Determinants of digitization and the digital divide in African countries: A panel data analysis

Abstract

Developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) are having remarkable impacts on social transformations, such as access to basic services and communications. The potential to benefit from digital innovations can strongly depend on the disparities that exist between individuals in terms of income levels, skills, infrastructures, geographical locations and the quality of institutions. Over the years, the concept of the digital divide has evolved to take account of new dimensions. Initially, the concept of the digital divide was based on the dimensions of access to ICTs, such as telephones, computers, broadband and the Internet. In this work, we are interested in assessing and analyzing the determinants of the digital divide for a sample of 35 African countries. The study period runs from 2010 to 2022. To this end, we will use panel data econometrics techniques to identify the relationship between our variables of interest. We will first estimate the fixed-effect model using the Frisch-Waugh method, and then estimate a random-effect model using the generalized least squares (GLS) method. Our results show that digitization is very low, despite the various efforts made in Africa. Similarly, there is a digital divide in the steps studied.