Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia have seen significant growth in the availability and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) over the past decade, according to World Bank experts convened in Moldova for the Europe and Central Asia launch of the Information and Communications for Development 2009: Extending Reach and Increasing Impact (ICT4D) report. In fact, most countries in the region have seen such exceptional increases in the mobile telephone market, for example, that many now have more telephone subscriptions than people.

However, the region also exhibits a growing broadband divide between the richer central countries and their poorer eastern counterparts. The use of e-services is also lagging among the eastern countries: Hungary, Slovenia and Poland are world leaders in the United Nation e-government readiness index, while Belarus, Moldova and Russia rank about average.

Likewise, the region’s record with information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services (ITES) industries exhibits a gap. While there is a strong tradition of science and technology education, the post-transition era has seen some countries maintain that lead while quality has eroded in others. The enabling business environment also varies widely across the region. Countries such as the Baltic States, Bulgaria, Poland and Romania are strong performers attracting significant investments and creating jobs in these industries. Other countries lag significantly.

The ICT4D report addresses the critical role that information and communication technologies (ICT) play in economic development. Effective use of ICT is known to increase productivity, generate employment and create a foundation for a country’s long-term growth. Not integrating ICT into growth strategies will limit development prospects now and in the future. Globally, the report finds that for every 10 percentage-point increase in high speed Internet connections, there is an increase in economic growth of 1.3 percentage points. It also identifies the mobile platform as the single most powerful way to reach and deliver public and private services to hundreds of millions of people in remote and rural areas across the developing world.

Broadband in particular plays an essential role in providing the basis for local IT services industries, which create youth employment, increase productivity and exports, and promote social inclusion. Report authors say that developing countries should seize this largely untapped opportunity, with less than 15 percent of the potential global market for IT services industries currently being exploited. In 2007, this market represented nearly US$500 billion.

“These technologies offer tremendous opportunities. Governments can work with the private sector to accelerate rollout of broadband networks, and to extend access to low-income consumers,” says Mohsen Khalil, World Bank Group Director for Global Information and Communication Technologies. “Governments should proactively encourage the development of local IT services industries through policies and incentives directed at entrepreneurs and the private sector, and through investments in skills and infrastructure.”

“Access to broadband completes the information foundation for a modern economy and should be a priority in national development plans,” says Katherine Sierra, World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development. “Governments can play a key role in expanding broadband access by policies and incentives that encourage competition and private investment.”

In Europe and Central Asia, attention is beginning to turn to the use of ICT platforms for service delivery and in transforming governments. Some countries are now trying to integrate ICT in economic growth and public sector management. Russia, for instance, has adopted strategic and targeted e-government programs, and has increased federal, regional, and municipal ICT spending. The Electronic Russia program is part of the administrative reform agenda, with activities focusing on service delivery to citizens and businesses. Moldova has also begun its work on a new information society strategy to better integrate ICT into the lives of the citizens, and into businesses and government transactions and processes.

The World Bank’s ICT Engagement in Europe and Central Asia

The World Bank Group is the largest international donor in the field of ICT for development, and supports ICT activities projects in over 100 countries with a portfolio amounting to more than US$3 billion. The World Bank is actively engaged in supporting ICT sector development in the region, through self-standing ICT activities, as well as through ICT components of sector programs in various sectors, including integrated financial management information systems, e-education, agriculture information systems, etc.

The Bank has been involved in Europe and Central Asia in a range of activities to assist governments in implementing e-government: to implement on-line service delivery applications in agencies and departments that provide measurable benefits to citizens, business and employees; to promote the IT/ITES industries; and to strengthen e-services adoption. The Bank is also helping countries to explore the deployment of national broadband networks for innovation and growth. The following is a sample of Bank engagements across the region.

Albania

The Bank provides strategic advice on the potential of adopting e-government, taking into account policy and infrastructure requirements for an enabling framework.

Armenia

The Bank is preparing the E-Society and Innovation for Competitiveness Project (approximately $25 million) that aims to increase competitiveness of the Armenian economy by developing the IT sector, facilitating public-private partnerships for ICT infrastructure investments, and deploying a national broadband network with a focus on rural access.

Bulgaria

The Bank is presently providing input to the Country Partnership Strategy for developing ICT-enabled initiatives and ICT projects that advance national development goals.

Kazakhstan

The Bank is advising on the introduction of e-government applications and on extending ICT across the country. In the past the Bank supported capacity building and training of government officials and the integration of e-government programs across agencies.

Kosovo

The Bank is preparing a Public Sector Modernization Project in Kosovo that will include e-procurement and electronic human resources management systems, as well as technical assistance to move the broader e-government agenda forward.

Moldova

The Bank is providing technical assistance on ICT sector policy reform, regulatory capacity building, and to help identify ways to increase the efficiency of the telecommunications sector.

Russia

The Bank is providing technical assistance on the adoption of new information systems − as well as the related training for the public sector staff − to increase the efficiency and transparency in the areas, including country’s judiciary system, treasury, customs, registration and cadastre.

Tajikistan

The Bank is helping the government to reform the National Statistical System, and apply ICT systems to improve its efficiency and effectiveness for collecting, processing and disseminating accurate, timely, coherent and reliable statistical data.