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23

Monitoring eLAC2007:
Progress and current state of
development of Latin American and
Caribbean information societies
Observatory for the Information Society in Latin
America and the Caribbean (OSILAC)

23

Monitoring eLAC2007:
Progress and current state of
development of Latin
American and Caribbean
information societies

Observatory for the Information Society in Latin
America and the Caribbean (OSILAC)

September 2007

This document was prepared in the framework of the Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the
Caribbean (OSILAC), as a DDPE (División de Desarrollo Productivo y Empresarial) project, which receives financial
support from the Institute for Connectivity in the Americas (ICA), the Pan-Americas Program of the International
Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the European Commission’s @LIS Project.
The document has been elaborated by Valeria Jordan and coordinated by Martin Hilbert, with contributions from Doris
Olaya, Soledad Parada and Wilson Peres. The collaboration of Francisca Lira is gratefully acknowledged.
The opinions expressed herein have not been subjected to editorial revision, and are the sole responsibility of the authors.
They should not be construed as reflecting official positions of the European Union, the International Development
Research Centre (IDRC) or any of the other organisations that participated in producing the document.

United Nations Publication

LC/W.151
Copyright © United Nations, September 2007. All rights reserved.
Printed at United Nations, Santiago, Chile.
Requests for authorization to reproduce this work in whole or in part should be addressed to the Secretary of the
Publications Board, United Nations Headquarters, New York, NY 10017, United States. The member States and their
governmental institutions may reproduce the work without prior authorization. They are merely requested to identify the
source, and to inform the United Nations of the reproduction.

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Contents

Executive Summary......................................................................................................................... 5
I.

eLAC2007 Regional Plan of Action ....................................................................................... 11
1. Origins, characteristics and importance ........................................................................... 11
2. Structure and content ....................................................................................................... 13
3. The eLAC 2007 monitoring process................................................................................. 18

II.

Information societies in Latin America from an international perspective ............................. 21

III.

Access and digital inclusion ................................................................................................... 27
Goal 1: Regional Infrastructure............................................................................................ 28
Goal 2: Community centres ................................................................................................. 36
Goal 3: Online schools and libraries .................................................................................... 40
Goal 4: Online health centres .............................................................................................. 45
Goal 5: Employment ............................................................................................................ 47
Goal 6: Local government.................................................................................................... 52
Goal 7: Alternative technologies .......................................................................................... 56

IV. Capacity-building and knowledge creation ............................................................................ 61
Goal 8: Software .................................................................................................................. 62
Goal 9: Training ................................................................................................................... 66
Goal 10: Research and education networks......................................................................... 69
Goal 11: Science and technology ......................................................................................... 72
Goal 12: Businesses ............................................................................................................. 77
Goal 13: Creative and content industries.............................................................................. 81
Goal 14: Interenet governance ............................................................................................. 84
V.

Public transparency and efficiency ........................................................................................ 90
Goal 15: e-Government ........................................................................................................ 91
Goal 16: e-Education ............................................................................................................ 98
Goal 17: e-Health................................................................................................................ 101
Goal 18: Disasters .............................................................................................................. 105
Goal 19: e-Justice ............................................................................................................... 109
Goal 20: Environmental protection ..................................................................................... 113
Goal 21: Public Information and cultural patrimony............................................................ 116

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VI. Policy instruments................................................................................................................ 119
Goal 22: National strategies ............................................................................................... 120
Goal 23: Financing.............................................................................................................. 127
Goal 24: Universal access policies ..................................................................................... 129
Goal 25: Legislative framework .......................................................................................... 131
Goal 26: Indicators and measurement................................................................................ 133
VII. Enabling environment .......................................................................................................... 137
Goal 27: Monitoring of the World Summit and execution of eLAC2007 ............................. 138
Annexes....................................................................................................................................... 141

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Executive Summary

eLAC2007 is the 2005-2007 Regional Plan of Action on the Information Society for Latin
America and the Caribbean (LAC). It is an agenda regionally arranged around the importance of
the Technologies of Information and Communication (TIC) for the social and economic
development of the region. The plan includes 30 thematic areas and 70 short-term activities. It is
designed to foster long-range implementation of the Plan of Action of the World Summit on the
Information Society (2003-2005), which was formulated in the framework of the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs). It is a tool of mediation between the needs of the countries of the
region and the pace of world development, aimed at facilitating regional cooperation and sharing
of best practices, creating economies of scale, and reducing costs in time and learning involved in
the adoption of ICTs.
The monitoring and supervision phase is vital to a successful policy, since it allows for
assessment of both impact and policy implementation. The region’s governments have therefore
requested that the ECLAC Secretariat “maintain and develop, in coordination with the countries
of Latin America and the Caribbean and in accordance with the relevant agreements reached at
the World Summit on the Information Society and in regional meetings, indicators for the ongoing assessment and dissemination of progress achieved in the region, especially with respect to
the goals of eLAC2007”. They specifically referred to ensuring that monitoring the Plan of
Action be an integral part of implementing eLAC2007 Goal 27. Such integration is especially
important given that eLAC2007 is a short-term plan, and that assessment will be required in
developing a new plan to address emerging challenges. Aware of the limitations and problems of
this process, the ECLAC Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the
Caribbean (OSILAC) has undertaken the task of monitoring progress toward achieving the
eLAC2007 goals. This document presents its findings. The exercise focused on 27 of the 30 goals
and outlines the situation in critical areas to the development of the information society in the
region, in order to identify pending digital challenges.
The eLAC2007 goals are grouped into five critical areas of action designated by the
region’s countries: digital access and inclusion; creation of capacities and knowledge; efficiency
and transparency of public services contents, and instruments of policy for an empowering
environment. The activities are an attempt to achieve three types of potential benefits, providing
feedback for ongoing changes:
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•

Strengthen regional projects: Strengthen regional initiatives and cooperation
projects, in order to take advantage of the synergies of collective, coordinated efforts.

•

Drive strategy: Encourage initiatives and results in specific areas, establishing lines
of action and defining indicators of progress in the development of the region’s
information societies.

•

Expand knowledge: Increase knowledge and understanding in critical areas to
defining, designing, implementing and evaluating policy.

Of the 70 eLAC2007 activities, 63 are action-oriented, while 7 are oriented to the
achievement of quantitatively measurable results. The former are designed to drive strategy,
enable regional projects and increase knowledge in areas that are critical to the development of
information societies, while the quantitatively measurable activities are designed exclusively for
the purpose of driving strategy. The activities that are clearly defined in quantitative terms are
designed to achieve quantifiable results, though successful monitoring requires that there be data
and indicators, and/or the funding needed for the collection of data. Action-oriented activities are,
of course, more difficult to measure, since they take the form of studies, projects, coordination
activities, strengthening of initiatives, creation of regulatory models and frameworks, etc.
OSILAC’s monitoring of the Regional Plan of Action takes account of whether the activities are
quantitative or non-quantitative in nature, as well as of their potential benefits. The monitoring
therefore takes a variety of forms, in order to address the various methodological problems
involved.
The results of the monitoring point to conclusions in two areas. The first relates to the
region’s progress in developing information societies. The second is the issue of feedback for
designing plans of action for digital development, and the appropriateness or inappropriateness of
the existing design.
Monitoring of the Regional Plan of Action indicates that there has been major progress in
the development of the region’s information societies. Of the 27 action-oriented areas monitored,
15 show progress or strong progress, while 12 shows moderate or insufficient progress. Table 1
summarizes progress in each of the areas of activity monitored. It should be emphasized that each
area includes a range of activities, and that, as would be expected, progress is not uniform among
countries. For example, eLAC2007 Goal 15, which relates to e-government, includes eight
different activities. The fact that there has been progress in one area does not imply that progress
has been equivalent across the different activities, or in each of the 33 LAC countries. The
conclusion is a perception resulting on the results of monitoring, that drifts to distinguish the
existence of a greater or smaller degree of efforts in the assembly of the region, relating to a more
extensive thematic area. There may well be progress on specific aspects and in particular cases
that are not reflected in the general classifications shown in Table I.

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TABLE I
PROGRESS TOWARD eLAC2007 GOALS
Area

A. Digital access and inclusion

B.
Capacity-building
knowledge creation

and

C. Governmental transparency
and efficiency

D. Policy instruments

E. Empowering environment

Goal
1 Regional infrastructure
2 Community centres
3 Online schools and libraries
4 Online health centres
5 Employment
6 Local government
7 Alternative technologies
8 Software
9 Training
10 Research and education networks
11 Science and technology
12 Businesses
13 Creative and content industries
14 Internet governance
15 e-Government
16 e-Education
17 e-Health
18 Disasters
19 e-Justice
20 Environmental protection
21 Public information and cultural patrimony
22 National strategies
23 Financing
24 Universal access policies
25 Legislative framework
26 Indicators and measurement
27 Monitoring of the World Summit and execution
of eLAC2007

Amount of progress
Progress
Strong progress
Progress
No progress
Moderate progress
Strong progress
Moderate progress
Moderate progress
Progress
Strong progress
No progress
Progress
Progress
Progress
Progress
Strong progress
No progress
No progress
Moderate progress
Moderate progress
Progress
Progress
No progress
No progress
No progress
Strong progress
Strong progress

Source: Authors compilation.
Note: The evaluations present a general impression of the advancement of the region as a whole in each of the thematic areas. It is
important to clarify that the regions advancement not necessarily is in agreement with the progress and level of activity of the
eLAC2007 Working Groups. For example, Working Groups on Financing (23) and Legislative Frameworks (25) have been very
active, however the progress of the entire region is subject to inertias outside of the circle of influence of these Working Groups,
especially in the short-term perspective of only three years.

Monitoring of eLAC2007 provided information on progress in the region’s information
societies and on the design of the Plan of Action. Five conclusions emerged:

1)

The conceptual distinction between access, capacities, applications and policies may
lead to an unintegrated approach to digital development.
Progress toward the goal of capacity-building and knowledge creation, as well as toward
that of increasing digital access and inclusion, has been greater than in the areas of
governmental transparency and efficiency, development of electronic applications, and
development and implementation of policy instruments (see Table 1). Five of the seven
goals in which no progress was evident belong to the second group, while 9 of the 15
goals showing progress or strong progress belong to the first one.
The conceptual distinction between access, capacities, applications and policies is based
on a technological view that has proven highly useful in research on, and analysis of,
information societies. It aids in understanding the phenomenon, its dynamics and the
relationships between the different components of the development of information
societies. While there is no debate over the analytical advantages of this scheme,
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eLAC2007 monitoring suggests that the use of this conceptual framework in
policymaking may lead to an unintegrated approach to digital development.
There is a danger of interpreting access and capacities as ends in themselves, rather than
as means. In a non-academic, policy-oriented context, it may be useful to adopt a
sectorial approach based on the beneficiaries and targets of digital development—e.g.,
considering the realities in areas such as education, health, government, business and
communities, etc.. Within each of these sectors, the development of access, capacities,
applications and policy should be approached holistically. This is particularly true in
view of the virtuous circle that links these areas. Access promotes use, which is needed to
develop capacity, while capacity in turn generates demand for electronic applications and
content, which in their turn increase demand for access. Thus, work must be conducted
simultaneously in each of these areas, and policies addressing the specific needs of each
economic and social sector must be integrated. ICT development must follow a society’s
general scheme of organization, not the reverse.
Conclusion: Structuring a plan of action based on the beneficiaries and targets of
digital development, promoting integral development for access, capacities, electronic
applications and policy.
2)

eLAC2007 produces major benefits as a public-private “metaplatform” for regional
cooperation
eLAC2007 is designed as a “metaplatform” for public and private activities. Many of the
actions set forth in the plan are executed by private entities and networks in the region,
with the support of government. The specifics of digital development, as well as the
horizontal, generic nature of ICTs and the current speed of innovation, make close
cooperation between the public and private sectors essential. Major progress can be seen
in these activities, which are led and encouraged by private entities in civil society, as
well as by academic networks, foundations and firms. Given the similarities and inherent
relationships of various facets of digital development between the public and private
sectors, there may be positive impact in areas that are the exclusive domain of the public
sector. This fact underlines the fundamental role of eLAC2007 as a “metaplatform”
embracing public and private activity for regional cooperation by providing greater
visibility for players in both spheres, facilitating interaction, coordination and cooperation
among them.
Conclusion: The scheme of a public-private “metaplatform” for regional cooperation
in digital development should be maintained.

