From drift to draft: international institutional responses to the global digital divide

Roxana Radu's book chapter, which appeared in Globalization, Technology Diffusion and Gender Disparity: Social Impacts of ICTs.

The global digital divide, denoting the patterns of uneven distribution of information and communication technologies (ICTs) worldwide, emerged as a constant concern during the last two decades. Going beyond the minimal requirements of physical connectivity, it points to an underlying concern of digital inclusion differentials of citizens in developing countries, the so-called “information poor”. This chapter aims at addressing this with reference to the international institutional structures and their current efforts. After assessing the categories of people that are affected the most by the digital gap and the range of opportunities available to them in the context of globalization, special attention will be given to the overlapping concerns shaping the international agenda in regard with ICT adoption. The creation of international bodies such as Sustainable Development Networking Programme (SDNP), Digital Opportunity Taskforce (DOT) and Information for Development Program (InfoDev) will be discussed together with the redefinition of the digital access problem as a ”universal service” and the emergence of specific endeavors for reducing the global digital inequalities.