Internet Around the World

Michael MINGES <minges@itu.int>

International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

Switzerland


While the development of the Internet in developed countries has been widely documented, its diffusion in developing nations has generally not been well researched. The ITU is carrying out a series of case studies on the diffusion of the Internet in countries at different stages of development. The aim of the project is to seek to understand the factors, which accelerate or retard the development of the Internet in different environments and, through comparative analysis, to advise policy makers and regulatory agencies on appropriate courses of action. A particular focus will be on the spread of the Internet in different sectors of the economy such as health, education and commerce as well as government.

A first round of studies was carried out in the year 2000 for six countries around the world.

They are Bolivia (South America), Egypt (Middle East), Hungary (Central Europe), Nepal (South Asia), Singapore (South East Asia) and Uganda (East Africa). The countries vary widely in socio-economic and telecommunication development. They range from least developed nations (Nepal and Uganda) with low telephone densities to Singapore, the eighth richest country in the world (measured on a GDP per capita basis), where almost every household has a telephone.

Internet in the Andes: Bolivia

he Republic of Bolivia is located in South America. Bordered by Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile and Peru, this landlocked country is home to three contrasting environments: the Andes mountains and high plains; sub-Andean valleys; and tropical flatlands. Lake Titicaca, the world’s highest and fourth largest, is partially situated in Bolivia.

The population of Bolivia was estimated at 8.3 million in June 2000, of which 37 per cent live in rural areas. The largest urban area is La Paz—one of the highest cities in the world with 1.6 million inhabitants. Bolivia has the biggest indigenous population in Latin America. There are three official languages: Spanish, plus the Indo-American Aymará and Quechua.

Although Bolivia’s Internet country code ‘.bo’ was assigned in 1991, it was not until July 1995 that hosts using the .bo domain name became connected to the Internet. There were 10 ISPs active in Bolivia at May 2000. The number of subscribers in the country at the beginning of 2000 was 29’500 with around 90’000 Internet users. Growth has been high, partly a result of growing Spanish language content.

Usage is relatively dispersed compared to other developing countries where the bulk of users tend to be clustered in the largest city. Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the second largest city after La Paz, has the highest number of Internet users. This is attributed to the dynamism of Santa Cruz—it is often referred to as the most advanced of Bolivian cities in terms of business and social trends. Just as important is the fact that unlike other areas of Bolivia, the local telephone company uses flat rate pricing for local calls. So a user could be logged on indefinitely for the price of one local call (Bs. 0.48, around 8 US cents).

One limitation has been that ISPs are not allowed to provide their own international infrastructure and must instead lease it from telephone companies. This restriction will be lifted in November 2001 when the telecommunication market is fully liberalized.

Telecommunication access in Bolivia ranges from the primitive to state of the art. The left picture is a one-room public telephone call office on an island in Lake Titicaca. Users are alerted when they receive a call, by a broadcast over a loud speaker. The right picture is a telecom center in La Paz. It provides a range of services include mobile phone recharging and Internet access.

Internet on the Nile: Egypt

The Arab Republic of Egypt is located in northeast Africa. With an area of just over one million square kilometers, the country is divided into two by the north flowing Nile River. The capital and largest city is Cairo.

The latest population estimate, for 1999, is around 62 million. In addition there are some 2.8 million Egyptian citizens living abroad. It is estimated that over 15 million people live in Cairo. The percentage of the population living in rural areas in 1996 was 57 per cent.

The first use of the Internet can be traced to a link started by the Egyptian Universities Network in October 1993, via an initial 9.6 kbps link to the European Academic and Research Network. In 1994, the government began offering free Internet accounts to government agencies, NGOs, and private companies as part of a long-term government funded campaign. The objective of this initiative was to promote awareness of the Internet and boost the number of users in sectors such as trade, manufacturing, health care, tourism and social services. Another landmark event was the decision taken in December 1995 to establish an open-door policy for commercial Internet services. The nation’s telephone company stated that it would establish private and public Internet gateways and allow 12 ISPs to begin operating. Today, there are more than 60 Internet Service Providers.

At the beginning of 2000, Egypt had the fourth largest number of Internet users in the Arab region, behind the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. There were roughly 55’000 subscribers. It is generally estimated that there are some four users for each commercial account, which would put the number of Internet users at about 220’000. The majority of ISPs are located in Cairo, with only one or two ISPs serving most other towns. The government is actively trying to combat this trend by offering substantial discounts on bandwidth to ISPs establishing operations outside of Cairo and Alexandria.

Uniform nationwide Internet pricing has been assured since December 1999. Users dial a special number for Internet access and are charged on a per minute basis.

Mass access to the Internet is being promoted through public locations. The left photo shows the Governor of Sharkeya governorate visiting a Technology Access Community Centre in Zagazig City. There are plans to establish 300 community telecentres over the next few years as well as a floating telecentre that would ply the Nile River. The right photo shows a cybercafe in Cairo, one of many that have sprouted up in that city over the last few years. Clients tend to be tourists and students.