3)

Digital development in the public sphere is clearly uneven from country to country.
Analysis of activities designed to achieve quantifiable results, focused mostly on
indicators of ICT access and connectivity, indicates that progress is less uniform from
country to country in the region in activities overseen by government, as opposed to areas
handled by the private sector. For example, differences between countries in regard to the
extent of connectivity in local governments and public schools are as great as, if not
greater than, differences in connectivity among businesses and among private schools.
This demonstrates the vital role of government actions in the public sphere. The fact that
some countries have advanced significantly, while others at a similar stage of
socioeconomic development have not, highlights the fact that progress is possible in
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developing countries, and that practical solutions appropriate to regional realities can be
found.
For activities designed to be measured by quantifiable results, indicators can be
established. This allows governmental entities to identify the countries that are leading in
different areas, adopt best practices, and share experiences with other governmental
entities. This exchange is one of the most important benefits of eLAC2007. Monitoring
of eLAC2007 shows that quantitative monitoring makes it possible to utilize differences
between countries as a catalyst for development.
Conclusion: Monitoring of activities should be intensified as a means of identifying
best practices and of facilitating the sharing of experience among the region’s
governments.
4)

Activities designed with a view to achieving quantifiable results are less useful when
indicators are imprecise or relative, rather than absolute.
Given that the subject of ICTs is a new one, some countries do not yet have systematic
processes for establishing indicators for activities oriented to achieving quantifiable
results, and there are no time series to facilitate periodic evaluation. Thus, during the
process of creating eLAC2007, a number of ambiguous indicators were adopted. For
example, some activities are aimed simply at achieving “considerable increase,” and
some indicators are relative rather than absolute (e.g., “doubling the number of…” a
given variable). In only 7 of the 70 activities were absolute parameters established (e.g.,
“connect one third of the population…” or “reduce coverage to 20,000 individuals”).
Though there was controversy during the negotiations leading up to approval of
eLAC2007 over the level of specificity, monitoring of eLAC2007 has shown that this
scheme promotes a learning process in regard to policy measurement and monitoring,
while aiding in the assessment of results and in identifying best practices.
One conclusion is that some of eLAC’s quantifiable goals were out of line with the
realities of the region. The order of magnitude of the difference between the desired ends
and the actual reality reveals the paucity of knowledge often used as a basis for
formulating public policy in the region. However, the mere fact of having attempted to
define a regional average encouraged further analysis of the issues, thus elevating the
discussion to a more mature level. One of the lessons learned in regard to relative
indicators is that such indicators are problematic in a region as diverse as Latin America
and the Caribbean. Given an extremely low starting point, the “doubling” of a figure may
involve growth of a mere 1% to 2%; at the same time, if the starting point is higher, it
may pose an unattainable growth target of 60% or 120%. Moreover, relying on regional
averages ignores diversity, inevitably meaning that some countries will be far above,
others far below, the figures cited.
Still, from the regional perspective that upholds eLAC, this diversity among the countries
is not a crucial factor, since the goal is to bring the region, as a whole, to a certain level.
In this context, defining absolute values oriented to achieving a target average regional
level helps to identify the countries most advanced in specific areas; this, in turn, helps
other countries identify best practices, thus engendering regional cooperation activities.
Conclusion: For activities with quantifiable results, reference indicators should be
formulated as absolute values oriented to a regional average.

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5)

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Action-oriented activities show more progress when a specific mechanism is used,
and/or when there are clearly recognizable contributing partners.
Analysis of action-oriented activities, based on the monitoring of eLAC2007 shows the
greatest progress in those related to enabling regional projects and to expanding
knowledge, while indicating that these were easiest to support when a mechanism of
action had been defined. In some cases, the partners that were expected to assist in
achieving the goal were not specifically identified in the plan, though it ultimately
became clear which entities would be suited for the task. Thus, good progress occurred in
cases where the plan specified how actions were to be carried out, whether through a
working group, or through the assistance of a specialized agency or network—acting as
the leading partner—with the necessary resources, contacts and institutional structure.
One specific case worth noting involves goals designed to expand knowledge. All of the
activities associated with these goals are action-oriented, and are primarily associated
with working groups. Six of the new working groups created as part of eLAC2007 are
associated with areas that have shown the greatest progress. The areas in which the most
notable advances took place are those that had support from a regional agency
specializing in the target issue. In such cases, the synergies of working in collaboration
with an established institution are clear. Such arrangements facilitate efforts by providing
established channels within which to work—leading, in some cases, to even surpassing
the initial objectives of the working groups.
Conclusion: The mechanism through which action-oriented activities are to be carried
out should be defined.

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I. eLAC2007 Regional Plan of Action

1.

Origins, characteristics and importance

The Regional Plan of Action on the Information Society for Latin America and the Caribbean,
covering the years 2005-2007 (eLAC2007), is a regionally coordinated policy agenda that
recognizes the importance of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for the
economic and social development of the countries of the region. As a product of the World
Summit on the Information Society (WSIS, 2003-2005), its objective is to make adaptations in
the region to address the ambitious goals of the global community, intermediating between the
needs of the region’s countries and the pace of world development.
The Regional Plan of Action for ICTs, as a policy effort, arises from the region’s
consensus on the relation between the incorporation, creation and dissemination of information
and knowledge, and the positive impact of these on productivity, growth, the welfare of the
region’s countries, the efficiency and transparency of the region’s public sector, and the overall
quality of life. This suggests the emergence of an empowering environment that encourages the
implementation of public policy designed to coordinate and advance the various efforts and
initiatives already under way in the countries, in order to increase access to infrastructure and
incorporate the use of ICTs in different areas of activity in the region’s societies.
There has been a gradual growth in the cooperative policy efforts of the countries,
involving the public sector, the private sector and civil society in an attempt to make new
technologies and digital networks instruments of economic and social development. This trend
has been furthered by the global concern for ICTs. At the WSIS, a consensual political
commitment involving 175 countries was reached, resulting in a Declaration of Principles that set
forth 67 guiding principles and a Plan of Action comprising 167 broad goals—global challenges
to be achieved by 2015 in the context of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which are
also keyed to that year.
As the WSIS process unfolded, the need to formulate and develop a Plan of Action
specific to the region became clear, since the WSIS process represents a consensus between the
world’s most and least advanced countries, and since most of the 167 actions are not directly
relevant to Latin America and the Caribbean. Thus, the belief that it was urgent for the region to
identify its own priorities and issues led to the creation of a Regional Plan of Action, with 30
goals and 70 specific activities for the 2005-2007 period (see http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo/ eLAC).
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Thus, the plan is a means of furthering progress toward both the MDGs and the WSIS goals,
giving due consideration to the region’s own needs and realities.
In view of the dynamic nature of the ICT sector, the Plan of Action, though inspired by
the long-range vision (oriented to 2015) that emerged from the WSIS and MDG processes, is a
short-term strategy. This short-term formulation provides an opportunity to review the
achievement of goals and to reformulate objectives as goals are met, while at the same time
considering new needs that emerge from the dynamic evolution of the technologies themselves.
Thus, eLAC2007 plays an intermediating role between global goals and the specific
circumstances and needs of the region’s countries.
FIGURE 1
LONG-RANGE VISION AND SHORT-TERM ACTIONS

2005

…

2007

WSIS Guiding Principles
Short-term Plan of
Action
Rio de Janeiro
June 2005

eLAC2007

2015

MDG/WSIS long-range goals

Adjusted Shortterm Plan of Action

Monitoring and
evaluation
San Salvador
Feb. 2008

Adjusted
Short-term
Plan of
Action

Monitoring and
evaluation

Source: Authors compilation.

As WSIS approached, the region focused on building a political consensus and a common
strategic vision. It made a noteworthy effort to formulate political declarations on the strategic
orientation and guiding principles that should govern public policy in this area.1 The Regional
Ministerial Conference in Rio de Janeiro, held in June 2005, represented the culmination of a
number of years of dialogue on the relation between ICTs, growth and equity. The strategic
discussion led, in turn, to a more operational focus designed to create opportunities for
cooperation, sharing of best practices, creation of economies of scale and reduction of learning
costs. The countries hoped to make these opportunities a reality through the Regional Plan of
Action for the Information Society, eLAC2007.

1

This effort is reflected in—among other things—the following declarations: Declaration of Florianopolis (July
2000), Declaration of Itacuruça (October 2000), Decision made by the Ministers of Foreign Relations at the Rio
Group to form a workgroup on information technologies (March 2001), Rio de Janeiro Declaration on ICT for
Development (June 2001), Connectivity Agenda for the Americas and Plan of Action of Quito (August 2002),
Declaration of Bavaro (January 2003) and the Rio de Janeiro Commitment (June 2005).

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2.

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Structure and content

In accordance with its role as an intermediator between world requirements and regional realities,
the plan is organised around three types of potential benefits, providing feedback as the plan
unfolds:
•

Strengthen regional projects: intends to reinforce initiatives and projects of regional
cooperation, in order to obtain benefits from the synergy of a joint work coordinated.
For it, it resorts to the existing regional organizations specialized in private themes, or
in its defect, the integration instances creation is prompted and regional cooperation.

•

Drive strategy: Encourage initiatives and results in specific areas, establishing lines
of action and defining indicators of progress in the development of the region’s
information societies.

•

Expand knowledge: Increase knowledge and understanding in critical areas to
defining, designing, implementing and evaluating policy. The elaboration of studies
through working groups, connected with prominent agencies in the theme, aims at a
better comprehension of complex and new themes.

The activities of eLAC2007 can be classified in terms of these guidelines. Most of the 70
activities in the plan are action-based, inasmuch as they are associated with strengthening
regional projects and deepening knowledge on critical issues. To drive strategies, eLAC2007
includes, on one hand, action-based activities and, on the other, activities that can be
quantitatively measured. This situation is illustrated in the chart below.
CHART A
DISTRIBUTION OF eLAC2007 ACTIVITIES

Strengthen
regional projects,
16 activities

Action, 27 activities

Drive
strategies, 34
activities
Quantifiable
results, 7 activities

Expand
knowledge, 20
activities

Source: Authors compilation.

The region’s countries have identified five critical areas to the digital policy agenda.
These include access to infrastructure, creation of capacities and knowledge, efficiency and
transparency of public content and services, policy instruments, and providing an empowering
environment. Figure 2 shows these five areas of action in relation to the eLAC2007 structure.

