2017宽带负担能力报告（英文版）_48页-1mb

2017 Affordability Report Summary

Core Content

The Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) published the 2017 Affordability Report, which evaluates the progress of 58 low- and middle-income countries in achieving affordable broadband access. The report highlights the urgent need for policy reforms to meet the global goal of universal, affordable internet access by 2020, which is currently on track to be missed by over 20 years.

Key Findings

• Global Internet Penetration: In 2017, the world will reach a milestone with 50% of the population online, but the digital divide persists, especially in developing countries, where the majority of those offline are women.
• Affordability Challenge: High connectivity costs remain a major barrier to access. In Africa, 1GB of data costs nearly 18% of an average citizen's monthly income.
• Slow Policy Progress: Only 19 out of 58 countries have met the "1 for 2" affordability target (1GB for no more than 2% of income). Most countries lack comprehensive or up-to-date broadband policies.
• Public Access Solutions: Only 50% of countries have public access policies supported by financial resources. These solutions, such as public WiFi and community networks, are essential for reaching the most vulnerable populations.

Main Recommendations

• Adopt Ambitious Affordability Targets: The "1 for 2" target should be the focus of national broadband strategies to ensure affordability for more income groups.
• Foster Market Competition: Policies should be designed to promote competition in key areas such as spectrum, infrastructure, and last-mile connectivity.
• Improve Broadband Planning and Implementation: Countries must develop and implement effective, time-bound broadband plans to drive progress.
• Utilize Spectrum Efficiently: Governments should create detailed plans for spectrum allocation and encourage innovative uses to support affordable access.
• Promote Infrastructure and Resource Sharing: Clear policy incentives and regulatory certainty can help reduce costs and improve service availability.
• Revitalize Universal Service and Access Funds (USAFs): Over a third of countries have either no USAFs or inactive ones. These funds, when well-managed, can support expansion of connectivity in underserved areas.

Affordability Drivers Index (ADI)

• The ADI measures the extent to which countries have implemented policies to reduce broadband costs.
• It scores countries based on infrastructure and access factors, with higher scores indicating better affordability.
• The 2017 ADI rankings show that Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Costa Rica, and Malaysia lead the way, with Colombia maintaining the top position.
• Colombia's success is attributed to its innovative Internet Móvil Social para la Gente programme, which provides subsidized data and devices to low-income and previously unconnected citizens.
• The gap between top countries and others is significant, with the top five countries outperforming the rest by nearly four points in the ADI score.

Policy Gaps

• Only 45% of countries have resource sharing plans, and even fewer have implemented them effectively.
• Just one in three countries has a detailed, time-bound plan for spectrum allocation.
• 41% of countries lack updated or developed national broadband plans.
• Over a third of countries have no active USAFs or poorly managed ones.

Conclusion

The report emphasizes that while progress has been made, the pace of change is too slow to meet the 2020 target. It calls for urgent and coordinated action by policymakers to implement smart, competitive, and transparent policies, along with public access solutions, to ensure that internet access becomes a reality for all, particularly those at the base of the pyramid. The ADI serves as a useful tool for tracking progress and identifying best practices.