(Agence Ecofin) – The World Economic Forum (WEF) has published its 2016 global report on information technology. Under the theme “Innovation in the digital economy”, the document focuses on the countries that best integrate information and communication technologies into their economic and social development. This integration concerns the use of ICTs by government, businesses and populations.
In Africa, Mauritius, despite its 49th place in the world, remains the most advanced nation on the continent. Then come South Africa (65th worldwide), Seychelles (74th), Morocco (78th), Rwanda (80th), Tunisia (81st), Cape Verde (85th), Kenya (86th), Egypt (96th), Namibia (99th) and Botswana (101st). Benin (128th), Swaziland (129th), Liberia (130th), Malawi (132nd), Guinea (134th), Madagascar (135th), Mauritania (136th), Burundi (138th) and Chad (139th).
The level of ICT integration is obviously not comparable to that of developed and emerging nations. If Singapore and Finland, first and second in the WEF world ranking in terms of ICT integration in economic and social development, reach level 5 on the 7-point scale of the impact of ICT on the economy, African countries remain on average at 2.9. While in developed nations it is people, then businesses and then governments who use ICT the most, in Africa it is government, business and then people much further.
Despite the current low rate of ICT use by African nations in their development, according to WEF, it is already better than in 2012. States just need to increase investments to improve their access to more people.
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