Position Paper on The Digital Divide

School: Maryknoll Convent School

Country: The Netherlands

Since the beginning of the 21st century, information and communication

technologies have been developing at an unprecedented rate. Such a rapid
pace of growth in technological fields have led to a widening disparity – which
we call the digital divide – among the people, both within and between other
countries, in terms of the use of technology. As in other countries, within the
Netherlands there is a digital divide among our people.

From the government’s observations, the spread of ICT can only be found in
selective sections of our population. In the Netherlands, most ICT users are
whites, people who received more education, people with higher incomes and
dual-parent households; the information poor include minority groups, those
with lower incomes, lower education levels and single-parent households.
Those who are lagging behind the use of ICT are people in low-income
households, women, the elderly, people with a lower education level and the
unemployed, which points to the problem of social inequality in the use of
modern ICT facilities.

The Netherlands highly emphasizes the use of ICT as we consider it the key to
the success of our country. Therefore, we have implemented various policies
and programmes aimed at enhancing our country’s ICT development as well
as speed up the diffusion of the use of ICT among the people of our nation. For
example, we implemented the National Action Plan (NAP), which is aimed at
stimulating access to the Internet, increasing ICT skills of the unemployed,
low-income families, the disabled, the elderly and the homeless. A specific
Action Programme on Social Quality and ICT started in 2001 with a focus on
establishing temporary investment funds for ICT applications in social care
and welfare, supporting the introduction of broadband etc. We also
implemented the Netherlands Knowledge Land, KL programme, which aimed
to promote the development of the Netherlands as a key location in the
international knowledge economy. Through the programme, numerous
projects for social inclusion of ICT were implemented. These projects included
Lower the Thresholds, which made ICT more accessible for the physically
disabled, and Broadband City, which established a wide broadband network
across the nation and many others – all these have achieved significant results.
The government also allocates NLG 70 million dollars per year to build the
information highway.

Currently, the Netherlands has the highest broadband penetration in the

European Union. DSL is available to 100% of the population and cable
Internet access is available to more than 92% of the population. Over 75% of
households have broadband access with an estimated number of 38
subscribers out of 100 inhabitants last year. A comparison of data between
1995 and 2000 collected by the government shows decreasing differences
between men and women, the more educated and the less educated, the
elderly and the young in PC possession.

The Netherlands recognizes the crucial role ICT currently plays in the world,
and is intent on helping bridge the digital divide between rich and poor
nations. We believe that the digital divide is a huge problem which should be
given more weight. In solving the problem, the world will become more
integrated, which will undoubtedly foster faster development to our mutual
benefit. The Netherlands is fully committed to giving financial aid to countries
in need because we believe that co-operation among countries will prove to be
mutually beneficial to all. Therefore, the Netherlands hereby urges other rich
nations to assist others in need through financial aid or other assistance
initiatives to help bridge the digital divide in the world today.