‘Broadband Connectivity in the Pacific Island Countries’ is a Working Paper contributing to the policy dialogue on the implementation of the Asia Pacific Information Superhighway initiative spearheaded by ESCAP. The Working paper examined recent developments on broadband connectivity in the Pacific island countries, identifying important drivers of broadband adoption in recent years.

AI-led transformations constrained by the digital divide in Asia and the Pacific

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not only a force behind the fourth Industrial Revolution but also a potential enabler of sustainable development in a wide variety of socioeconomic sectors. There has been explosive growth in research and applications in AI, particularly in the fields of machine learning, the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud and cognitive computing which are increasingly transforming the way we live and work in the region and beyond.

Investment in the information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure plays a significant role for achieving all SDGs, in particular SDG 9. Enhanced and affordable access to ICT will benefit an expanding range of development interventions and public services, but the digital divide in Asia and the Pacific remains a major development challenge, restraining the potential for delivering transformative capabilities that the achievement of all SDGs requires.

Developing Asia will need to invest US$26tn from 2016 to 2030, or US$1.7tn per year, if the region is to maintain its growth momentum, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

China accounts for nearly half of the US$1.7tn total annual requirement but its infrastructure gap is much smaller than the Asian average after a quarter century of unprecedented investment. 

Investments in telecommunications will need to reach US$2.3tn. If fulfilled, such investment will come as welcome news to many businesses impacted by the region’s underdeveloped telecoms infrastructure.