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FIGURE 2
STRUCTURE OF eLAC2007 REGIONAL PLAN OF ACTION

Access and infrastructure

Capaci
ties
and
knowle
dge

Empowering
environment

Public
services
and
content

Policy instruments
Source: Authors compilation.

elAC2007 is organised in five chapters, corresponding to the above-cited areas. The horizon for
concluding each activity is between 2005 and 2007. Table II shows the Regional Plan of Action.
TABLE II
PLAN OF ACTION FOR THE INFORMATION SOCIETY IN LATIN AMERICA
AND THE CARIBBEAN eLAC 2007
GOAL

1
Regional
infrastructure

2
Community
centres

3
Online schools
and libraries

ACTIVITY

A. Digital access and inclusion
Promote the development of regional ICT infrastructure, including broadband
capacity, through backbones interconnecting existing network access points
(NAPs) with root servers, mirror servers and traffic exchange points.
Conduct regional studies to guide the development of this infrastructure, taking
account of the need to increase security and build confidence, as well as of ICT
cost-benefit factors in the context of existing international, regional and
subregional agreements.
Promote the creation of sustainable schemes and models for ICT penetration in
the various countries of the region, along with the creation of local partnership
proposals designed to enhance connectivity, especially in disadvantaged areas.
Considering different subregional, national and local realities:
Reduce by half the national average number of potential users per Internet
access centre available to the community, or reduce coverage to 20,000
individuals per public or private centre.
Promote quality, ensure the sustainability of Internet access centres, and
involve the community within a framework that respects cultural diversity and
the needs of disabled persons, in accordance with international standards.
Provide training and information services, including, among other things, local
community radio and television.
Support locally-based communications media, and back projects that combine
the use of traditional communications media with new technologies, in order to
facilitate the use of local languages, document and preserve local patrimony—
including landscapes and biological diversity—and reach rural, isolated and
nomadic communities.
Considering local realities, especially in rural, isolated or marginal areas:
Double the number of public schools and libraries connected to the Internet or
provide for the connection of one third of these, installing broadband where
possible. Place special emphasis on rural, isolated and marginal areas, adapting
the application of ICTs in education to local realities.

14

TIMEFRAME

Mid-2007

Mid-2006

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

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GOAL

4
Online health
centres

Monitoring of eLAC2007

ACTIVITY

Substantially increase the number of computers per student in educational
institutions, and promote their effective use for learning.
Train at least one third of teachers in ICTs.
Double the number of health centres and hospitals in the region that are
connected to the Internet, or achieve connections for at least one third of them.
Promote ICT training programmes in health centres and hospitals.

5
Work

6
Local
government

7
Alternative
technologies

GOAL
8
Software

9
Training

Create a regional working group to:
Promote the creation of ICT capacities for the development of new forms of work and
telework and promote their use, especially as related to local job creation.
Promote creation of a network of social actors to facilitate sharing of
experiences and formulation of proposals designed to create local jobs.
Maintain updated information on skills and knowledge needed for the region’s
inclusive, sustainable development.
Connect at least one half of local urban governments and one third of rural
local governments to the Internet, ensuring a minimum level of ICT capacity
among personnel in local governments.
Promote synergy between local and national governments as related to the
provision of both digital and analog services, supporting national ICT
providers, applications and content.
Promote ICT training programmes for local public employees.
Stimulate the development of local information and access to it, taking account
of local and indigenous languages and the needs of the disabled.
Disseminate ICT access models for remote or rural areas, in order to promote
the adoption of these technologies for the purpose of improving local
governmental administration and to make local production more competitive.
In the framework of existing efforts, and with ongoing dialogue with the
private sector and other segments of society:
Create a regional working group to develop proposals on alternatives and
strategies for the development of digital television and other wired and
wireless technologies in Latin America and the Caribbean, with attention to
standards, interactiveness and applications to facilitate universal access.
The group’s activities should include pilot tests of digital television and other
available interactive technologies, under different conditions and in different
countries within the region.
B. Creation of capacities and knowledge
ACTIVITY
In the context of social inclusion and efficiency, create a regional working
group to share experiences and criteria for the development and use of opensource and free software. Include studies of technical, economic,
organisational, training and security challenges.
In the context of social inclusion and efficiency, the group will also analyse the
use of proprietary software, with a view to disseminating best practices and
maximising efficiency, coexistence with other forms of licensing,
interoperability and possibilities for migration of technologies.
Promote and create incentives for development of the software, content,
applications and computer services industries, using a range of instruments,
such as appropriate legal frameworks, strengthening the academic-business
relationship, encouraging complementary and cooperative business alliances,
training human resources and expanding access to markets.
Using content designed for indigenous peoples and communities, train at least
2.5% of the working-age population in ICT skills annually, taking account of
gender equity, and focusing on businesspersons, professionals and workers in
SMEs; public employees; disadvantaged, marginalized or vulnerable
communities; and the unemployed.
Create and disseminate ICT training programmes for women, designed to
improve insertion in the labour market, develop innovative potential and
strengthen networks of solidarity at the national and regional levels.

15

TIMEFRAME

Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

TIMEFRAME
End of 2006

End of2006

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

GOAL

10
Research and
education
networks
11
Science and
technology

12
Businesses
13
Creative and
contentproducing
industries

14
Internet
governance

GOAL
15
Electronic
government

Monitoring of eLAC2007

ACTIVITY

Develop and expand advanced ICT-based research and education networks
nationally, subregionally (especially in the Caribbean) and regionally, and
strengthen existing networks such as the Latin American Cooperation of
Advanced Networks (CLARA).
Interconnect these networks with similar networks in other regions.
Promote national, subregional and regional networks to facilitate interaction
and cooperation among scientific and technological institutions involved in
local productive systems, and promote the creation of technology parks and
poles to carry out innovative activities for the production of high value-added
goods and services in the region’s countries.
Promote development of the technological industries in the area of inputs and
technology for infrastructure development and maintenance.
Encourage the production and regional sharing of local, national and regional
content to enhance citizen participation and human development, and promote
their use by and for all of society’s actors, focusing especially on science,
technology, digital inclusion and occupational training.
Encourage ICT training and support strategies for micro, small and mediumsize enterprises and ventures.
Create a regional working group with participation from all interested groups,
in order to investigate the status of, and challenges facing, creative and
content-development industries, establishing regional cooperation mechanisms,
and seeking solutions to common problems, such as that of funding an
intangible-goods economy, distribution of the region’s cultural and
communications goods and services, and enhancement of local capacity to
produce content with respect for diversity and cultural identities.
In local communities, help to develop a network of social actors committed to
producing and disseminating cultural goods that contribute to the strengthening
of regional identity and local employment.
Taking social initiatives into account, and with attention to cultural and
linguistic diversity and identity, support communications media based in local
communities to promote the creation of original content addressing local needs
for information and development.
Implement the “Geneva principles” adopted in the first phase of the World Summit,
particularly those relating to multilaterality, transparency and democracy, in Internet
governance and with regard to initiatives already under way.
Encourage dialogue, exchange and regional cooperation on countries’
experiences with Internet governance, Internet administration and resource
training (domain names, IP numbers and protocols), international
interconnection costs, cybersecurity, spam and related institutional and
technological issues.
Participate actively in the work of the United Nations Group on Internet
Governance during its duration.
C. Public transparency and efficiency
ACTIVITY
Create and/or strengthen tools for dialogue on electronic government services,
such as the e-Government Network of Latin America and the Caribbean (Red
de gobierno electrónico de América Latina y el Caribe, or REDGEALC), and
promote regional cooperation for the transfer of technologies, platforms,
applications and computer programs, along with the associated knowledge,
skills and best practices.
Establish a working group to create an agenda of priorities for the
implementation of interoperability standards in e-government services.
Promote the electronic integration of public administration systems through
single windows, in order to streamline procedures and improve
intragovernmental processes.
Foster the use of digital/electronic signatures in governmental operations
involving both government employees and citizens.
Promote the adoption of models for data security and preservation in all
government organisations, in order to create confidence in the digital
information managed and provided by the State.
Promote the adoption or development of electronic means of payment, and
create incentives for the use of electronic transactions with the State.

16

TIMEFRAME

End of 2006
End of 2006

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2006

Mid-2007

Mid-2006

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

End of 2005
TIMEFRAME

Mid-2007

Mid-2006
Mid-2007
Mid-2007
Mid-2007
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GOAL

16
Electronic
education

17
Electronic
health

18
Disasters
19
Electronic
justice
20
Environmental
protection
21
Public
information
and cultural
patrimony

GOAL
22
National
strategies

23
Funding

24
Universal
access policies

25

Monitoring of eLAC2007

ACTIVITY

Develop mechanisms for contracting with government via electronic means.
Promote the creation of mechanisms to standardize and consolidate
georeferenced information, as a tool for governmental and private-sector
decisionmaking.
Promote and strengthen national networks involving educational Internet
portals, including public-sector, private-sector and civil society initiatives, with
special attention to the Millennium Development Goals concerning universal
primary schooling and multicultural content, particularly in relation to
indigenous peoples.
Link national educational portals with a view to creating a network of Latin
American and Caribbean educational websites to facilitate the sharing of
experiences and content, and promote the adoption, localization and
development of educational content for dissemination through this network.
Promote and strengthen national healthcare networks, including initiatives by
the public sector, private sector and civil society.
Promote and strengthen regional health information networks, such as those of
the Pan-American Health Organization and the Latin American and Caribbean
Centre for Health Sciences Information (BIREME), with attention to
convergence toward common interoperability standards, exchange of computer
applications and programs, and virtual health information library portals.
Strengthen the regional and international linking of digital networks to prevent
disasters, providing for regional management and coordination of disaster
assistance.
Encourage existing regional initiatives to integrate ICTs in national systems of
justice, e.g., the electronic justice project of the supreme courts of the IberoAmerican countries.
Implement a regional agenda to integrate ICTs in systems of justice.
Promote and strengthen existing regional initiatives for the use of ICTs in
environmental protection and sustainable use of natural resources, providing
for participation by the public and private sectors, civil society and indigenous
peoples and communities.
Promote and encourage initiatives and policies that provide citizens wider
access to public information and to cultural, historical, scientific and
educational patrimony through the use of ICTs, including preservation of
patrimony through electronic media.
Promote regional dialogue for sharing of experiences, as well as for the
dissemination and adaptation of best practices.
D. Policy instruments
ACTIVITY
Create or establish plans for an organisation to coordinate national strategies in
each of the region’s countries, providing for participation by civil society and
the private sector.
Promote and strengthen national plans of action for development of the
information society in all of the region’s countries, ensuring participation by
civil society and the private sector, as well as by relevant public-sector entities.
Create a working group with members of public-sector, private-sector,
subregional, regional and international bodies, to assess national and regional
funding needs for the development of ICTs.
Considering subregional, regional and international funding agencies and the
particularities of each country, suggest initiatives to optimise the use of
financial resources and instruments, and propose new ones where necessary, in
order to mobilise greater resources.
With active participation from civil society, the private sector and academia,
examine public policy for universal access, broadening the concept to cover all
ICTs, in order to move toward a second generation of universal access
programmes.
With active participation from civil society, the private sector and academia,
carry out and support systematic efforts for regional dialogue on technology
convergence, as well as public policy designed to reduce Internet costs and
provide universal access, so as to include lower-income sectors and rural or
isolated populations.
Establish subregional working groups to promote and develop policies to harmonise

17

TIMEFRAME

Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2006
Mid-2006
Mid-2007

Mid-2007

Mid-2007
TIMEFRAME
November 2005

Mid-2007

November 2005

Mid-2007

Mid-2006

Mid-2007

November 2005

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

GOAL

Legislative
framework

26
Indicators and
measurement

27

28

29

30

Monitoring of eLAC2007

ACTIVITY

regulations and standards, in order to create legal frameworks that create confidence
and security, at both the national and regional levels, with special attention to
legislation to protect privacy and personal information, computer crime and crime
committed via ICTs, spam, and electronic or digital signatures and contracts, as a
framework for development of the information society.
Through technical cooperation programmes, support and promote the
strengthening of institutions and methodologies and the development of
indicators of ICT access and use, differentiated by gender and social group, in
accordance with ITU definitions regarding indicators of community access,
taking into account the recommendations of the parallel event at the World
Summit regarding measurement of the information society, and the ongoing
evolution of indicators, incorporating them in statistical questionnaires and
instruments appropriate to the region.
Conduct comparative studies on the economic and social impact of ICTs, focusing
particularly on previously agreed national and international development objectives,
including the Millennium Development Goals and the goals embodied in the World
Summit Plan of Action relating to indigenous peoples.
Hold annual technical seminars with the participation of national and regional
statistics organisations such as the Observatory for the Information Society in
Latin America and the Caribbean (OSILAC).
E. An empowering environment
Create a regional mechanism to monitor issues identified by the World
Summit, and implement eLAC2007, as it unfolds in light of the conditions and
priorities of each country, taking advantage of existing regional cooperation
organisations, within the framework of their capacities and skills, and working
in close collaboration with civil society, the private sector and academia, while
remaining cognizant of the agreements of the Geneva and Tunis phases of the
World Summit process, as well as the Bávaro and Rio de Janeiro regional
conferences.
Promote concrete actions of solidarity and assistance to facilitate access to the
benefits of the information society for the region’s less developed countries,
the small developing insular States, and others that face special obstacles in
implementing their national strategies for development of the information
society.
Develop concrete regional initiatives and proposals to overcome obstacles to
the effective execution of national strategies for development of the
information society arising from economic, commercial and financial factors,
exploring formulas such as lightening the debt load to encourage investment
that promotes the development of infrastructure, and providing training in ICT
use and development.
Request that the ITU and relevant regional organisations periodically report to
the Summit monitoring mechanism on activities to safeguard the use of the
radio spectrum for the public interest, pursuant to the principle of legality, and
in full observance of relevant international laws and agreements, as well as of
national and international regulations.

