Tuesday October 19, 2021

GSMA Digital Societies Report: Asia Pacific 2021

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The GSMA’s sixth annual report on digital societies in Asia Pacific tracked the progress of the 11 focus countries, Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam, on the key aspects of a digital society: digital identity, digital citizenship, digital lifestyle, and digital commerce. This year’s report includes an update to the index, to better reflect today’s technology.

The report’s findings provide an insight into the role collaborative efforts can play to advance digital societies in Asia Pacific. 4G and 5G connectivity allow for people, places and things to be connected like never before. As innovations are launched, collaborative efforts by people from different sectors allow for a diversity of ideas that helps to provide clarity of shared purpose. Ultimately these collaborative efforts can lower barriers and create prosperous partnerships. A Whole-of-Government Approach (WGA), along with public-private collaboration, provides opportunities for the region to leapfrog pain points and ensure that the benefits of a digital society are widely spread.

  • Other key highlights from the report include:
    Nearly 130 million people across Asia Pacific subscribed to mobile internet services for the first time during 2020 and 2021, taking the total number of internet users in the region to more than 1.2 billion.
  • It is estimated that by 2025, over 333 million people across the region will start using mobile internet for the first time