A shocking surprise: half of Europe's population suffers from digital illiteracy
New data showed that more than half of people in the European Union had at least basic digital skills in 2021. According to Eurostat, the "Statistical Office of the European Union", the Netherlands, Finland and Ireland scored the highest in eliminating "digital illiteracy", while the share of digital illiteracy was higher. Romania, Bulgaria and Poland least.
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The current era is witnessing the so-called fight against digital illiteracy, and surprisingly, half of the European continent still suffers from “digital illiteracy,” and it seems that the Eastern bloc countries are the most affected by this type of “modern illiteracy,” according to an official report published by the World Economic Forum website.
Surf the Internet
Do you know how to read online news sites? Sending an instant message, using word processing software, or managing access to your personal data? These are some of the basic digital skills that the European Union measures in its 27 member states.
Among people aged 16-74 in the European Union in 2021, more than half (54%) had "at least comprehensive basic digital skills", Eurostat says, which means they know how to do at least one activity. It relates to each of the following five areas: information and data knowledge skills, communication and collaboration skills, digital content creation skills, safety skills, and problem-solving skills.
Develop digital skills by 79%
The Netherlands and Finland scored the highest in basic digital skills overall. Ireland ranks second with 70%. Romania, Bulgaria and Poland appear as the lowest in overall basic digital skills, at 28%, 31% and 43%, respectively.
Transformation by 2030
Eurostat says digital skills are a key indicator in the European Commission's Digital Decade initiative. This illustrates the EU's vision for digital transformation by 2030. The targets include at least 80% of EU citizens aged 16-74 with at least basic digital skills by 2030.
basic skills
Eurostat explains that examples of digital literacy skills include finding online information about goods or services or reading newspapers online. Communication and collaboration skills include sending and receiving emails and using social media. Digital content creation skills include using word processing or spreadsheet programs and editing images, video, or audio files. Security skills also relate to things like restricting access to a profile or content on social media sites and changing Internet browser settings. Also, problem-solving skills include online selling, online banking, and installing software or applications.
digital inclusion
Europe's goal The World Economic Forum has launched a project to acquire digital technology skills to help one billion people globally in this field, which is the main goal of the EDISON alliance, which stands for "Basic Digital Infrastructure and Service Network".
Helping everyone to participate affordably in the digital economy is also the vision of the EDISON Alliance, as part of the World Economic Forum's initiative launched in 2021 to accelerate digital inclusion.
The coalition says that 2.9 billion people (37% of the world's population) do not use the Internet. By 2025, the EDISON Alliance hopes to improve the lives of a billion people globally by accelerating digital solutions in health, finance and education that are affordable and accessible.
Launched in 2020 with partners including the governments of Brazil, France and India, the project aims to help hone and rehabilitate workers for technology-driven change in the workplace.
Along with technical skills like data and computing, there is also a growing need for interpersonal skills like creativity and collaboration, says the forum — as well as specialized skills related to sales, education, human resources and other areas.