-quarter of the world’s population offline, commitments to Partner2Connect will directly support the goal of achieving universal, meaningful connectivity-ensuring everyone has access to affordable and reliable Internet and the skills to use it safely and effectively. It is not just a pile of cash the ITU is raising through P2C. Some of the pledges will come in kind. For instance, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has pledged to implement the Asia-Pacific Digital Highway, aiming to mobilise $20bn in public and private investments by 2035 to improve digital connectivity for up to 650 million people across the region through expanded cross-border digital infrastructure, regional digital hubs, and improved broadband access.
