How do you use the web
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The document discusses the creation and results of the Web Index, which measures the impact and empowerment potential of the internet in countries around the world. It aims to provide evidence on how regulatory frameworks can improve or restrict the web's ability to act as a transformative tool. The 2012 index ranked 61 countries and found that Tunisia, South Africa, and Egypt ranked highest in Africa, while Zimbabwe ranked lowest. The index measures political, economic, and social empowerment made possible by factors like infrastructure, skills, content policy, and more. Continuous improvement of the index is sought through feedback on what additional evidence and areas of research would be most helpful.
How do you use the web
- 1. Advance the Web to Empower People How do you Use the Web? Mainly for….. - Information Dissemination (website, blogging, commerce) - Health Research - Educational Research - Job Research - Campaigning - Organisational Management - Social Media Related - And myriad other reasons, feel free to add...
- 2. Advance the Web to Empower People Understanding the Web as a Tool for Transformation Karin Alexander Abuja, October 2013
- 3. How do we ensure an Open Web? How do we ensure a future in which everyone, everywhere is online, accessing an open and free Web? A framework that preserves the Web as it should be: • an open and decentralized network • users as the engine for collaboration and innovation • with guarantees of human rights incl. online privacy, freedom of speech, access to the internet It is equally important to have evidence to prove the transformative potential of the Web. As the Foundation, our efforts in this space take the form of our Web Index – www.thewebindex.org 3
- 4. Why Create an Index? 4
- 5. Why Create an Index? The Web has had a profound impact on humanity yet the nature and extent of the Web’s impact is relatively poorly understood In addition, the Web can support efforts to increase state accountability and amplify the voices of citizens seeking positive change In order for the Web to attain its full potential as a tool that could improve living standards, reduce conflict and improve governance and well-being, it is important to understand how the Web impacts social, developmental, economic and political dimensions; how regulatory and legislative frameworks can improve or restrict the Web’s functioning as a transformative tool 5
- 6. About the Web Index 6
- 7. About the Web Index Launched 2012 (61 countries), 2013 (81 countries) research complete and Index under construction A powerful analytical tool that produces evidence which can highlight areas of weakness and improvement in national IT strategies and thinking 2013 edition: Over 70 primary indicators, expanded and enhanced data set (particularly in the areas of gender, Open Data, surveillance and security) PRIMARY (EXPERT ASSESSMENT SURVEY) SECONDARY (EXISTING DATASETS) WEB INDEX 7
- 8. What do we measure? Political Empowerment: e,.g. Participation, electoral politics, transparency, accountability, access to gov. data, legal and human rights issues, govt. use of the Web as a tool for repression, etc. Economic Empowerment: e.g. Macroeffects, commerce, Industry, Agriculture, financial services, etc. Social & Environmental Empowerment: e.g. Education, health, innovation, socialisation (blogs, access to, generation & consumption of social websites), etc. The Web/Content Creation & Use: e.g. Locally generated pages, content type, local language pages, censorship, standards, skill levels required for access, accessibilty, cybercrime, content policy, privacy policy, etc. Web Index: (the overall value of the Web to people, or the overall impact of the Web on people & communities) Readiness (Infrastructure – physical, human & regulatory): e.g. Computers per 100, mobiles per 100, broadband & speed, cost, policies, regulations, regional domain registries, etc. 8
- 9. What were the 2012 results? 9
- 10. 2012 Results 10
- 11. 2012 Results 11
- 12. AFRICA 2012 Results • Tunisia is the highest ranking African country, followed by South Africa and Egypt • Zimbabwe is the lowest ranking African country, preceded by Burkina Faso • Tunisia is the highest ranking North African country, followed by Egypt and Morocco • South Africa ranks as the highest sub-Saharan African country, followed by Mauritius and Kenya • Of the ten lowest ranking countries in the overall Index, seven are African (Cameroon, Mali, Namibia, Ethiopia, Benin, Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe) Rankings Region Global Tunisia South Africa Egypt Mauritius Kenya Ghana Senegal Nigeria Uganda Morocco Tanzania Cameroon Mali Namibia Ethiopia Benin Burkina Faso Zimbabwe 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 30 36 39 41 42 45 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 56 57 58 59 60 12
- 14. Affordability Indicators Created to measure countries in terms of achievement against the A4AI best practices Liberalized market with an open, competitive environment (market competition, effective and independent regulator) Policies + practises to encourage a lower cost structure for industry (infrastructure deployment & sharing, spectrum management, customs and regulatory framework, USFs, attempts to systematise data collection) Fielded 21 Primary Indicators; data on 18 Secondary Indicators Grouped: Infrastructure, Access, Affordability 14
- 15. Continuous Improvement….. What evidence is helpful? What are we missing? • What information do you need from a tool that assists in identifying areas for actionable change? • Suggestions for future research areas – what are the key barriers to affordable access in your context? 15
- 16. Contact Details Karin Alexander Web Index Manager karin@webfoundation.org +27 72 208 9794 (ZA) Skype: karinjanealexander www.thewebindex.org 16