Discover

Contents

Overview

Definition

Within the context of China

Data

Factors contributing to Increase the Gap

Factors Contributing to Bridge the Gap

References

Related Pages

Overview

Definition

The term digital divide refers to the gap between those with regular, effective access to Digital and information technology, and those without this access. It generally encompasses both physical access to technology hardware and, more broadly, skills and resources which allow for its use. It can refer to both international as well as domestic disparities in access to information technology.

Within the context of China

Since the implementation of China’s Tenth Five Year Plan (2001-2005), the PRC has stressed the importance of information technology in its economic development. There is an optimism within the government that the “Internet and information technology (IT) are crucial factors for building international economic competitiveness and overcoming interregional development gaps at home.”^[1] The plan classifies the building of an information society as key to China’s economic development and modernization, with the belief that the development of IT will naturally pull the economy in the least prosperous areas out of poverty.


Statistics show that many parts of rural China are being left behind while the urban areas reap the benefits of the internet and IT. The China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) has released statistics which show continuous annual growth in internet users; yet “such growth has been a predominantly urban phenomenon” (same as above, page 38). The majority of China’s internet users are located almost exclusively in China’s big cities. Furthermore, there is little economic incentive for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to expand into regions with low purchasing power and/or population densities. Thus, it is left to China’s government to bridge the ever-expanding gap of the digital divide.
Another digital divide is that between the richer and poorer members of Chinese society, which is exacerbated by the comparitively high cost of Chinese internet access.^[2]

Data

The tables and pictures below show the geographical distribution of internet access in China. Internet density ranges from a high of 30.4% in Beijing to as low as 3.8% in the province of Guizhou. Just as startling as the differences in penetration rates is the vast disparity in the number of websites per person(table 2). Finally, the image of worldwideweb users in China portrays a graphic representation of the digital divide. We can infer from these statistics that users come from a relatively privelaged strata of the population, dwelling in highly urbanized settings and concentrated in the prosperous Eastern regions.

Regional Distribution of Internet Access^[3]

Region	Percentage of local population with internet access
Guangdong	19.9%
Shandong	12.2%
Jiangsu	13.7%
Zhejiang	19.9%
Sichuan	8.4%
Hebei	9.2%
Hubei	9.3%
Henan	5.5%
Fujian	14.6%
Shanghai	28.7%
Liaoning	11.4%
Beijing	30.4%
Hunan	6.4%
Shaanxi	10.6%
Shanxi	11.3%
Guangxi	8.0%
Heilongjiang	9.6%
Anhui	5.5%
Jiangxi	6.6%
Yunnan	6.2%
Jilin	10.0%
Tianjin	24.9%
Chongqing	7.9%
Inner Mongolia	6.7%
Xinjiang	7.7%
Gansu	5.9%
Guizhou	3.8%
Hainan	14.1%
Ningxia	7.0%
Qinghai	6.8%
Tibet	5.8%

Comparison of East/Middle/West in China internet development^[4]

..	Penetration Rate	Domain Name Number/10,000 People	Website Number/10,000 People
East	14.0%	44.5	12.2
Middle	6.5%	7.9	2.0
West	6.9%	8.2	1.8
Nation	9.4%	22.0	5.9

Concentration of WorldWideWeb Users in China^[5]

Factors contributing to Increase the Gap

Insufficient infrastructure is a huge problem for achieving connectivity in rural areas, especially in the Western regions. There is currently a lack of incentive for telecommunication providers to invest in broadening their Western networks, mainly due to a lack of purchasing power and low population densities in these areas. The work of market forces push Internet Service Providers to “shy away from investing in these regions that show little promise of short-term profits.”^[6]


Even if a rural area achieves the infrastructure for connectivity, high costs of internet-compatible computers remains a problem in rural areas. CNNIC touts that 26.6% of internet users have a monthly income of less than RMB 500, which is close to the average urban income of RMB 523. However, the average real income for the rural population is as low as RMB 187, deeming it impossibly expensive for the average rural person to access the internet.


For those who cannot afford computers, inadequate funding and geographical coverage for public libraries which could provide shared internet access is another factor. Those without computers are also facing a new limited access to Internet Café’s. The Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Information Industry have both issued a notice forbidding the opening of any new internet bars for the year 2007. ^[7]


Illiteracy is a major problem that contributes to the digital divide between the rural and urban areas. It is “not unusual to find districts and towns with 20% of the population not being able to read or write properly, and less than 5% of children attending school”. ^[8] It is necessary that the government undertake efforts to improve education in the Western regions if it wants to build its information society and bridge the digital divide.

Factors Contributing to Bridge the Gap

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in China is running a 2.5 million dollar project for taking internet access to rural areas of China. Also, the ‘Go West’ project in the Tenth Five-Year Plan (2001-2005) calls for the improvement of infrastructure in Western regions. Although it mainly aims at improving transportation infrastructure, approximately one million kilometers of new fibre-optic were laid alongside the installation of satellite telecommunications facilities between the years 2001-5. ^[9]

References

1. Giese, Karsten. “Internet Growth and the Digital Divide”. China and the Internet. RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. Pg. 30
2. The Growth of the Chinese Internet market
3. China Internet Network Information Center. "Statistical Survey Report on the Internet Development in China". Jan, 2007.
4. China Internet Network Information Center. 18th "Statistical Survey Report on the Internet Development in China". July, 2006
5. Giese, Karsten. “Internet Growth and the Digital Divide”. China and the Internet. RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. Pg. 43
6. Giese, Karsten. “Internet Growth and the Digital Divide”. China and the Internet. RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. Pg. 46
7. Xinhua News Agency, 6th March 2007
8. Xinhua News Agency, 27th December 2000
9. Giese, Karsten. “Internet Growth and the Digital Divide”. China and the Internet. RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. Pg. 46

Related Pages

★ Internet in the People's Republic of China

★ Social issues in the People's Republic of China

★ Education in the People's Republic of China

★ Digital Divide