TIMEFRAME

Mid-2007

Mid-2007
Mid-2007

Mid-2006

Mid-2006

Mid-2006

Mid-2006

Source: Ministerial Conference of Rio de Janeiro, june 2005.

3.

The eLAC 2007 monitoring process

At the thirty-first session of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean,
held in Uruguay from March 20 to 24, 2006, the region’s governments requested that the ECLAC
Secretariat “maintain and develop indicators that provide for ongoing assessment and
dissemination of advances in the region, especially in regard to the eLAC2007 goals.” These
included “supporting countries that participate in the regional follow-up meeting to evaluate
execution of the Regional Plan of Action and to reinvigorate it in the framework of the

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Millennium Development Goals process, along with the objectives and goals of the World
Summit on the Information Society Plan of Action.”2 Accordingly, ECLAC has assumed the task
of strengthening its previous work in monitoring advances in the framework of the Regional Plan
of Action, through its Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the
Caribbean (OSILAC), which receives financial support from the Institute for Connectivity in the
Americas (ICA)—part of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC)—and from the
European Commission’s @LIS programme.
Monitoring of eLAC2007 should consider the features of the plan itself, taking into
account the fact that it is comprised of goals and activities covering a wide spectrum of actions
(access, capacities, content, policy instruments). It must also recognize the different potential
benefits being sought, including activities with different objectives: in some cases, to generate
action, in others to produce quantifiable results. Thus, monitoring fulfillment of the eLAC2007
goals is a challenging and complex task, given the differing degrees of difficulty in monitoring
the various activities.
Easily quantifiable activities include results-based activities, which can be quantified
when the relevant data and indicators are available, and provided there is funding to collect the
data. Those designed to generate specific actions are considered more difficult to monitor because
they involve studies, projects, coordination and strengthening of initiatives, formulation of
models and frameworks to establish standards, creation of oversight entities, etc. These goals only
are susceptible to be measures by means of their inventory or illustrating the situation that
justifies the execution of a politics particularly. Thus, with time, results will make it possible to
determine progress toward implementing the policies, as well as their impact.
The task of establishing indicators and monitoring an action plan, which can also serve as
an instrument for designing public policy, is difficult—given that, due to the horizontal nature of
information societies, it involves multiple countries and issues—but it is necessary. Despite this
challenge, it is essential in order to provide countries feedback on their progress toward meeting
the goals. This requires systematic monitoring of implementation, so as to adjust courses of action
and redefine objectives in line with changes in the dynamics of the ICTs themselves.
Quantification and measurement of the activities of a regional plan of action on a new
and innovative issue, such as the development of the information society, is a major challenge.
Due to the novelty of the issue, it is often the case that indicators have not been developed, or that
information on actions and initiatives relating to ICTs in the region has not been recorded. In
other cases, data exist, but the channels for centralizing and collecting them, and thus the ability
to generate information, are not yet in place.
The information presented in this document does not claim, therefore, to be complete or
exhaustive. It is based on an ongoing process of data collection being conducted by OSILAC,
which has compiled information from different sources and countries. These include national
statistics agencies, administrative records of governmental institutions, academic and private
sources, and public sources such as the Internet, studies, journalistic media and project reports, as
well as data produced by OSILAC itself for the purpose of monitoring certain goals.
The present monitoring exercise is the third of its type, and is an attempt to outline the
region’s situation so as to delineate the challenges remaining in the area of digital technology.
The methodology is based on the lessons learned in the two previous documents, “Benchmarking
the Plan of Action of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Latin America and
the Caribbean” (Hilbert and Olaya, January 2005) and “Where do Latin America and the
Caribbean Stand in Relation to the eLAC2007 Plan of Action?” (OSILAC, November 2005, see
2

Resolution 629 (XXXI), Report on the Thirty-First Session of the Economic Commission for Latin America and
the Caribbean, Uruguay, March 20-24, 2006, http://www.cepal.org/pses31/ .

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http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo/OSILAC). This third exercise focuses on 27 of the 30 eLAC2007
goals, attempting to make specific measurements in the case of quantifiable goals, while in the
others attempting to detail the status of information society issues.
Mindful of these limitations, OSILAC has worked for a year on monitoring the
eLAC2007 Plan of Action (August 2006 – August 2007). The expectation is that this exercise
will continue, since monitoring ICT progress achieved through policy is fundamental to
strengthening the development of information societies in the region.

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II. Information societies in Latin America from an
international perspective

As tools for processing and transmitting information, ICTs are general-purpose technologies that
have positive effects on economic growth and on people’s quality of life. However, one must
have these technologies, and utilize them effectively, in order to obtain the benefits. The
developed countries have led the way in the adoption of ICTs. The fact that they quickly achieved
high levels of access to these technologies and developed capabilities for using them has
accentuated the existing socioeconomic gap between developed and developing countries, giving
rise to what is known internationally as the digital divide. Given that ICTs evolve rapidly, with
the continuous emergence of new technologies, this digital divide is constantly widening. Those
who already have access to technologies are the first to appropriate the new ones. Thus, the
daunting task of closing the digital gap constitutes a moving target.
The digital gap began with fixed telephony, followed by mobile telephony, computing
and the Internet. Chart B shows changes in the penetration of fixed and mobile telephony in the
region countries and in the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD), which comprises 30 more-developed countries (with Mexico the only
region country in the group). In the case of fixed telephones, the most developed countries
reached high levels of penetration, over 50%, before 1995, and have maintained these levels,
though a slight decline has occurred since 2000. Meanwhile, in the region, the penetration of
fixed telephony showed sustained growth between 1995 and 2005, leading to a telephone density
of 18% in 2005. At the same time, developed countries rapidly expanded access to mobile
telephony, distancing themselves quickly from the region countries until 2003, when this gap
began to narrow with the increased expansion in the region. In the OECD countries, growth
stagnated once the 50% penetration level was reached. The countries of the region—at 44% in
2005—are approaching this level. It remains to be seen whether the rapid growth of the last
several years will continue.

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CHART B
PENETRATION OF FIXED AND MOBILE TELEPHONY IN
THE REGION AND OECD, 1995-2005
(Percentages)
90

Mobile suscribers per 100 inhab.

Landline telephones per 100 inhab.

60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1995

1997

1999
OECD

2001

2003

80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1995

2005

1997

LAC

1999
OCDE

2001

2003

2005

LAC

Source: OSILAC, with ITU data, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

Given the cost of computers, it is not surprising that, as Chart C indicates, the OECD countries
adopted the technology more rapidly than did the countries of the region (50% versus 10% as of 2005). In
the more-developed countries, the spread of computers in the population seems to have stalled since 2003,
whereas it has continued in the region. The Internet has grown strongly since its commercial beginnings in
the mid-1990s, reaching nearly 50% penetration in the OECD countries and 15% in the region. It is
noteworthy that Internet penetration in the developed countries is nearly as extensive as that of computers,
while in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2005, Internet penetration surpasses that of computers, what
indicates a tendency toward the shared access of this technology in the region as a solution for connectivity.
CHART C
COMPUTER AND INTERNET PENETRATION IN THE REGION AND OECD, 1995-2005
(Percentages)
60
Internet users per 100 inhab.

60

PCs per 100 inhab.

50
40
30
20
10

40
30
20
10
0

0
1995

50

1997

1999
OECD

2001

2003

2005

1995

1997

1999
OECD

LAC

Source: OSILAC, with TU data, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

22

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LAC

2003

2005

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Broadband Internet in the region, the most recently introduced technology for access to the information
society, shows a sharp differential with the developed countries. As indicated in Chart D, this technology
has spread rapidly in the OECD countries, while growth has been relatively slow in the region, with
penetration reaching only 2%, eighth time less the level found in the more-developed countries.

Broadband subscribers per 100 inhab.

CHART D
BROADBAND INTERNET PENETRATION, 2000 – 2005
(Percentages)
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
2000

2001

2002

2003

OECD

2004

2005

LAC

Source: OSILAC, with ITU data, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

Though indicators of ICT access are a key factor in assessing the region e-readiness for the
information society, they are not the only aspect that must be considered. As this document makes clear,
the development of digital capacities involves a wide range of factors. Some international organisations
have created aggregate indices, reflecting various different methodologies and variables associated with the
development of the information society, in attempts to measure the preparedness of countries and regions
with respect to this objective. In addition to access, these indicators include the educational levels of the
populations, their ability to use ICTs effectively, the development of electronic applications, the existence
of an appropriate legal framework conducive to the implementation of electronic solutions, the presence of
relevant policies, a suitable business environment, etc. In the view of OSILAC, this approach may be
misleading, since important information is lost in aggregating the data. It therefore prefers a disaggregated
approach to indicators for the various relevant factors, as reflected in this document. However, analysis of
aggregated indicators may provide a preliminary sense of the status of digital development in the countries.
Below, Table B shows e-readiness by world region, in comparison with the world leader in ereadiness. It takes the regional average of the index in relation to the average world-leader score,
expressing the higher score as the value 1, and expressing each region’s position based on that maximum
value. A total of 12 world rankings for the years 2004-2005 were examined: ArCo, ITU Digital Access
Index (DAI), ITU Digital Opportunity Index (DOI), Economist Intelligence Unit e-readiness Index (EIU),
UN DESA Index of Knowledge Societies (IKS), World Bank Institute Knowledge Economy Index (KEI),
World Economic Forum Network Readiness Index (NRI), Orbicom, UNDP Technology Achievement
Index (TAI), UNCTAD Index of ICT Diffusion, UN DESA e-government e-Readiness Index (UNPAN)
and the World Bank ICT Index (WBICT).
Averaging these 12 indices, it is evident that the higher-income countries lead in the building of
information societies. The region is in second position among the developing economies, behind Eastern
Europe and Central Asia, but ahead of Western and Pacific Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, South
Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa (see Table III).
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TABLE III
INFORMATION SOCIETY E-READINESS ACCORDING TO WORLD REGION, IN
RELATION TO THE WORLD’S LEADING REGION, 2004-2005
Region’s average index in relation to average indices of world’s leading region
(Reference value of leader = 1)

