Broadband for Development and Inclusion

Este artículo es una versión editada a partir del documento elaborado por la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL) en julio de 2011, como aporte al proceso de negociación de la VI Cumbre de las Américas

Abstract

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) supports many activities. As a generalpurpose technology, the Internet in particular has transformed the way in which economic and social activities are accomplished by increasing the efficiency of creation, management, and exchange of information processes, with an impact added. In that context, the importance of the use of electronic applications constantly increases in order to deal with all sorts of problems, especially those of social nature as education, health, government management and, more recently, environmental protection areas. Likewise, the rendering of services to citizens in terms of education, health, and governmental management allows for the optimization of these services as well as for the overcoming of geographical and financial barriers that restrict its coverage to poor and marginalized sectors. Broadband enables not only long distance services, but also the access to a greater diversity of information and applications available online which facilitate development.