Bridging the digital gap; Hyun says thre are substantial gaps within some economies themselves - technology - APEC/ABAC - The Challenges Ahead - Jae Hyun Hyun, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, APEC Business Advisory Council - Brief Article

Business Asia, May, 2002 by Randolph Ramsay

Bridging the "digital divide" within APEC member economies will require a sustained long-term effort, ABAC Technology Task Force chair Jae Hyun Hyun says.

The "digital divide", the technology gap between developed and developing APEC countries, has often been cited as a key concern that needs to be addressed for the future success of APEC. Hyun, the chairman of the Tong Yang Group, a diversified business group in South Korea, says while APEC was working hard to bridge the gap, much more work needed to be done.

"There are huge differences among APEC member economies in terms of economic power, social system and culture. Within APEC, nine economies have teledensity of 40 per cent and above, and for most of those economies the figure is closer to 50 per cent and above. The remaining 12 economies have teledensity of 20 per cent and below, with many having less than five or 10 per cent. For internet access, again,, nine economies have penetration rates above 30 per cent, while 12 have less than eight per cent."

Internal gap

The "digital divide" is also not limited to being between countries. Hyun says there are substantial gaps within some economies themselves.

"The `digital divide' not only exists between economies but also within economies," he said. "For example, in many cases rural communities do not have as ready access to computer systems and the internet as those in urban areas. APEC is working hard to bridge the `digital divide', but this will require a long-term effort."

Hyun said the expanding use of technology brings many positives to an economy, with all APEC members able to benefit from an increased use of IT and e-commerce.

"The expanded use of technology has allowed member economies to realise significant productivity gains in the past few years," he said. "For example, information technology has permitted better management of inventories, thereby allowing for `just in time' delivery at factories and increasing efficiencies. E-commerce can provide major new markets for companies and can open sectors within an economy to greater competition. Access to the internet is especially important for small and medium enterprises, as it opens new doors to information, services, financing, and market opportunities.

"No matter where they are positioned in terms of being able to take advantage of opportunities in today's global economy, all APEC economies can benefit from IT."

New initiatives

APEC has become increasingly more pro-active with technology issues in an attempt to bring new economy benefits to all its members.

Hyun said during last year's Shanghai leaders meeting, APEC endorsed an e-APEC strategy that identified the policy environment needed to maximise technology benefits.

"The strategy suggests goals and actions to strengthen market structures and institutions, facilitate an environment for infrastructure investment and technology development, and enhance human capacity building and promote entrepreneurship," he said. "Under this Strategy there is much work being done in a number of APEC working groups that can help reduce the `digital divide' and expand education and skills development.

"For example, the APEC TEL Working Group has developed a digital divide blueprint for action and contains a number of projects and activities.

"Under the auspices of the APEC Human Resources Development Working Group, public and private sector entities from Korea, the US, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and Singapore have joined together in a Cyber Education Project to develop greater online resources for school teachers. These are but two examples of some of the work that APEC economies are doing collectively, or through individual projects."

Leadership needed

Hyun is generally pleased with the pace of technology progress within APEC, but urges that leadership from governments is needed to maintain the momentum. "I think if you look at the APEC website you will see a number of e-initiatives and projects underway, which demonstrate the openness of APEC economies and the desire to benefit from opportunities today's global economy presents," he said.

"I think the hard part is making those difficult decisions that ensure that you have the correct policies in place to enable an economy to seize these opportunities. Almost all APEC economies participated in the APEC E-Commerce Readiness Assessment Initiative that allowed each economy to see how they were positioned to benefit from the digital economy. Now each economy needs to eliminate those impediments to e-commerce identified in these assessments."

RELATED ARTICLE: 2002 Technology Focus.

ABAC Technology Task Force chair Jae Hyun Hyun outlines his group's focus for 2002.

"(We will) focus particularly this year on implementation of prior ABAC recommendations, so we will be following up on recommendations made on e-commerce, government on-line, etc. Given the events of 9/11 and increased security demands we are seeing especially in the trade area, we will also be looking at bow technology may be able to help manage and in some cases reduce increased costs associated with heightened security demands. The Task Force has also created a sub-committee on biotechnology that will be looking at some of the important issues surrounding this new and promising technology."