Region/eReadiness
index

ArCo
DAI
DOI
EIU
HDI
IKS
KEI
NRI
Orbicom
TAI
UNCTAD
UNPAN
Average

High
income:
OECD

High
income,
nonOECD

1.00
1.00
0.97
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
0.998

0.69
0.84
1.00
0.87
0.93
0.94
0.77
0.88
0.68
0.83
0.79
0.63
0.821

Eastern
Europe
and
Central
Asia
0.6
0.61
0.64
0.6
0.83
0.77
0.62
0.36
0.44
0.72
0.48
0.62
0.608

Latin
America
and the
Caribbean

Western
and
Pacific
Asia

0.49
0.61
0.52
0.6
0.82
0.69
0.49
0.19
0.36
0.5
0.47
0.57
0.526

0.35
0.43
0.53
0.51
0.73
0.72
0.43
0.5
0.22
0.53
0.39
0.37
0.476

Middle
East
and
North
Africa
0.42
0.48
0.52
0.42
0.73
0.65
0.38
0.43
0.23
0.41
0.39
0.39
0.454

South
Asia
0.25
0.36
0.39
0.46
0.64
Data
n/a

0.25
0.25
0.11
0.28
0.37
0.37
0.339

SubSaharan
Africa
0.22
0.25
0.39
0.57
0.51
0.4
0.23
0.14
0.12
0.26
0.31
0.3
0.308

The
region’s
position
among 6
developing
regions
2
2
3
1
2
3
2
5
2
3
2
2
2.4

Source: ECLAC, United Nations, 2007, http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo
Note: The average of the e-Readiness indices is based on the 12 world rankings for the 2004-2005 year: ArCo, ITU Digital Access Index (DAI), ITU Digital
Opportunity Index (DOI), Economist Intelligence Unit e-readiness Index (EIU), UN DESA Index of Knowledge Societies (IKS), World Bank Institute
Knowledge Economy Index (KEI), World Economic Forum Network Readiness Index (NRI), Orbicom, UNDP Technology Achievement Index (TAI),
UNCTAD Index of ICT Diffusion, UN DESA e-Government e-Readiness Index (UNPAN) and the World Bank ICT Index (WBICT).

Conducting a similar exercise with the subregions of Latin America and the Caribbean (Central
America, Caribbean, Southern Cone and Andean Region), the average index for each subregion, in relation
to the average of the region index, was used to create each index, and the region’s average index was set at
one as a reference value, so as to be able to analyze each subregion’s e-readiness in relation to that of the
region overall. It is necessary to cause to note that the parameters of reference utilized in the Table III are
not the same of the Table IV, while in the first one the value of reference 1 is defined in relation to the
leader, in the other this value is the regional average, being able to exist values that denote upper or lower
positions in relation to the average.
Averaging the twelve e-readiness indices cited above, it can be seen that the Southern Cone
countries are leading in terms of development for the information society, followed by the Caribbean
countries. Both of these are above the regional average, while the indices for Central American and the
Andean Region are below the regional average, with the Andean index being the lowest of the subregions
(see Table IV). The Andean Region’s low score in the World Economic Forum’s Network Readiness Index
(NRI) is of particular note. This index is comprised of subjective indicators, based on the opinion of
business leaders—one more reason to use caution in interpreting these indices.

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TABLE IV
DEGREE OF READINESS FOR THE INFORMATION SOCIETY IN SUBREGIONS,
IN RELATION TO THE REGIONAL AVERAGE, 2004-2005
(Average index of the subregion in relation to the average Latin America index. Reference value =1)
Region/ e-Readiness index
ArCo
DAI
DOI
EIU
IKS
KEI
NRI
Orbicom
TAI
UNCTAD
UNPAN
WBICT
HDI
Average

Southern
Cone
1,19
1,11
1,12
1,13
1,02
1,26
1,62
1,35
1,14
1,14
1,28
1,11
1,06
1, 19

Caribbean
0,91
1,07
s.d.
1,01
0,82
0,93
1,74
0,99
0,97
1,03
0,91
0,94
1,00
1,03

Latin America
and the
Caribbean
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,00

Central
America
0,97
0,85
1,09
1,10
1,11
0,91
0,69
0,84
1,00
0,90
0,95
0,97
0,96
0,95

Andean Redgion
1,03
0,93
0,88
0,87
0,91
0,89
0,31
0,88
0,93
0,90
1,07
0,98
0,97
0,89

Source: ECLAC, United Nations, 2007, http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo
Note: The average of the e-Readiness indices is based on the 12 world rankings for the 2004-2005 year: ArCo, ITU Digital Access Index (DAI), ITU
Digital Opportunity Index (DOI), Economist Intelligence Unit e-readiness index (EIU), UN DESA Index of Knowledge Societies (IKS), World Bank
Institute Knowledge Economy Index (KEI), World Economic Forum Network Readiness Index (NRI), Orbicom, UNDP Technology Achievement
Index (TAI), UNCTAD Index of ICT Diffusion, UN DESA e-government e-Readiness Index (UNPAN) and the World Bank ICT Index (WBICT).

Following are the results of the monitoring of seven eLAC2007 goals relating to digital access and
inclusion, nine relating to the creation of capacities, knowledge and content, seven relating to public
efficiency and transparency, five relating to policy instruments, and one relating to the empowering
environment. The objective of providing and analysing the information given here is to detail the status of
the region’s countries in relation to the specific issues addressed in the eLAC2007 goals, according to the
activities associated with them.

25

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

26

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

III. Access and digital inclusion

The access and digital goals are:
• Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
• Goal 2: Community centres
• Goal 3: Online schools and libraries
• Goal 4: Online health centres
• Goal 5: Work
• Goal 6: Local government
• Goal 7: Alternative technologies

27

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
Expanding access: an advance in different paces
• The first eLAC2007 goal is to
promote the development of regional
ICT infrastructure. The penetration
of telephone service has increased
enormously in Latin America and the
Caribbean since the 1990s. In most
of the countries, this followed the
privatization and regulatory reforms
that occurred in many of the region’s
countries. Consistent with world
trends, growth of fixed telephony has
been relatively slow, with mobile
service growing at twice the rate as
fixed.
• While the region as a whole shows
growth, the rate varies from
subregion to subregion. The Southern
Cone has the highest penetration
rates in the region in both fixed and
mobile telephony, though the
differential has been and continues to
be greater in fixed, with 20 lines per
100 inhabitants in 2005, followed by
17 for Central America, 13 for the
Andean Region and 10 for the
Caribbean.
Mobile
telephony
penetration in 2005 was 49% in the
Southern Cone, 41% in Central
America, 39% in the Andean Region
and 33% in the Caribbean.
• Mobile telephony provides a solution
to expanding telephone access for the
region, due to its lower infrastructure
costs and more accessible service
costs for consumers, principally
because of the prepaid mode, which
does not require subscription and
facilitates access among lowerincome sectors.

CHART 1
FIXED TELEPHONY PENETRATION IN THE LATIN
AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN SUBREGIONS, 1 1995-2005
(Fixed lines/100 inhabitants)
25

20

15

10

5

0
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Central America

Caribbean

Southern Cone

Andean Region

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators
Database”, 2006.

CHART 2
MOBILE TELEPHONE PENETRATION IN THE LATIN
AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN SUBREGIONS, 1 1995-2005
(Subscribers/100 inhabitants)
50

40

30

20

10

0
1995

1997

Central America

1999
Caribbean

2001
Southern Cone

2003

2005
Andean Region

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database”,
2006.

28

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
The slow growth of Internet
• Just as the development of telephony was a
challenge for the region’s countries in the 1990s
and the beginning of the 2000s, providing
widespread Internet access is currently the
major challenge.

shows the greatest progress in the Southern
Cone, followed by Central America, putting
these two subregions at practically double the
penetration of the Andean and Caribbean
regions, where growth has slowed and—in the
latter case— even stalled (see Chart 3).

• There has been sustained growth in Internet
penetration over the last few years in the
various subregions of Latin America and the
Caribbean (see Chart 4). Thus, penetration in
2005 was 18 Internet users per 100 inhabitants
for the Southern Cone, 15 for Central America,
14 for the Caribbean and 12 for the Andean
Region, representing average growth of over
55% since 2003.

• High-speed (broadband) access is the most
recent technology, and the one with the greatest
potential for exchange of information. As Chart
5 indicates, its penetration is greatest in the
Southern Cone countries, where increased
growth since 2003 brought the figure to 3
subscribers per 100 inhabitants by 2005, double
the level in the other subregions.

• This progress is not highly encouraging in
comparison with other regions of the world,
such as Eastern Europe, where penetration
levels were comparable but growth rates were
over 70% for the same period.

Challenge: Promote the spread of solutions to
increase bandwidth and take advantage of
emerging complementarities among different
technologies available in the region, taking into
account advances in mobile telephony.

• Increased Internet access is related, among
other things, with computer ownership, which
CHART 3
COMPUTER PENETRATION IN THE LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN SUBREGIONS, 11992-2005
(PCs/100 inhabitants)
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Central America

Caribbean

Southern Cone

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

29

Andean Rgion

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
CHART 4
INTERNET PENETRATION IN THE LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN SUBREGIONS, 11995-2005
(Internet users/100 inhabitants)
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
1995

1996

1997

1998

Central America

1999

2000

Caribbean

2001

2002

Southern Cone

2003

2004

2005

Andean Region

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

CHART 5
BROADBAND PENETRATION BY SUBREGIONS, 1 2000-2005
(Broadband subscribers/100 inhabitants)
3,0
2,5
2,0
1,5
1,0
0,5
0,0
2000

2001
Central America

2002

2003

Caribbean

Southern Cone

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

30

2004
Andean Region

2005

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
Income: the limiting factor in ICT access

• Monthly Internet connection rates
represent 12% of monthly per capita
income in the region, compared with
less than 1% in the developed
countries. In Honduras, Guatemala
and Bolivia, the rates are over 25%
and represent the lowest levels of
Internet penetration in the region (see
Chart 7).
• Income levels continue to be one of
the principal obstacles to expansion
of these services.
Challenge: Seeking solutions to
promote the real traffic in the networks,
and therefore its use, beyond the
promotion of the penetration of teams.

65
Landline telephone subscribers / 100
inhabitants

• Mobile telephone rates in the region
represent 9% of per capita income, as
compared with 1% in the developed
countries. The highest rates (on the
order of 16%) are seen in Peru and
Honduras (see Chart 6). Notably,
users of prepaid service represent
over 80% of the mobile market2,
indicating that high penetration in
terms of the number of mobile
telephones does not necessarily mean
a high volume of traffic.

CHART 6
PENETRATION OF FIXED AND MOBILE TELEPHONY, AND
COST OF MOBILE TELEPHONE USE AS A PERCENTAGE OF
MONTHLY PER CAPITA INCOME, 2005
Canada; 0,3%

55

Germany; 0,8%

Rep. Of Korea ;
0,4%
Spain; 1%

Dominican Rep.;
6%

45

Singapure; 0,6%

35
Argentina; 3%
25

Brazil; 7%
Honduras; 16%

15

St. Vincent; 7%

México; 2%
Bolivia; 9%

Perú; 17%

5
-5 0

20

40

60

80

100

Mobile telephone subscribers / 100 inhabitants

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.
Note: The size of the bubbles is proportional to the cost of 100 minutes of local mobile
telephone calling as a percentage of monthly per capita income. The figure for each country
is placed next to the country name.

