ASIA PACIFIC INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY (AP-IS) Atsuko Okuda Chief, ICT and Development Section ICT and Disaster Risk Reduction Division ESCAP

ASIA PACIFIC INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY (AP-IS) Atsuko Okuda Chief, ICT and Development Section ICT and Disaster Risk Reduction Division ESCAP

2 Part 1: Digital Divide in Asia and the Pacific

52% of broadband subscribers in Asia and the Pacific 2005 2014 3 Africa (0.4%) Africa (1.3%) Latin America & Caribbean (4%) Latin America & Caribbean (8.5%) ESCAP (39.9%) North America (27.7%) ESCAP (51.9%) North America (15.2%) Europe (23.1%) Europe (28%) Global shares of total fixed-broadband subscriptions in 2005 and 2014: ESCAP analysis based on 2014 ITU Figures

Fixed-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants (average) from 2000-2014 ESCAP-LDCs, LLDCs, SIDS 4 Fixed-Broadband Sub. per 100 Inhabitants (Average) 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Year ESCAP SIDS ESCAP LLDC ESCAP LDC ESCAP Source: Produced by ESCAP, based on data sourced from ITU World Telecommunications/ICT Indicators Database, accessed June 2015.

5 Differentiated broadband growth pattern 25 Hong Kong, China Korea (Rep. of) 2 Brunei Darussalam Fixed-Broadband Sub. per 100 (average) 2005 20 15 10 5 0 Malaysia Turkey Kazakhstan Georgia Australia French Polynesia Azerbaijan Philippines Japan Macao, China Singapore Russia New Zealand 0 10 20 30 40 Fixed-Broadband Sub. per 100 (average) 2014 Fixed-Broadband Sub. per 100 (Average) 2005 1.5 1.5 0 Afghanistan India Fiji Tonga Lao P.D.R. Indonesia Vanuatu Sri Lanka Kyrgyzstan Viet Nam Thailand Palau Mongolia Armenia Micronesia (Fed. States of) Pakistan 0 2 4 6 8 10 Fixed-Broadband Sub. per 100 (Average) 2014 Source: Produced by ESCAP, based on data sourced from ITU World Telecommunications/ICT Indicators Database, accessed June 2015.

6 Proportionate growth between infrastructure and services Online Services Index.8.6.4.2 ESCAP North & Central Asia Kazakhstan Russian Federation Armenia Georgia Uzbekistan Azerbaijan Armenia Kyrgyzstan Online Services Index ESCAP South & South-West Asia.7.6.5.4.3 Sri Lanka India Turkey Iran (Islamic Rep. of) Bangladesh Pakistan Maldives 0 Turkmenistan Tajikistan 0.2.4.6 Telecommunications Infrastructure Index 2008 2014.2 Bhutan Afghanistan Nepal 0.1.2.3.4 Telecommunications Infrastructure Index 2008 2014 Source: Produced by ESCAP, based on data sourced from United Nations Public Administration Country Studies/E- Government Development Index Database, accessed April 2016.

Strong correlation between fixed broadband subscriptions and regulatory quality index 7 Source: Produced by ESCAP, based on data sourced from ITU World Telecommunications/ICT Indicators Database, accessed June 2015. Regulatory Quality Index sourced from World Governance Indicators, World Bank. Note: Estimates for Regulatory Quality ranges between -2 (poor regulatory quality) and +2 (very good regulatory quality); 95% Confidence Interval shaded in grey.

Mobile Broadband Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants growing in synch in A-P 8 Source: Produced by ESCAP, based on data sourced from ITU World Telecommunications/ICT Indicators Database, accessed June 2015.

9 Part 2: Introduction of the Asia- Pacific Information Superhighway (AP-IS)

10 What is AP-IS? Regional Initiative supported by ESCAP A regional broadband network covering ESCAP Member countries and associate Member countries from Turkey to Kiribati A pillar in ESCAP s regional connectivity initiatives (together with transport and energy), which aims to facilitate movement of people, goods, money, information and knowledge for sustainable socioeconomic development in the region which addresses the causes of digital divides, develops Internet ecosystem which supports the implementation of the SDGs and stimulates digital economy

11 AP-IS Map Interactive Map, visit <http://www.itu.int/itu-d/tnd-map-public/>

12 AP-IS Programmatic View Physical network design, development, management at regional level Inter-governmental negotiation Improving regulations based on open access Connectivity Traffic/ Network Mgmt Ensuring efficient and effective Internet traffic and network management at regional, sub-regional and national levels E- Resilience Broadband for all Resilient ICT Networks Support to disaster management systems Ensuring last mile disaster communication Bridging digital divides Promoting affordable access to underserviced areas Policy and technical support to governments

13 Summary of Regional Status and Results High dependency on submarine Missing, insufficient, not-integrated terrestrial regional backbone Weak domestic backbone/access Physical Backbone Connectivity Internet Traffic Management System Lack of IXPs and Operational workforce Lack of policy awareness Lack of open, neutral principles/practice Vicious Cycle 80.0 70.0 60.0 50.0 40.0 30.0 20.0 10.0 0.0 Asia & Pacific Europe The Americas Low Internet Penetration Fixed broadband subscriptions Individuals using the Internet Low demand High Cost Low Quality Severe Tromboning High transit cost Low traffic speed & high latency between Int l backbone links Fixed BB subscription * ITU 2014 (per 100 inhabitants) Individual using the Internet

14 The Way Forward Developing AP-IS Master Plan, including goals, main activities, milestones and priorities: 2 nd meeting of the AP- IS Working Group in Aug 2016, the Committee on ICT and STI on 5-7 October 2016 Enhancing and updating AP-IS transmission map Facilitating private sector investment opportunities for the construction of missing fiber optic links: partnership with development banks, identifying barriers to infrastructure sharing and network deployments Analytical work on ICT connectivity, e-resilience and digital divides Enhanced linkage between SDGs and WSIS within AP-IS

15 Thank you Atsuko Okuda okuda@un.org