Digitization is one of the biggest drivers for national economic success

Countries across the world are developing their digital economy and integrating connectivity into the lives of billions. But who are the digital elites? Which countries are evolving at the fastest rate and which economies are slowing down? Find out in the Digital Evolution Index 2017, a new piece of research by Mastercard and The Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Fast economic growth is the best way to reduce poverty. The Tufts University study found that digitization is one of the biggest drivers of a nation’s economic success. The report argues that that economic growth is mostly achieved by careful policy-setting—in other words, it’s best driven by government.

The DEI 2017 is a data-driven holistic evaluation of the progress of the digital economy across 60 countries, combining more than 100 different indicators across four key drivers: Supply Conditions, Demand Conditions, Institutional Environment, and Innovation and Change. The resulting framework captures both the state and rate of digital evolution and identifies implications for investment, innovation, and policy priorities. DEI 2017 also highlights the evolving nature of the risks being created by our continuing reliance on digital technology. Towards this end, the study covers a key question of “digital trust.“ The DEI 2017 incorporates a newly devised analysis of digital trust that takes into account the trustworthiness of the digital environment for each country; the quality of users’ experience; attitudes towards key institutions and organizations; and users’ behavior when they interact with the digital world. This subject is of great interest to all participants in the digital economy, given the concerns about security of essential information, cyber-attacks, and consumers’ apprehensions—about the digital systems and their reliability, the digital companies and their growing dominance, and about the leaders of digital companies.

2 thoughts on “Digitization is one of the biggest drivers for national economic success”

  1. Poor developing countries like those in Africa can advance their digital economies by learning how to leapfrog.

  2. Poor developing countries like those in Africa can advance their economies by learning how to leapfrog digital technologies.

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