Pakistan News: In the era of digital advancement, Pakistan is among the world's worst performers as far as internet access and digital governance are concerned, Dawn reported citing a report. Human rights and advocacy organisation 'Bytes For All' released the report titled 'Pakistan's Internet Landscape 2022'. According to the report, it thoroughly examined the intricate connection between information and communication technologies and human rights.
Reportedly, Pakistan achieved some progress in terms of overall governance and internet access. However, the nation continued to remain among the worst performers. "In terms of internet access and overall governance, Pakistan made some gains, but in the context of the world, the country remains among the worst performers, even within just Asia," Dawn quoted the report as saying.
15% of the population lacked access to the internet
The report said that despite a rise in internet penetration, approximately 15% of the population still lacked access to the internet and mobile or telecom services. According to the report, the rest of the people suffered from slow speeds and a lack of consistency in services.
It pointed out that one of the biggest global gender gaps in access and a struggle to stay online was "load shedding and blackouts" caused due to energy crisis.
The report said, "Add to this a lack of inclusivity and digital literacy, one of the biggest global gender gaps in access and a struggle to stay online due to load shedding and blackouts brought on by an energy crisis and catastrophic floods, and a dismal picture emerges."
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Pakistan's rank in key indicators
The report said that Pakistan ranked last among the 22 countries in Asia and 79 globally in the key indicators of availability, affordability, relevance and readiness. The report highlighted a massive gender gap in both internet access and mobile phone access for females and called it a "major issue" in Pakistan, as per the news report.
The Bytes for All report said the GSMA Mobile Gender Gap 2022 Report highlighted Pakistan's poor standing in terms of access for females. It further said that the gap had narrowed slightly over time.
The report said, "In summary, Pakistan had the widest gender gap in mobile ownership of all countries surveyed with just half of women owning a mobile phone, as compared to over 75 per cent of men." It said that the federal government and provincial governments in Pakistan introduced a number of online activities. However, 'Digital Pakistan' was affected by political upheaval, and economic as well as climate crises, according to the Dawn report.
(With ANI inputs)
