Let’s begin with a broad view, almost panorama, of the global digital divide. It is easy to quickly draw lines on a map of where this divide exists. While access is not complete or equal, it is a valid generalization to make sure that developed countries have a healthier, more supported and established digital culture and network. Meanwhile when asked about countries requiring support many of us point to those still developing areas in Africa and South Asia which have in recent years had more pressing needs keeping them from pursuing an accessible digital culture. First off the obvious divide between these two areas is economy. While countries like the United States can afford to put money toward the quality of life improvements involved with digital infrastructure projects, with an average life expectancy of 76.33 years they have the basic infrastructure to support this. Meanwhile the 8 countries with the lowest life expectancies, as released by US News,  all lie on the African continent with Chad, Lesotho, and Nigeria all sharing the lowest expectancy of 53 years, more than 20 years less than the US. These countries have more pressing issues, and smaller economies, which makes it more difficult for them to ever support expensive digital infrastructure without relying on outside help. These stark regional divisions in access make huge divides in terms of economics. If these entire regions are without sufficient access then why send large shipments of digital supplies anywhere near them. Why set up networks close enough to reach. It becomes inconvenient for companies to do any of this. However when a developing country is finally able to look at digital infrastructure projects they are faced with hiked up chipping costs, and are forced to build new networks in vast regions without proper access. 

             Yes this divide is shrinking, but it is slow. Let’s take a look at numbers released by the Internet Society, a nonprofit working with the issue. In Europe, the continent with the highest percentage of households with physical access, 88% of urban households, and 78% of rural households have physical access to internet services. Next to that the world average sits at 72% in urban areas and 37% in rural areas. In comparison in Africa, the physical access percentage is only 28% and 7% of the population in urban and rural areas respectively. So with this its obvious a global divide exists by region. So let’s take a look at a question, should these developing countries seek the support of those already developed, or should they work themselves to fund and retain control over the projects supporting their country. 

            First off, what happens if these countries place full reliance on outside countries to help them bridge the gap. If developing countries do take this approach then they will likely see quick results and will see numbers increase within their nation as far as physical access goes. But the issue we quickly pass over is that which always comes with solutions reliant on outside sources. Developing nations are still left playing catch up. The political imbalance that has been fought off would reverberate, with developed countries in a seat of power over those developing. Imbalanced countries can create biased politics, biased economics, and in the end biased systems that can become nearly inescapable. The worst case result is the possibility of the looming hand of power of developed governments lingering over those working to develop. 

            Looking beyond politics, full resources from developed countries may provide physical access, but in a region previously lacking any form of widespread basic access it doesn’t provide the cultural or cognitive access to make digital networks usable for all citizens. These skills come from a slow and built up network like that of the US. One which has a strong cultural base and has taught its citizens nationwide how to properly use devices. For a developing nation, people will not quickly find media relevant to them unless they themselves are creating it. Beyond that they don’t have the slow immersion into the digital world which has taught generations in other countries. Because of this, while outside help may bridge the physical gap it certainly leaves a culture of imbalance to be dealt with. An imbalance which developing nations have been working to stave off for centuries. 

            In comparison let’s look at the opposite extreme. If countries build the infrastructure themselves over time. They certainly do in this case own it and their citizens are properly acquainted with the skills and information needed to make the service truly useful, however two major issues arise from this. First are national issues. Developing nations’ obviously have a lack of basic quality of life infrastructure evident in their calculated average life expectancies. If they build infrastructure themselves, then it will take a more extended period of time to feel the benefits technology has had on infrastructure in the developed world. Three examples listed below are sourced from the Internet Society: