Revisiting our perception of the Digital Divide Issue
Yahya Cahyadi

The term “digital divide” may sound quite familiar to those of us living in the States. It should be. After all, the term has been around since the mid-1990s and was catapulted into the spotlight in the public policy arena by the Clinton administration. But familiar as it may sound, it is quite possible that we never actually caught on to the urgency that the term is trying to portray. We may have heard about the term, but we never really get the gist of the “crisis” it is trying to describe. After all, the severity of a crisis is defined by its urgency and, to most people, the idea of equal opportunity to technology use doesn’t sound a bit like an urgency at all. Former US Federal Communication Commission chair probably captured the sentiment that general public has towards the issue of digital divide when he made a mockery of it by comparing it with the ‘Mercedes divide’. Michael Powell was quoted saying, “I would like to have one, but I can’t afford one”.

But this is exactly where the perception problem lies. Most of us regard technology as a luxury, or a toy, not unlike a Mercedes Benz, or even a cellular phone for this matter. And as long as we continue to use this mindset, we will not be able to see beyond the fact that there is more to the issue of digital divide than simple affordability of technology. Indeed, if we were only to analyze the issue solely based on affordability, the digital divide would appear to be a non-issue at all. Looking at our own backyard, we see that cellular phones – one of the most modern technology products – are so inexpensive today that it has become widely affordable even to Indonesia’s lower economic class. Yet with the wide affordability, the technology has not given much (if any) contribution to the betterment of the living standards of the lower-class consumers. This reality reinforces our mindset that technology is a “good-to-have-but-not-a-must” commodity, a luxury that is more of a want than a necessity. The issue of digital divide sounds more like a myth than an urgency with any real substance.

Technology Raises Human Capital

The world is rapidly developing into a high-tech, knowledge-driven society. Technology skills are valued highly in the economy, and those in possession of information and the knowledge of how to use that information for their benefit will have advantage over those who don’t. We should view technology in light of its potential as knowledge/information amassing tool. Viewed that way, technology use will impact the society in a similar way that education does. Education raises the level of human capital in an economy, and that is why a lot of effort is put in monitoring and ensuring the accessibility of education and the relevance of its curriculum. In a similar manner, technology access and skills increases the productivity and competitiveness of an individual, and adds to the net growth in the human capital in the economy.

Three Aspects of the Use of Technology

Therefore, we need to update our mindset when discussing the impact of technology use. We should not see technology as a luxury, but rather as a means to increase human capital. We should measure its impact based on the opportunity lost from not using it, rather than insisting that the society can still function without it, just like it can without too many Mercedes cars.

When studying about the use of technology in a society, we should ask not only “who gets to use the technology”, but also “how is it being used?”, and most importantly “what is it being used for?”. It is about access to technology, skills to operate it, and the opportunities related to its use (or the loss of of opportunities related to its not being used). Cellphone usage is prevalent across the economic lines in Indonesia, signaling the fact that affordability is no longer as big of an issue as it used to be during the product’s introductory phase. However, there needs to be a mindset shift in order for the users of the piece of technology to look past its use as a communications tool and realize its potential to increase productivity and efficiency. Only when we consider all three aspects can we appreciate the seriousness of the reality of the digital divide.

The access divide has too often been the focus of debate on technology policy. It is so perhaps because access is the most physical aspect of the problem. This is even truer in Indonesia, where access to technologies like computer and the internet is scarce. But providing citizens with access to technology by itself is not going to have any added value to their human capital. The proliferation of internet cafes (“warnet”), and the miniscule impact they bring to the growth of the local neighborhoods, is a testament to the fact that accessibility does not automatically translate to an advantage. Individuals need to be equipped with proper skills to operate the technology to be able to take advantage of the technology. But even more needs to be done to fully capture the potential of technology. Individuals also need to be equipped with an understanding that technology is created to help them be more productive, efficient, and therefore competitive. Skills can only get a person so far as an operator of the technology, but with the understanding that the technology is there to help him develop himself, he can then use it to continually improve his human capital.

The Need to Dream Big

There is a need to rethink our perception about technology use. We cannot afford to continue to consider technology as a luxury item. We need to regard technology for what it is worth, and that is to improve our own living condition. And we need to do this because there is a large issue at stake. As the world maintains its pace in becoming a fully digital and knowledge-intensive society, those who lag behind in the use of technology will have a severe competitive disadvantage. And as we help build our nation, we need to leverage on the potential of technology. The digital divide naturally splits at the economic and social line. Those belonging to the lower economic class are more likely to be on the disadvantaged side of the divide, and as we work on empowering them to bridge the economic line, we need to seriously consider the role that technology could play in helping them do just that.

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