CHART 7
INTERNET AND BROADBAND PENETRATION, AND
INTERNET CONNECTION RATES AS A PERCENTAGE OF
MONTHLY PER CAPITA INCOME, 2005
18
Broadband subscribers / 100 inhabitants

• Mobile and Internet user rates are
still high in relation to per capita
income, compared with competitive
markets in developed countries.

United Kingdom;
0,9%
Singapure; 0,5%

16
14
12

Germany; 0,7%

Spain, 1%

10
8
6
Chile; 4%

4

Brazil; 6%

2

Bolivia; 22%

0

Argentina; 5%
Uruguay; 4%
Colombia; 8%

Guatemala; 25%
Honduras; 39%

-2
0

10

20
30
Internet users / 100 inhabitants

40

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.
Note: The size of the bubbles is proportional to the monthly cost of 20 hours of dial-up
Internet access (including the cost of the telephone service) as a percentage of monthly per
capita income. The cost of broadband access is shown in cases where it is lower than dial-up
access. The respective figures appear next to the country names.

31

50

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
Broadband Internet access: a growing challenge
• Between 2003 and 2005, Internet penetration in
the region’s countries rose from 10 to 15 users
per 100 inhabitants, while broadband access
increased from 0.5% to 2%.
• Though this trend shows promise, penetration
remains low, and growth appears insufficient to
diminish the gap with the developed countries.
The region has 15 Internet users per 100
inhabitants, while the OECD countries have 51,
and the gap is greater in broadband, where it is
2% versus 15%.
• Penetration levels are increasingly linked with
per capita income, but even at similar income
levels there are significant differences. This
indicates that the non-income factors are
affecting the spread of this technology.

• Changes in Internet connectivity indicate that as
penetration of this service increases, broadband
penetration also increases. However, given the
potential of current computer applications and
of solutions based on high-speed networks,
there is an urgent need, in the region’s
countries, to access these technologies so as to
bring benefits to all economic and social
sectors.
Challenge: Explore what factors, other than
income, are affecting the spread of Internet access,
and determine whether there is a real possibility of
leapfrogging immediately to broadband solutions,
without transiting the narrow-band phase.

CHART 8
INTERNET PENETRATION, BROADBAND PENETRATION AND PER CAPITA GDP, 2005
28
Rep. of Korea, 16

Broadband subscribers/100 inhabitants (%)

Denmark, 48
23

Finland, 37

Canada, 35

Belgium, 34
18

France, 35

Japan, 36

Singapure, 27
United Kingdom, 37

Spain, 27

13

Germany, 34

8
Chile, 7
Brazil, 4 Argentina, 5
Mexico, 7
Uruguay, 5
Peru, 3
Costa Rica, 5
Guatemala, 3

St. Vincent, 4
3

Nicaragua, 1
-2 0

Bolivia, 1

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Internet users / 100 inhabitants (%)

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.
Note: The size of the bubbles is proportional to per capita income. The figures are expressed in millions of US dollars, and appear beside the names
of the countries to which they apply.

32

ECLAC - Project Documents Collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
Speed Connection: a new dimension of the digital gap
• Bandwidth is an international indicator that
reflects the capacity to become part of the
information society at the global level, and thus,
to have access to the worldwide web and its
contents. The international demand for
bandwidth can limit or facilitate broadband
penetration within a country, meeting demands
for speed connection and quality.

Caribbean increased the second of the two
factors far more than the first. Thus, the
penetration of broadband subscriptions is being
promoted in these countries, without a parallel
expansion of the capacity for connecting these
users to the worldwide web.
• This implies a new dimension of the digital gap,
i.e., a gap not only in access, but in connection
speed and capacity to transmit information.
This dimension becomes more important as the
Internet is increasingly dominated by more
advanced online services, such as audio, video,
and electronic solutions in government,
education, health, business, etc.

• The Latin American and Caribbean countries
had approximately 1.5 Mb of international
bandwidth per second per inhabitant in 2004,
while countries with more advanced economies
had between 7 and 15 Mb/sec.
• While the developed countries maintained a
balance between growth of their international
bandwidth capacity and growth of residential
broadband subscribers between 2002 and 2004,
the countries of Latin America and the

Challenge: Study the international connectivity
challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean,
and their implications for domestic broadband
growth within the countries.

CHART 9
CHANGE IN INTERNATIONAL BROADBAND CAPACITY AND BROADBAND PENETRATION,
2002-2004
17
Germany

International Mb/sec./1000 Internet users

15
13

Developed
countries

11

Canada
Singapure

Germany

9

Spain
7
Spain
5

Canada

LAC countries
Chile

3

Singapure
2002

Peru

Argentina
Trinidad Tob. Argentina
Bahamas Brazil
Brazil Venezuela
Bahamas
1
Mexico
Trinidad Tob.
Mexico Venezuela
Chile
-1 0

50

100

150

2004

200

Domestic broadband subscribers/1000 Internet users

Source: OSILAC, with data from ITU, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,” 2006.

33

250

300

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
Internet access points (IAPs): a solution to optimize Internet traffic
• Network access points (NAPs) make it possible
for Internet service providers (ISPs) or
international backbone providers (IBPs) to
partner and exchange data packets directly.
There are two levels of partnership. One is
physical, taking the form of interconnecting
networks; the other is institutional, involving
the creation of an organization based on
commercial and organizational agreements
between members.
• Interconnection allows for more efficient use of
the Internet, making it unnecessary to send
some of the traffic through international
connections, by interconnecting small and
medium-sized ISPs, thus reducing costs and
local congestion. A reduction in these costs can
also lead to lower access costs for subscribers.
• Network access points (NAPs) may be
collaborative or commercial, depending on the
nature of the parties involved. In some cases,
they include only ISPs or IBPs, in others only
academic and research networks, while in yet
other cases the model used may be a
combination of these. Collaborative NAPs are
generally not involved in business, while
commercial NAPs offer their own services
based on the services provided by their
members through the members’ facilities.3
• In Latin America and the Caribbean there tends
to be at least one NAP per country (see Table1).
The ISP connection is generally the result of
commercial necessity. Chile is the only country
in the region, and one of the few in the world,
where there is regulation, oriented to improving
the quality of services.
• Though the benefits of NAPs are interesting
and desirable in terms of lower cost and higher
quality of traffic, regional NAP initiatives have
not thrived. Notable in this respect are efforts in
the last few years by LACNIC, the Latin
American and Caribbean Internet Addresses
Registry, to work with NAPs to provide
opportunities for communication, information
exchange
and
debate
on
regional
34

interconnection, its funding, traffic quality and
measurement, etc.
Challenge: Promote national and regional NAPs to
increase the efficiency of Internet traffic. Closely
coordinate the work of private and governmental
groups, while promoting greater regional
integration through entities such as LACNIC,
REGULATEL and CITEL.

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 1: Regional infrastructure
TABLE 1
NETWORK ACCESS POINTS IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, NOVEMBER 2006
Country
Argentina
Brazil

City
Buenos Aires
São Paolo

Name
NAP CABASE
NAP do Brasil (ex -PTT-ANSP/FAPESP)
Telcomp

Rio de Janeiro
Porto Alegre

Florianopolis
Curitiba
Brasilia

Belo Horizonte
Chile

Santiago

Colombia
Cuba

Bogota
La Habana

Ecuador

Guayaquil
Quito
Managua
Ciudad de Panama
Asuncion
Lima
Lima
Puerto Rico San Juan
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Peru

El Salvador n.d.
Caribe
Dominican Rep.

Number of
members
44
70

Year of
initiation
1998
1998

Traffic

Website

(Bits per second)

500 M
1,2 G

http://www.cabase.org.ar
http://www.terremark.com

5

2003

75 M

PTT Metro
PTT Metro - São Paolo
Brazil Telecom
TIVIT
Universidade de São Paolo
CTBC Multimidia
LocaWeb iDC
PTT Metro - Rio de Janeiro
Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa - LNCC
PTT Metro - Porto Alegre
Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa / POP-RS
Procempa
PTT Metro - Florianopolis
PTT Metro - Curitiba
Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa / POP-PR
PTT Metro - Brasília
Brasil Telecom
Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa
PTT Metro - Belo Horizonte
Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa / POP-MG
NAP Chile
CTC Mundo (Telefonica)
Impsat
Equant (France Telecom)
Telmex
PitEntel
Intercity
ChileSat (Telmex)

57
26
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
2
n.d.
20
n.d.
n.d.
4
12
n.d.
6
n.d.
n.d.
2
n.d.
21
n.d.
18
9
22
13
n.d.
n.d.

2004
2004
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
1997
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.

n.d.
700M (Max 1.3G)
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
4M
n.d.
200M (Max 300M)
n.d.
n.d.
14 M
130M (Max 240M)
n.d.
90M (Max 170M)
n.d.
n.d.
230 K
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.
n.d.

NAP Colombia
NAP Cuba - ETECSA

16
5

1999
2000

760 M (max 1G) http://www.nap.com.co
50 M
n.d.

NAP AEPROVI Guayaquil
NAP AEPROVI Quito
Nicaraguan Internet Exchange - NicIX
INTERED
CAPADI NAP-PY
NAP Peru
NAP Lima
Internet Exchange of Puerto Rico (IXPR)
(Gauss Research Laboratory of the University of
Puerto Rico)
NAP Salvador
NAP del Caribe

6
6
10
9
15
8
4
2

2003
2003
2004
1997
2000
2001
2005
2005

15 M
25 M
3K (Max 45K)
37M (Max 60M)
40 M
nd
120 - 180M
n.d.

n.d.
n.d.

In project
In project

n.d.
n.d.

Regulation
No
No

http://www.telcomp.org.br
http://ptt.br
http://sp.ptt.br
http://www.brasiltelecom.com.br
http://www2.tivit.com.br/internet/
http://www.redes.usp.br
http://www.ctbctelecom.net.br
http://www.locawebidc.com.br/
http://rj.ptt.br
http://www.rnp.br
http://rs.ptt.br
http://www.pop-rs.rnp.br
http://www.procempa.com.br
http://sc.ptt.br
http://pr.ptt.br
http://www.pop-pr.rnp.br
http://df.ptt.br
http://www.brasiltelecom.com.br
http://www.rnp.br
http://mg.ptt.br
http://www.pop-mg.rnp.br/
http://www.nap.cl
http://pit.telefonicamundo.cl/
http://www.pitimpsat.cl/
http://www.equantpit.cl/
http://www.telmex.com/cl/pit/
http://www.pitentel.cl/index.php
http://www.intercity.net/

EXEMPT RESOLUTION N°
1483 (Oct.1999) : The ISP
should be united in a National
Network.
TECHNICAL NORM OF
RESOLUTION N° 698
(Jun.2000) : Fixed quality
indicators of the links of
connection for the national
traffic of Internet.
No

Decree 90/194: It
establishes that only
ETECSA can provide traffic
services.

http://www.aeprovi.org.ec
http://www.aeprovi.org.ec
http://www.nicix.ni
http://www.intered.org.pa
http://www.capadi.org.py
http://www.nap.pe
http://www.ix.pr

n.d.
n.d.

Source: OSILAC, with the collaboration of LACNIC (online at: www.lacnic.net), with data from Terremark (online at: www.terremark.com); Packet
Clearing House (online at: www.pch.net); Internet Steering Committee (online at: http://ptt.br); Internet Exchange Points, Telegoeography (online at:
www.telegeography.com); NAP Chile (online at: http://pit.nap.cl); Internet Exchange of Puerto Rico (online at: www.ix.pr); REDGEALC (online at:
www.redgealc.net; Intered (online at: www.intered.org.pa).

