Connecting all of humanity to the internet costs 428 billion

It is not just a question of infrastructure, but also of the affordable costs of subscriptions and digital skills to use online services

Internet (Getty Images) It would take investments totaling 428 billion dollars to be able to connect everything humanity to the internet by 2030. The calculation is by the Web Foundation's Alliance for affordable internet (A4ai), which aims to realize the dream of universal access to the internet at affordable prices.

For the Internet Foundation, the first step towards global accessibility to network is investing in connectivity on the African continent. In this regard, the World Bank has already decided in 2019 to invest over 100 billion dollars to ensure that Africa is covered by an internet connection. “We must urgently work to connect the nearly 4 billion people still offline,” writes Maiko Nakagaki, senior strategic partnerships manager of the Internet Foundation on the blog of the non-profit organization founded by the creator of the World wide web Tim Barners-Lee.

But if connecting the African continent costs more than 100 billion dollars, how much must be invested to ensure that the entire world population can finally connect to the internet at reasonable prices? To find an answer to this question, the Internet Foundation collaborated with the International Telecommunications Union by drafting the Connecting Humanity report. "Our research revealed that nearly $ 428 billion will be needed to achieve quality universal broadband internet connectivity over the next decade," says Nakagaki.

Cost estimates to connect all humanity based on ITU, GSMA, A4AI data, operator and regulator (source: Internet Foundation) The creation of the necessary infrastructures to bring the internet connection will be the most expensive operation . It is worth about 140 billion dollars. The remaining funds will be used for the development of regulations and policies necessary for the proper functioning of the network, the training of digital skills and the creation of local content to be shared via the web.

4G coverage of the population by region (2019) (source: internet foundation) Although investment in infrastructure is essential, 85% of the world's population is already covered by global broadband networks and around 70% of the non-connected population is located within a 4G coverage area. This shows that the lack of infrastructures is not the only problem to be faced, but the possibility of accessing the network at prices compatible with people's income must also be considered.

Investments necessary for regions and groups of income (source: Internet Foundation) The top 25 countries in need of investment (representing almost 75% of the requested funding) are mostly low- and low-middle-income countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and southern. "Connecting everyone on earth is an arduous task that no one can undertake alone," concludes Nagasaki.