Diminishing the Digital Divide in Switzerland

According to the authors, Richard Gerster and Andrea Haag, "the digital divide does not only exist at the global level between North and South; it is also present within the economically advanced countries."

In this study 'Diminishing the Digital Divide in Switzerland: ICT-Policies, Practices and Lessons Learnt', Gerster and Haag examine the case of Switzerland from a development policy perspective. "The main questions examined in this study is how Switzerland deals with its own internal, regional and social disparities regarding policies for, and use of, information and communication technologies (ICTs). What lessons are to be learnt from the Swiss experience by economically weaker and poverty stricken developing countries on their way to information societies?"

The authors introduce this study by stating that although there is a high coverage of infrastructure, a digital divide nevertheless does also exist in Switzerland. "Around half of the population has access to the internet. While 48% of men regularly use the internet, only 28% of women do . 35% of people with a low level of education, compared to 70% of the highly educated, use the internet. The internet knowledge gap between the old and the young generations has widened. Unfortunately, there is little data available concerning this infrastructure and services for individual regions."

Some lessons learnt from studying ICT policies in Switzerland include:

• "Balancing political institutions characterise Switzerland's efforts to promote cohesion, and to respond to regional and social disparities, by giving minorities a strong voice and involving them in the political decision making process;
• Inclusive political processes with representatives of the economy and civil society are in place to facilitate consensus, or at least workable majorities, at the level of parliament and the people, as well as to contribute to effective implementation;
• Financial equalisation between economically weak and strong regions is an important tool to diminish regional divides, also in relation to ICTs, in order to avoid social friction;
• Generous time budgets are needed to give democratic political processes sufficient space instead of pushing through blueprints that are neither adapted to the local situation nor accepted by the population;
• Supportive ICT-policies are based on an explicit government strategy to bridge the digital divide. They are anchored in many laws and play an important role in giving the disadvantaged regions a better chance to meet the competitive challenges;
• A comprehensive public service is assured by government intervention to limit price disparities in the country, by allowing for the delivery of an equal country-wide infrastructure, and for an information system that takes the particularities of the regions and people into account;
• Flexible financing options beyond the market mechanism (monopoly rent, fees from competitors, tax revenue, cross-subsidisation) are practised in Switzerland to provide the public goods required by the population."

Click here to download the full article in PDF format [1324 KB] or email ict4d@deza.admin.ch for a paper copy.