Notes:
1

2
3

Southern Cone, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and Paraguay. Central America: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras,
Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama. Andean Region: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. Caribbean: Belize, Cuba,
Dominica, Granada, Guyana; the Antilles: Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico,
Dominican Republic, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis,
British Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, Anguila and Montserrat.
Digiworld 2007, Fundación Telefónica.
OSIPTEL, “Análisis de la situación del NAP a nivel EE.UU. y Latinoamérica” [Analysis of the status of NAPs in the
U.S. and Latin America], March 2007.

35

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 2: Community centers
Community access: an option for facilitating ICT access
• The second eLAC2007 goal is to reduce the
number of potential Internet users per
community-based Internet access center to a
national median of 20,000 persons per facility
(private and/or public). Most of the Latin
American countries have made significant
progress in using shared access as a means of
narrowing the digital gap. Argentina, Peru,
Ecuador, Mexico and Costa Rica are cases in
point, with fewer than 2,300 users per PIAC
(Public ICT Access Center), results below the
region’s average. Paraguay and Nicaragua still
have major, as yet unrealized, opportunities for
citizens to benefit from community access.

• The models for providing Internet access differ
from country to country. Ecuador compensates
for a low individual penetration rate of 7% by
providing community access, and has 1,085
users per PIAC. Uruguay seems to focus more
on the issue of universal access, with one of the
highest Internet penetration rates (19%), while
it has 18,743 potential users per PIAC.

• The universe of potential PIAC users is defined
as the population between 5 and 64 years of
age, not counting those who are currently
Internet users. In this sense, there is a
complementarity between public use and
individual use.

Challenge: Supplement policy on individual and
collective connectivity so as to provide widespread
access to ICTs in different segments of society.
Design community access policy in such a way as
to incorporate indicators that help identify
geographic and socioeconomic gaps, in order to
optimize location and resource allocation.

• No information is available on the location and
geographic and population coverage of
PIACs—information that would be necessary to
evaluate the impact and efficiency of
community access policies.

TABLE 2
AVERAGE NUMBER OF POTENTIAL USERS PER PUBLIC ICT ACCESS CENTER (PIAC), 2005
Country
Paraguay
Nicaragua
Uruguay
Bolivia
El Salvador
Brazil (2)
Colombia
Chile
Guatemala (2)
Costa Rica
Mexico
Ecuador
Peru
Argentina
Total

Number of public and private
PIACs identified

Potential PIAC users (1)

48
84
109
884
618
16,722
6,078
2,733
3,869
1,199
58,188
9,577
19,936
28,401
148,446

5,002,000
4,449,000
2,043,000
7,384,000
5,119,525
136,175,000
34,899,757
9,439,000
9,373,000
2,683,000
75,656,525
10,391,421
20,278,000
25,234,397
348,127,625

Potential users per PIAC
104,208
52,964
18,743
8,353
8,284
8,143
5,742
3,454
2,423
2,238
1,300
1,085
1,017
889
2,345

Source: ECLAC in cooperation with the Chasquinet Foundation, Centros de acceso público a las tecnologías de información y comunicación en
América Latina: características y desafíos, (online at http://www.cepal.org/Socinfo.Notas). (1) The universe of potential PIAC users is defined as
the population between 5 and 64 years of age, not counting current Internet users, according to the ITU database. (2) Data are for March 2007.

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Goal 2: Community centers
Community access based on public-private cooperation
• PIACs are classified as private or governmental,
according to their funding. Private establishments
include both commercial establishments and those
with social objectives; the latter are funded in a
variety of ways, since income from services is not
sufficient to make them self-sustaining, unlike
commercial PIACs. They are generally supported
by a combination of funders, with regional or
municipal budgets and telecommunications funds
representing over half of the total, while
international organizations and NGOs contribute a
smaller proportion. (See Chart 10 and 11).

public-private cooperation as a means of promoting
collective connectivity, particularly given that
sustainability is the major problem associated with
community access. As Chart 12 indicates, over
60% of governmental PIACs offer free or
subsidized services. Even among private PIACs,
only 23% charge true commercial rates.
Challenge: Develop community access models
that take account of public-private cooperation
possibilities as a means of addressing the dual
challenge of increasing ICT coverage in isolated or
low-population-density areas while maximizing the
self-sustainability of PIACs.

• Telecommunications funds are a fundamental
source of financing for the centers. When
combined with regional, local and private funding,
this can provide possibilities for novel forms of

CHART 10
DISTRIBUTION OF PRIVATE PIACs WITH SOCIAL OBJECTIVES, ACCCORDING
TO TYPE OF FUNDING, 2005
(n = 704)
State budget
28%

Telecommunicati
ons development
fund
23%

Nonreimbursable
funding from
international
organizations
15%
NGOs and/or
foundations
16%

Private-sector
funding
18%

Source: ECLAC in cooperation with the Chasquinet Foundation, Centros de acceso público a las tecnologías de información y comunicación en
América Latina: características y desafíos (online at www.cepal.org/Socinfo).

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Goal 2: Community centers
CHART 11
DISTRIBUTION OF GOVERNMENTAL PIACs ACCORDING TO TYPE OF FUNDING, 2005
(n = 25. 761)

Own funds
26%
Public franchise
34%

Telecommunicat
ions
development
fund
33%

Public
concession
7%

Source: ECLAC in cooperation with the Chasquinet Foundation, Centros de acceso público a las tecnologías de información y comunicación en
América Latina: características y desafíos (online at www.cepal.org/Socinfo).

CHART 12
DISTRIBUTION OF PIACs ACCORDING TO TYPE OF INTERNET ACCESS CHARGES, 2005
(Governmental PIACs, n = 25. 761; Private PIACs, n = 704)

100%
21%

90%

31%

80%
70%

2%

23%

60%
50%

44%

40%
52%

30%
20%
23%

10%

4%

0%
Public PIAC
Free

Private PIAC
Subsidize

Without subsidy

NA

Source: ECLAC in cooperation with the Chasquinet Foundation, Centros de acceso público a las tecnologías de información y comunicación en
América Latina: características y desafíos (online at www.cepal.org/Socinfo).

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Goal 2: Community centers
PIACs as a tool for inclusion in the information society
• In addition to providing Internet
access, the range of services provided
by PIACs also makes them centers
for training, communication and
recreation.

Challenge: Develop the PIACs by
increasing their training capacity, their
ability to provide for cultural exchange
and recreation, and thus a type of use
that promotes appropriation of ICTs by
the population. Adapt PIAC funding
models to promote the convergence of
services, so as to provide users more
efficient access to services and
technologies.

Training

Support to SMEs
Digital library
Assistance in ICT
use

Communication

Internet access,
chat, email
Videoconferencing
Fixed telephony
Fax
VoIP

IT services

• Private PIACs also provide services
such as equipment repair, word and
data processing, etc. This increases
their financial sustainability, and
plays an indispensable role in
providing
the
complementary
services necessary in the information
society.

Other training

Support services

• Over 70% of public PIACs and 86%
of private PIACs offer Internet
access. Over one third of the private
establishments allow VoIP calls, as
opposed to 4% among public
establishments. This is due to the fact
that the latter are supported by
telecommunications funds from
telephone companies, and in many
countries there is a conflict of interest
between these companies and those
offering IP services.

IT training

Leisure

• There is a great demand at PIACs for
training in computing and in other
areas, including support for SME
(Small and Medium Enterprises).
Such services are a basic part of their
function.

CHART 13
PERCENTAGE OF STATE AND PRIVATE PIACs,
ACCORDING TO SERVICES PROVIDED, 2005

IT-related work
Sale of supplies
Repair of
equipment
Printing and
photocopying
Digital
photography
Conference room
Cultural activities
Public

Video games
0%

20%

40%

60%

Private

80%

100%

Source: ECLAC in cooperation with the Chasquinet Foundation, Centros de acceso
público a las tecnologías de información y comunicación en América Latina:
características y desafíos (online at http://www.cepal.org/publicaciones/DesarrolloPr
oductivo/8/LCW88/PrimeraParte.pdf)

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Goal 3: Online schools and libraries
Connectivity in schools: regional priority with heterogeneous advance
• In the eLAC Policy Delphi on ICT priorities for
the year 2010, over 500 experts in the region
identified school connectivity as the highestpriority area among information-society issues.
There was a notable consensus on this across
the region, including Central America, the
Andean Region, the Southern Cone and the
Caribbean.2

• Goal 3 of eLAC2007 is to connect one third of
all public schools to the Internet, via broadband
where possible, with a special focus on rural
areas. The extent of connectivity in public
schools varies widely among the region’s
countries. In 2005, 75% of Chile’s schools were
connected to the Internet, while the figure was
22% for Argentina. These rates are far from the
European average, where no country had less
than 90% connectivity for its public schools as
of 2006.1

• While some countries show major advances in
public school connectivity, in most countries
the goal of connecting one third of the schools
appears to have been achieved only among
private schools. It can be assumed that this
situation is most serious in rural areas.

• Within the countries, a similar situation exists
between public and private schools. In
Argentina in 2005, 53% of private schools had
Internet access, while only 13% of public
schools were connected. Mexico faced a similar
condition in 2003, while Peru’s connectivity
rate in 2004 was 2% for public schools, six
times less than the rate among private schools.

Challenge: Taking advantage of that the
connectivity of schools is the priority number one
for the information society in the region, in order
to ensure that declarations be translated into
reality.

CHART 14
CONNECTIVITY IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES
88%

Public
82%

Private

57%

55%

52%

53%

51%

42%

22%

21%
13%

13%

13%

9%
5%

Mexico (2003)

Argentina (2005) Colombia (2001)

Peru (2004)

Mexico (2003)

Schools with computers

Argentina (2005) Colombia (2001)

2%
Peru (2004)

Schools with Internet

Source: OSILAC with data from Colombia: National Administrative Department of Statistics (Departamento Administrativo Nacional de
Estadística, or DANE), “Modelo de medición de las Tecnologías de la Información y las Comunicaciones TIC,” 2003; Mexico: Secretariat of Public
Education, “Sistema educativo de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, principales cifras, ciclo escolar 2003-2004” (online at
www.sep.gob.mx/work/appsite/princif2003/Princcif2003.pdf); Peru: Website of the Peruvian State (online at www.peru.gob.pe; and Argentina:
National Directorate of Educational Quality Information and Evaluation and Federal Network of Educational Information (Dirección Nacional de
Información y Evaluación de la Calidad Educativa y Red Federal de Información Educativa), ”Relevamiento Anual 2005,” DiNIECE. MECyT.

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Goal 3: Online schools and libraries
Context for the objective of providing one computer per child
• While there were 11 students per
computer in Spain in 2006, and an
average of 9 for the European Union
as a whole, the figure for Chile was
30 in 2005, while it was 98 in 2004
for El Salvador, where the number of
students per computer ranged from 3
to 479.
• Only some of the computers in
schools are connected to the Internet.
In 2003, Brazil had a connection rate
of 65%, while in Mexico and
Uruguay less than half of the
computers
were
connected.
Connection speed is also a factor in
of delay. In Chile in 2005, 40% of
schools had high-speed technology, a
mere half the rate for Spain.
• The situation is more serious yet if
one considers the ultimate use of
available computers. The case of
Chile shows that access to and use of
ICTs in education is concentrated in
computer labs rather than in
classrooms—a fact that may be
explained by the need to share
computers. However, a considerable
number of computers are assigned to
administrative use, remaining beyond
the reach of students.

