Can you survive a life without Facebook, YouTube and Twitter?
You might be one of the Filipinos complaining about how slow your internet speed is. But did you know that two-thirds of the country's population has yet to experience the web?
According to a recent study by McKinsey & Company, as of 2013, 62 million out of 98 million Filipinos are not connected to the Internet.
The Philippines is currently ranked 11th worldwide with the most number of non-Internet users.
“Despite significant gains in Internet penetration, there is still a sizable population of the world that is not online. This offline population is disproportionately rural, low income, illiterate, elderly, and female,” the study said.
FACTS
An estimated 4.4 billion people around the world still do not have access to the Internet.
From this figure, 3.2 billion are living in 20 countries, which include Nigeria (108 million); Brazil (97 million); Ethiopia (92 million); Mexico (69 million); and Congo (64 million).
The top five countries without Internet access:
- India with 1.06 billion
- China with 736 million
- Indonesia with 210 million
- Pakistan with 162 million and
- Bangladesh with 146 million
Lack of electricity and logistics infrastructure in developing regions remain a barrier in Internet connectivity.
In Southeast Asia, approximately 134 million people—more than one-fifth of the region’s population—lack access to electricity; electric access levels are below 75 percent in Cambodia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Indonesia.
ANY COMMENTS?
Feel free to share your reactions and comments.