Monitoring Desk
DOHA: Only a third of people in the poorest countries of the world can connect to the internet, the United Nations (UN) telecoms agency on Sunday said, but low-flying satellites could bring hope to millions of people, especially in remote areas of Africa.
Tech giants, including Microsoft, have pledged to support populations hobbled by poor internet services to enter into an era of online connectivity, with satellite stations set to play a crucial role as rival firms send several new generation transmitters into low-level orbit.
Currently, only 36 percent of the 1.25 billion people in the 46 poorest countries of the world can plug into the internet, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said. By comparison, over 90 percent have access to the European Union.
The agency condemned the “huge international connectivity gap” that had widened over the past decade.
The divide was a critical complaint at a UN conference of Least Developed Countries in Doha, where UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told their leaders, “you are being left behind in the ongoing digital revolution.”
Digital connectivity in African nations
The digital shortage is particularly acute in some African nations, including the DR Congo, where barely a quarter of the population of around 100 million can connect.
While the internet is easily accessible in major DR Congo cities such as Kinshasa, huge rural areas battled over by rival rebel groups for over two decades are digital deserts.
The launch of several Low-Earth Orbit satellites could bring quick change and boost African people’s hopes, tech experts promised at the Doha conference.
Satellite coverage will play a crucial role in Microsoft’s vow to bring internet access to nearly 100 million Africans by the year 2025, which was outlined ahead of the conference.
Microsoft announced the first phase for five million African people in December and added a commitment to cover another 20 million people last week.
Elon Musk’s Space X and Starlink also put thousands of satellites into an orbit between 400 and 700 kilometers (250 to 430 miles) above the Earth.
