How many inhabitants of the Earth are offline? This is how you measure the digital divide

Worldwide, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2.6 billion people remain offline, which is about 32 % of the world's population. The figures are from last year but to get an idea in 2023 it was 2.8 billion (35 %). An improvement, we are closing the gap, but at a very slow pace. Before coming to easy conclusions about modernity and poverty, we need to think about the statistics behind these estimates. The ITU collects official data from its member states on the numbers of individuals using the Internet, broken down by gender, age, urban/rural area and other parameters. In essence, it measures who is 'disconnected' by subtracting who is online from the total population. On the other hand, behind a number of disconnected there is a whole human geography: those who live in rural areas, in poorer countries, those who cannot afford the service or do not see its usefulness. We know that many live in rural areas, less developed countries (where access is at 27%), or even in regions where connection is prohibitively expensive. It is not only those who do not have physical access to a connection: it also includes those who do not use it due to lack of skills, too high costs, lack of interest or cultural barriers. Ongoing efforts - 5G in cities, fibre lines, satellite, educational campaigns - are beginning to show, but there is a long way to go. It is not only those who do not have physical access to a connection: it also includes those who do not use it due to lack of skills, too high costs, lack of interest or cultural barriers.

Eurispes has produced a report on the digital transformation in Italy, highlighting the challenges and opportunities the country faces in this area. Here in Italy, the researchers write, the demographic context is characterised by an average age of 47.9 years, among the highest in Europe, with a population of over 65s that is almost a quarter of the total. This figure affects the structure of digital citizenship, creating significant gaps. The increase in access to the Net has not been matched by an improvement in the quality of use and inclusiveness. 87.7 per cent of the population (51.6 million people) are connected to the Internet in 2024, but more than 7 million citizens are completely excluded, especially among the elderly, suburbs, inland areas and low-income households. Almost all users use a smartphone as their main device, slightly more than half also use a PC, but access to complex services such as SPID or CIE is low. According to the Eurobarometer 2025 Report, only 43% of Italian citizens interacted with the public administration through digital services in the last year, compared to an EU average of 61%. This figure does not so much reflect a lack of infrastructure, but a series of cultural, technical and organisational factors that limit the full use of digital services, even when they are available. In recent years, Italy has made significant progress by adopting key tools such as SPID, the CIE, the IO App, pagoPA and the Electronic Health Record. According to AGID (2024), more than 36 million citizens have active SPID credentials, but the rate of use is uneven: only 37 per cent of holders use SPID regularly to access PA services.

Young people spend an average of over 2 hours and 20 minutes a day on social media, only 18% say they use the Internet for educational activities or civic participation: this gap between digital consumption and critical use reveals a structural fragility in digital skills. "Italy," Erispes concludes, "has passed the milestone of basic digitalisation. The real challenge now is to move on to qualitative use'.