Digital Citizenship and Digital Access

 The Digital Divide – a Socio-economic Divide
The first issue surrounding access is that of the ability to access, in general, data and information through the use of digital devices. This access is known as the Digital Divide, or sometimes referred to as those that have and those that ‘have-not’ (Dutton, 2004).
This divide is often associated with socio-economic factors, but as the gap between developed countries and developing countries, the digital divide is also associated with geo-demographic factors; developing vs. developed countries. This is relevant in the case of Internet use, where nations vary widely in the number or ratio of the public with access to the Internet.

 The Digital Divide – a Divide in Infrastructure
Continuing along the theme of developing vs. developed countries lies the issue of infrastructure. Developed countries have a far greater penetration of appropriate and up-to-date infrastructure than that of the developing countries. Quite simply it is about the infrastructure of the developing countries that often impedes the broad range of access, in addition to the socio-economic factors. A prime example is that of South Africa’s poor electricity infrastructure that is under such extreme pressures, that we are experiencing rolling blackouts.
At the time of development Eskom was threatening to move to level 3, complete national blackouts! Coupled with this is Telkom’s stranglehold on the telecommunications infrastructure, where it sells its customers bandwidth that the infrastructure is not capable of providing. However, it should also be noted that South Africa, a developing country, is a juxtaposition of both first world and third world environments, intrepid entrepreneurs seeking solutions to these problems.
Due to infrastructure restrictions, coupled with socio-economic factors, people in townships and rural areas utilise their mobile phones as a point of access to the Internet. However, this is a costly exercise, resulting in the digital divide deepening. As a result there are many projects underway, mainly undertaken by entrepreneurs who are passionate about the country, in ensuring that townships, and hopefully rural areas as well, are able to gain access to the Internet at little or no cost. There is the Khayalitsha-Mitchell Plain Fibre Optic project, Project Isizwe – which is creating ‘WiFi’ in townships in a non-traditional manner, as well as the Dabba project of bringing low-cost voice and Internet access to townships.

 The Digital Divide – a Divide in Content
According to Dutton (2004) nearly 70% of the websites are in English. Although this has changed substantially, the fact of the matter remains that English dominates the web.

 The Digital Divide – a Gender Divide
According to a 2013 report the Internet gender gap is notable in developing countries, with very real consequences to the girls and women of those communities. The statistics show that, on average, women are online in developing countries 23% less than that of their male counterpart. In some cases this gap is over 40%. What are the consequences? People derive huge benefits through the use and access of the Internet. These include economic and educational opportunities, access to support communities, as well as accessing career opportunities. Furthermore, by providing access for women to ICTs, nations are better able to empower women and provide equitable development (Women and the Web, 2013).

 The Digital Divide – a Skill Divide
Having the skill to operate a computer is probably the biggest opportunity or hindrance to the adoption of technology for development. Although accessibility is increasing, skills are not necessarily conforming at the same rate of increase. These skills relate to digital literacies. This is perhaps a greater issue than that of physical access, as those that are disadvantaged due to socio-economic factors have less exposure to digital technology, thereby impeding their ability in education and in the job market. However, it should be noted that despite socio-economic factors playing a role in the level of skills, it is not all bound to social strata but also personal factors.

  The Digital Divide – the Universal Access Divide
Another issue pertaining to Digital Access is that of those who are physically disadvantaged. Those that suffer from some physical disability are often disenfranchised when it comes to access, both from skill but moreover the hardware and software utilised and available. Furthermore, the cost of such hardware and software is also exorbitant.