Internet from the Top of the World: Nepal

The Kingdom of Nepal is situated in South Asia, on the southern slopes of the Himalayan mountain range, between India and China. Eight of the world's ten tallest peaks, including the highest Mt. Everest, are located in Nepal. There are around 22 million inhabitants in the country. The number of people living in Kathmandu, the capital, was estimated at over 900’000 in 1998, accounting for 4.4 per cent of the country total. Some 91 per cent of the inhabitants of Nepal reside in rural areas. Half the population is between the ages of 15 and 59, with a further 42 per cent below the age of 15. Less than 6 per cent of the population is above 60 years of age.

Nepal is a Hindu kingdom - the only officially Hindu country in the world. Over 85 per cent of its population is Hindu. The rest is comprised of Buddhists (the country is the birthplace of Buddha), Muslims and others. Nepali is the official language (spoken by about half the population; more than a dozen other languages are also used). English is widely understood in tourist areas.


Sanjib Raj Bhandari, Chairman of Mercantile Communications, Nepal's first ISP. Behind him is a VSAT antenna. The liberalization of VSAT use has played a significant role for enhancing international Internet connectivity in landlocked countries such as Nepal.

Nepal’s 1997 Gross National Product (GNP) of US$ 4.8 billion, is, on a per capita basis US$ 210, statistically making the nation one of the poorest countries in the world. Indeed the kingdom is classified by the United Nations as a Least Developed Country (LDC), with nearly half its population living below the poverty line.

In 1994, the first companies appeared on the market offering dial-up email service. Mercantile Office Systems became the first Internet Service Provider (ISP) in mid-July 1995 . Nepal’s Internet market got in a boost in mid-1999 when ISPs were allowed to have their own international gateways. Prior to that, they had to use the facilities of the monopoly telephone company. Dial-up Internet access prices dropped to the lowest level in the South Asia region. By January 2000, eight ISPs were serving some 9’000 subscribers and an estimated 35’000 users (0.15 % of the population).

Recommendations for enhancing Internet diffusion in Nepal include reducing local telephone call charges for Internet access, introducing a full-fledged second telecom operator able to provide any service, lessening restrictions and providing incentives for Internet businesses, bringing computer networks to education, expanding electricity and literacy, and developing rural Internet access centers.

The e-city: Singapore

The Republic of Singapore—(derived from a Sanskrit word Singa Pura (Lion City))—is just 660 kilometres in size and located in Southeast Asia at the southern tip of the Malaysian peninsula. Singapore’s northern neighbour is Malaysia, linked by a bridge crossing across the Johore Strait. On the south, is Indonesia. Singapore’s strategic location at the crossing of many trade routes has contributed strongly to its history and economic development.

In June 2000 the population of Singapore was four million, of which 3.0 million were citizens. The population is predominantly Chinese (77 per cent) followed by Malay (14 per cent) and Indian (8 per cent) ethnic groups. Chinese, Malay, Tamil and English are all official languages, with English being the predominant language in business and government dealings.


Students creating 'Digital Art' at the Radin Mas Primary School. By the end of 2000, all of Singapore's primary and secondary schools had Internet access.

Singapore was one of the first countries in Asia to get an Internet connection. This was the culmination of many years of connectivity experience with academic networks preceding the Internet. The pioneering network initiatives of the National University of Singapore (NUS) were critical, attesting to the importance of the academic sector in developing a sustainable Internet environment. In August 1990 a 64kpbs Internet link was established between NUS and Princeton University in the United States. This was the first Internet site in Singapore and the Southeast Asian region. Full Internet connectivity for NUS was officially launched in April 1991. Other regional firsts for NUS include the first Gopher server in 1992 and the first World Wide Web server in 1993.

By June 2000, there were 18 licensed ISPs and 1.8 million dial-up subscribers, resulting in a penetration rate of 54.2 per cent. The number of subscribers rose substantially between December 1999 and March 2000, with the launching of "free" ISP service in December 1999 (meaning that users only pay local telephone charges). The telephone company has also provided each of its telephone subscribers with a free Internet account. One study, released in September 2000, stated that Singapore had the highest Internet penetration in Asia with 46 per cent of the population older than 15 accessing the Internet in the past month. If one assumes that all of the homes with a PC also have a telephone line, then 59 per cent of Singapore’s households can theoretically access the Internet for the price of a local telephone call.

Singapore’s high level of Internet development is reflected by its active promotion of high speed Internet access through the nationwide Singapore One network. Singapore One is a government-led initiative to develop broadband infrastructure and services. The network is based on Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) switching technology with fibre optic transmission speeds at up to 622 Mbps. Broadband local access is through cable modem and ADSL. Over 99 per cent of the island’s households are passed by broadband infrastructure and there were 250’000 users in September 2000. Singapore’s international Internet connectivity is, on a per capita basis, one of the highest in the world. It is connected to over 30 countries with some 800 Mbps of bandwidth.

Internet in East Africa: UGANDA

The Republic of Uganda, covering an area of 235’885 kilometers, is an agricultural country with a population of about 22 million. Over 85% of its citizens live in rural areas; the capital Kampala has almost 900’000 inhabitants but accounts for just 4% of the country’s population. Although land-locked, Uganda is in the Great Lakes region of eastern Africa with some 15 per cent of its area consisting of water. A significant portion of Lake Victoria, the largest fresh water lake in Africa and source of the river Nile, is in Uganda territory.

Uganda has one of Africa’s most liberal telecommunication markets. A second national operator, MTN of South Africa, was granted a license in 1998 and the incumbent telephone operator, Uganda Telecom was privatized in 2000. The results of these changes have been dramatic. Uganda’s overall telephone density tripled between 1995 and 1999 rising from 0.21 telephone subscribers per 100 people to 0.67. This rapid growth is a direct result of MTN’s entry into the market. Although MTN full service license allows it to offer all telecommunication services including fixed telephony, it has focused on mobile. One reason is that wireless networks are quick to install. Another is the use of prepaid cards since most Ugandan’s would not meet the financial criteria for subscription-based service. In a little over one year, MTN emerged as the largest network operator in Uganda in terms of number of clients. In July 1999, Uganda became the first African country and only one of a dozen in the world where there were more mobile than fixed telephone customers.

The history of the Internet in Uganda dates back to April 1993 with references to a Fidonet node at Makerere University. Limited commercial e-mail services became available in August 1994 and the first host using the .ug (Uganda) domain name was detected in July 1995. By October 1995, several organizations were offering Internet connectivity. There is no limit on the number of Internet Service Provider (ISP) licenses. Furthermore ISPs can provide their own national and international infrastructure. Eight ISP licenses had been issued as of February 2000. There are some 4’000 Internet subscribers and an estimated 25’000 users in the country. Demand is high as evidenced by an explosion of cybercafes in Kampala over the last year. There is considerable scope to expand Internet usage in the country since almost all users are currently in Kampala. Furthermore ISP charges of US$ 50 a month for unlimited access is relatively high compared to income especially considering that telephone usage charges must be added to this.

Internet demand in Uganda is high as evidenced by an explosion of cybercafes in Kampala over the last year. E-mail can also be sent and retrieved from the main post office in the capital.

Access needs to be extended to rural areas where over 85% of the population resides. Several "Multipurpose Community Telecentres" have been established in rural areas. One challenge has been to develop relevant applications that will attract farmers and rural dwellers.

Internet in a Transition Economy: Hungary

The Republic of Hungary, just over 93’000 square kilometres in size, is a landlocked country located in Central Europe. It is bordered by Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Croatia, and Yugoslavia, as well as Slovenia and Austria. The broad Danube River divides the Great Hungarian Plain in the east from Transdanubia in the west. Hungary is home to Lake Balaton, the largest freshwater lake in central Europe. Hungary’s access to land routes between Western Europe and the Balkans as well as between Ukraine and the Mediterranean basin give it a strategic location in the heart of Europe.

Hungary’s population is 10.4. The capital of Hungary is Budapest, with an estimated population of 1.8 million. An estimated 59 per cent of the population lives in towns with more than 10’000 inhabitants. Around 63 per cent of the population is between 15 and 59 years old, 20 per cent are over 60 years old and only 17 per cent are under 15. Hungarian (Magyar) is spoken by 98 per cent of the population.

The Internet in Hungary has its origins in 1988 when the Hungarian Academic and Research Network, HUNGARNET was created. In that year, the academic sector set up a network to allow researchers to send e-mails to each other and exchange files. In 1990, political changes lifted restrictions against Hungary and the country was finally allowed to connect to the public Internet in 1991. In May 2000, international Internet connectivity was 68 Mbps.

Commercial Internet Service Providers (ISPs) began appearing in the mid-1990s, 3-4 years after HUNGARNET was first set up. Although there were over 100 licensed ISPs at the end of January 2000, the market is dominated by three providers with close to 90 per cent of the market. The three provide nationwide connectivity and are backed by major foreign investors. The total number of dial-up subscribers was 180’000 in June 2000. The total number of users in Hungary was estimated at around 715’000 in October 2000 (a penetration of 7.1 per cent) including academic, residential and corporate users. The growth in Internet usage is largely due to HUNGARNET’s "subscription-free" academic network. One of the more significant barriers to the absorption of the Internet is the high cost of access. Basic telecommunication charges in Hungary are high relative to the purchasing power of the average consumer. The emergence of "free" ISPs, where users only pay local telephone charges for dial-up Internet access, may help.

CREDITS: A wide range of people contributed to the case studies. They include Tim Kelly, Ben Petrazzini and Lara Srivastava of the ITU; Sy Goodman and Larry Press of the Mosaic Group; Sonia Jorge of DNTA; and Walter Brown, currently Chief Executive Officer of Lesotho Telecom. National counterparts included Ismael Carrasco (Bolivia), Godfrey Kibuuka (Uganda), Meng Chung Lee (Singapore), Mahesh Malla (Nepal), Jozsefine Pergel (Hungary), and Magda Ismail (Egypt). Special thanks to Vanessa Gray and Nathalie Delmas for editing and formatting the studies.

DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Telecommunication Union, its membership or the Governments of the countries presented here.