Uganda maintained its ranking in its usage of ICT-related competitiveness at position 110 out of 144 countries and 14th in Africa, according to the Global Information Technology Report 2013. The report finds most developing economies still failing to create the conditions necessary to close the ICT-related competitiveness gap with advanced economies.
Despite efforts in the past decade to improve information and communications technologies (ICT) infrastructure in developing economies, there remains a new digital divide in how countries harness ICT to deliver competitiveness and well-being.
The Networked Readiness Index, calculated by the WEF and INSEAD, ranked 144 economies based on their capacity to exploit the opportunities offered by the digital age. The ranking capacity is determined by the quality of the regulatory, business and innovation environments, the degree of preparedness, the actual usage of ICTs, as well as the societal and economic impacts of ICTs.
According to the Davos-based Forum, the assessment is based on a broad range of indicators from Internet access and adult literacy to mobile phone subscriptions and the availability of venture capital, adding that indicators such as patent applications and e-government services gauge the social and economic impact of digitization.
On the African continent, the top countries are Mauritius (55th with a score of 4.12), South Africa (at 70th with a score of 3.87), Seychelles (79th with a score of 3.80) and Egypt (80th with a score of 3.78), Cape Verde (81st with a score of 3.78), Rwanda (88th with a score of 3.68), Morocco (at 89th with a score of 3.64) and Kenya (92nd with a score of 3.54), Ghana(at 95th with a score of 3.51) and Botswana(96nd with a score of 3.50).
A Pdf copy of the rankings can be downloaded here.
