The ICTD InfoBank has been designed and developed by APCICT as a place for online convergence of like-minded individuals and organizations working to strengthen capacities in the use of information and communications technology for development (ICTD) in the Asia-Pacific region. The ICTD InfoBank does not attempt to duplicate the work of other ICTD portals, it aims to provide easy access to relevant resources on ICTD. The resources available in the ICTD InfoBank aims to support trainers and educators in building ICTD capacity, and assist policy makers in making informed decisions.
Resources on the ICTD InfoBank include: publications, reports, journal, articles, working papers, training manuals, guidelines, case studies, video and audio files, and multimedia materials, as well as web portals with links to relevant resources, and blog sites. Users can browse these different types of resources by various topics (e.g. e-commerce, e-governance), by country, or by organization that have published these resources.
Digitization has gained more prominence amid COVID-19 and has highlighted the value of big data for public sector management. The brief explains the potential benefits of big data for public services such as health, social protection, and education and how this can contribute to the post-pandemic recovery. It also assesses the key enablers and policy actions needed to realize big data benefits in the region.
This report analyses progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Asia and the Pacific and its five sub-regions as well as the availability of data. It assesses gaps which must be closed to achieve the goals by 2030. This assessment is designed to ensure the region’s actions remain on target and shortcomings are addressed as they arise. It is a resource for all stakeholders involved in prioritization, planning, implementation and follow-up of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific.
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digital transformations. Digital solutions are increasingly needed to continue some of the economic and social activities remotely. However, unless adequately addressed, existing digital divides are likely to result in even greater inequalities.
This policy brief explores how ASEAN countries have leveraged digital technologies to fight COVID-19 and investigates the roles of governments, local technology ecosystems, and citizens in deploying such solutions. The findings suggest that the development and use of digital solutions have accelerated collaboration between different spheres of governments, technology companies, research entities, and society at large.
ITU’s Measuring digital development: Facts and figures 2020 offers a snapshot of the most important ICT indicators, including estimates for the current year. Latest figures show a wide urban-rural connectivity gap. Large swathes of the rural landscape are still not covered by a mobile broadband network, and fewer households in these areas have Internet access. The data also reveal that mobile cellular subscriptions are declining for the first time in history and that global growth in mobile broadband subscriptions is levelling out.
The outbreak in 2020 disrupted both supply and demand sides of an interconnected world economy. Asia and the Pacific was not immune as lockdowns and travel and trade restrictions affected nearly all aspects of cross-border economic activity. The Asian Economic Integration Report 2021 looks at how regional economies individually or collectively respond to the crisis by, for example, leveraging rapid technological progress and digitalization as well as increasing services trade to reconnect and recover.
This report highlights examples of country-level COVID-19 response initiatives employing digital innovation and T4D approaches, in support of both its humanitarian action and development programmes. It further demonstrates how the scale-up of T4D’s strategic integration in programming and digital innovations has allowed UNICEF to support programme partners in closing gaps to meet children’s needs, often under complex environments, and in line with existing national systems.
Through a variety of case studies, the book illustrates how countries in different regions view the opportunities and challenges of digital technologies and how policy makers are responding to them. The publication, entitled “Adapting to the digital trade era: challenges and opportunities”, considers how technological advancement such as the growth of e-commerce and the development of blockchain technology may contribute to inclusive growth.
The Technology and Innovation Report 2021 urges all developing nations to prepare for a period of deep and rapid technological change that will profoundly affect markets and societies. All countries will need to pursue science, technology and innovation policies appropriate to their development stage and economic, social and environmental conditions. This requires strengthening and aligning Science, Technology and Innovation systems and industrial policies, building digital skills among students and the workforce, and closing digital divides.
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.