Working Group 1 on Connectivity for All aims to facilitate the implementation of the APIS action plan 2022-2026 by connecting people, organizations, and things anywhere and all the time.  

About AP-IS

Since 2016, the ESCAP secretariat has been promoting the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway initiative (AP-IS). As a region-wide intergovernmental platform, AP-IS aims to bridge the digital divide and accelerate digital transformation by promoting digital connectivity, digital technology and data use in the Asia Pacific region.

In particular, this AP-IS platform:

The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with economic, social and environmental uncertainties, has brought to the fore new digital divides and development inequalities in the Asia-Pacific region. The pandemic has also highlighted the growing importance of digitalization and digital connectivity - across the entire development spectrum.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digital connectivity and transformation to mitigate the impact of economic slowdown, sustain well-being, and speed up e-resilience readiness, and build back better. Social distancing has generated higher demand for fast and reliable broadband connectivity to support the growing information flows.

A new policy paper explores available data from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia to identify those groups that have been left furthest behind in a range of indicators. Using innovative methodologies and analytical tools, the paper reveals gaps because those who have access to basic opportunities and services, and those who don't.

For more details, please visit here.