As commerce, employment and even education continue to leverage the internet and technology, digital preparedness takes on ever-increasing importance. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has exposed the existing digital divide in both developing and developed countries alike. As international efforts to combat the virus continue, corporate and government stakeholders are turning their attention towards projects and policies that can help ameliorate the divide and improve global access.
The digital divide is typically formed along a variety of different factors. These include rural versus urban regions, income and socioeconomic status, and a variance of the different types of access across these groups.
The isolation at home caused by the pandemic has brought many of these disparities to light and is exposing the need to address them in order to address a permanently changing society in the wake of a global health crisis.
Companies such as SpaceX, Facebook and Huawei have been developing initiatives that address the digital divide for years even prior to the pandemic. However, new approaches will also be needed in the wake of the shifts brought on in 2020.
The pandemic has induced widespread financial devastation. Addressing the digital divide will require national and sub-national resources to conquer both the divide and the pandemic together.
COVID-19 has likely forever changed the landscape of work and schooling. However, by highlighting disparities, it sets markets up to better meet the challenges of a future economy.
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