CHART 15
NUMBER OF STUDENTS PER COMPUTER, AND
PERCENTAGE OF COMPUTERS CONNECTED TO THE
INTERNET, 2003
98

36

30
9

1
1

Euro pe
(2006)

Spain
(2006)

Chile
(2005)

Uruguay
(2003)

El Salvado r
2004)

84%
65%
47%

OECD

B razil

38%

M exico

Uruguay

Source:
OSILAC
with
data
from
Chile:
Red
Enlaces,
(online
at
www.enlaces.cl/libro/estadisticas.pdf); Uruguay: INE (National Statistics Institute), PISA Study
2003; “Benchmarking Access and Use of ICT in European Schools 2006,” i2010 and Lisbon
Strategy, European Commission, and “Program for International Student Assessment,” OECD
PISA.
Note: The Chilean data cover only State-subsidized schools.

CHART 16
DISTRIBUTION OF PCS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
SCHOOLS IN CHILE, 2005
3%
3%
3%
7%
1
0%

Challenge: Increase student access to
computers and to the Internet. Monitor
connectivity and use of ICTs in
educational systems, with support from
specialized organizations, such as
UNESCO, in the framework of the
Partnership on Measuring ICT for
Development.3

5%
6%
7%
9%
22%

74%
51
%

P ublic

P rivate

Labo rato ries

A dministratio n

Other lo catio ns

Classro o ms

Teachers’ ro o ms

Library

Source: OSILAC with data from Red Enlaces (online at www.enlaces.cl).
Note: The Chilean data cover only State-subsidized schools.

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Goal 3: Online schools and libraries
Efforts to train teachers in ICT use
• Only certain teachers have ICT access at home
(see Chart 18), thus highlighting the need to
provide them complementary access at their
places of work.

• Goal 3 of eLAC2007 also includes training at
least one third of teachers in the use of ICTs.
• There is a variety of such training programs in the
region for teachers, as well as for administrators
and others in the education sector. In Brazil in
2002, the ProInfo project trained over 124,000
individuals, including teachers, administrators and
technical personnel. In Costa Rica in 2005, the
Ministry of Public Education’s National
Educational Information Technology Program
(Programa Nacional de Informática Educativa, or
MEP-FOD) and the Omar Dengo Foundation
provided training for 957 teachers and 68
counselors. In Mexico, online courses in the Red
Escolar program trained over 39,000 teachers. In
Chile in 2005, 83% of teachers had been trained
through the RedEnlaces program, far surpassing
the eLAC2007 goal.

• In the region’s educational system in 2003,
administrative personnel made greater use of
computers than did teachers (see Chart 19). In
Brazil, nearly one third of computers are used to
improve administrative efficiency, which, while
not unimportant, affects only indirectly the
integration of the educational process in the
information society.
Challenge: Increase efforts to train teachers in the
use of ICTs. Ensure that ICT use in curricula is not
dependent on the purchasing power and personal
interest of the teachers.

CHART 17
NUMBER OF TEACHERS TRAINED THROUGH ONLINE COURSES BY
THE RED ESCOLAR IN MEXICO, 1998-2005
39488

32503
26025
19527

12525
5991
473
1998

1864

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

Source: OSILAC with data from “Las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TIC) en la Educación en América Latina. Una
exploración de indicadores,” Guillermo Sunkel, ECLAC, December 2006, (available on the official site at http://www.cepal.org/socinfo/noticias/
documentosdetrabajo/9/27849/Serie126final.pdf).

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 3: Online schools and libraries

CHART 18
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOL TEACHERS’ HOME ICT ACCESS IN CHILE, 2005
94%
Computers

79%
80%

77%
Internet

49%
51%

62%
Broadband

58%
58%
Total

Public

Private

Source: OSILAC with data from Red Enlaces (online at www.enlaces.cl).
Note: The Chilean data cover only State-subsidized schools.

CHART 19
DISTRIBUTION OF COMPUTERS IN EDUCATION SECTOR ACCORDING TO TYPE OF USER, 2003
9%

19%

16%

8%

16%

32%
18%

14%

73%

73%

68%
55%

OECD

Mexico
Students

Uruguay

Teachers

Brazil

Administration

Source: OSILAC with data from “Program for International Student Assessment,” OECD PISA, Database 2003 (online at http://www.pisa.oecd.org).

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 3: Online schools and libraries
Library connectivity, a tool for community access
• Though there are no data on Internet connectivity
in the region’s public libraries, the sophistication of
libraries’ online presence can be studied by
examining the content of their websites.

public, and 38% offer information on services
provided by other libraries in the country.
•

• There is an encouraging online presence among
national libraries, with 81% having their own
website, while access to the remaining 19% is
possible
through
other
governmental
institutions, such as ministries of culture.

In terms of online applications, 50% of the
libraries have searchable online catalogs, and
18% have their own virtual library, while only
8% make it possible to reserve books online.

Challenge: Expand the websites of public libraries
in order to take advantage of their Internet
presence, and digitize the cultural patrimony stored
in these institutions to make it available
electronically. Increase the usefulness of Internetconnected public libraries, making them public
access points for ICT use.

• 91% of the libraries’ websites offer general
information, such as location, contact information,
and institutional history and objectives. 65% offer
information on the services they provide to the

CHART 20
CONTENT OF NATIONAL LI BRARY WEBSITES IN
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, 2006
(n=21 countries)
91%

General information
65%

Services offered at the library
50%

Online catalog
38%

Information on public libraries
18%

Ow n virtual library

17%

Link to external virtual library
Reserve books online

8%

Source: OSILAC with information from the National Library of Argentina’s official site (www.bibnal.edu.ar); National Library of Aruba’s official site
(www.bibliotecanacional.aw); National Library of Bolivia’s official site (www.archivoybibliotecanacionales.org.bo); the official website of Brazil’s National
Library Foundation (www.bn.br); Chilean National Library’s official site (www.dibam.cl/biblioteca_nacional); Colombian National Library’s official site
(www.bibliotecanacional.gov.co); Miguel Obregón Lizano National Library’s official site (www.abinia.org/costarica); José Marti National Library’s official
site (www.bnjm.cu); Eugenio Espejo National Library’s official site (www.cce.org.ec/index.php?id=49id_sub=85action=mi); Salvadoran National
Library’s official site (www.binaes.gob.sv); Luis Cardoza y Aragón Guatemalan National Library’s official site (www.mcd.gob.gt/
MICUDE/centros_referencia/biblioteca_nacional); National Library of Jamaica’s official site (www.nlj.org.jm); Mexican National Library’s official site
(biblional.bibliog.unam.mx); Rubén Darío National Library’s official site (http://www.abinia.org/nicaragua/); Panamanian National Library’s official site
(www.binal.ac.pa); Peruvian National Library’s official site (www.bnp.gob.pe); Puerto Rican National Library’s official site
(www.icp.gobierno.pr/bge/index.htm); the official website of the Dominican Republic’s National Library (www.bnrd.gov.do); the official website of the
National Library and Information System Authority of Trinidad  Tobago (library2.nalis.gov.tt); Uruguayan National Library’s official site
(www.bibna.gub.uy); Venezuelan National Library’s official site (www.bnv.bib.ve).

Notes:
1
2

3

European Commission, “Benchmarking Access and Use of ICT in European Schools 2006, i2010 and Lisbon Strategy.
ECLAC, Information Society Program, Results of the 2nd round of the Policy Delphi on ITC for the year 2010,
http://www.cepal.org/socinfo/noticias/paginas/2/27002/Ranking%20según%20área%20de%20impacto.pdf, http://www.cepal.
org/cgibin/getprod.asp?xml=/socinfo/noticias/paginas/2/27002/P27002.xmlxsl=/socinfo/tpl/p18f.xslbase=/socinfo/tpl/topbottom.xsl .
See Goal 26.

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Goal 4: Online health centers
The health center connectivity gap
• The region’s health sector has incorporated
ICTs slowly compared with the pace at which
the technologies have been adopted in sectors
such as education and public administration.

websites has not been promoted in Chile. As to
the online presence of hospitals and the
existence or absence of email, Chart 23 shows
that 45% of Chilean public hospitals have email
and 43% have websites, while in Cuba the
corresponding figures are 16% and 1%,
respectively. In both countries, Internet
presence takes the form of dedicated sites as
well as usage of third-party sites, with the latter
predominating in Chile.

• This is reflected in the lack of statistical
information on ICT access and use in the sector.
Connectivity in healthcare establishments has
not been incorporated as an indicator in
statistics for the sector, thus making it difficult
to monitor. However, online directories of
public health establishments provided by health
ministries show that 98% of Chile’s public
hospitals and 92% of outpatient clinics have
telephone numbers (see Chart 21).

Challenge: Begin the catching-up process for the
sector, so as to bring it into the digital age. This
includes raising the awareness of the sector’s
decision makers regarding the benefits of these
technologies in the context of providing healthcare,
administrative processes and processing of patient
information, etc. It is also important to design and
implement policy for the sector’s development that
takes account of ICT applications in the area of
healthcare services.

• In Cuba, 94% of multi-specialty health care
facilities and 89% of regular health care
facilities can be contacted by phone, while only
18% and 8%, respectively, have email (see
Chart 22). Surprisingly, contact via email and

CHART 21
AVAILABILITY OF TELEPHONE AND FAX IN CHILEAN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES, ACCORDING
TO TYPE, SEPTEMBER 2006
(Percentage of total)
98%
92%

Public hospitals

Outpatient facilities

Diagnostic and treatment
centers

92%
2%
90%
10%
50%

Specialized centers

25%

Community family health
center

Emergency care system

41%
22%
39%
8%

Telephone
Fax

Source: OSILAC with data from the directory of healthcare establishments provided by the Chilean Health Ministry’s National Health Services
System (online at http://respaldeis.minsal.gov.cl/mapas/).
Note: Outpatient clinic n=485; Community family health center n=68; Emergency care system n=142; Diagnostic and treatment center n=10;
Specialized center n=4; Hospital n=185.

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 4: Online health centers

CHART 22
AVAILABILITY OF TELEPHONE, FAX AND EMAIL IN CUBA’S HEALTHCARE
FACILITIES, JANUARY 2007
(Percentage of total)
94%

89%
76%

18%

74%

21%

16%
8%
1%

Multi-specialty health
care facility

6%

3%

Regular health care
facility
Telephone

4%

Hospitals

Email

Specialized medical
centers

Fax

Source: OSILAC with data from directories provided by Infomed (Red Telemática de Salud en Cuba) (online at www.sld.cu/servicios/directorios)
and from the Biblioteca Virtual de Salud de Cuba (online at http://bvs.sld.cu/).
Note: Multi-specialty health care facility n=487; Regular health care facility n=241; Hospital n=335; Specialized medical center n=140.

CHART 23
HOSPITALS WITH EMAIL AND INTERNET PRESENCE, ACCORDING TO TYPE OF SITE,
IN CHILE AND CUBA
(Percentage of total)

Linked
29%
45%

Own site
14%
Internet presence

Email

16%

Email

Chile

Linked, 0.6%
Own site, 0.9%
Internet presence
Cuba

Source: OSILAC with data from Chile: directory of healthcare establishments provided by the Health Ministry’s National Health Services System
(online at http://respaldeis.minsal.gov.cl/mapas/); Cuba: directories provided by Infomed (Red Telemática de Salud en Cuba) (online at
www.sld.cu/servicios/directorios) and from the Biblioteca Virtual de Salud de Cuba (online at http://bvs.sld.cu/); site search at www.google.com.
Note: (1) An institution is considered linked when there is a link to a website managed by a third party. (2) A website is considered to be the institution’s
own site when it belongs to the institution itself. (3) Total hospitals: Chile: n= 185, as of September 2006. Cuba: n=335, as of January 2007.

46

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 5: Jobs
ICTs as work opportunities generators

• The active population in Latin America and the
Caribbean has a high rate of participation in the
service sector, where 64% of workers were
concentrated by the late 1990s (see Chart 24). In
many of the region’s countries, some 60% of the
workforce in urban areas is employed in commerce
and services, with this rate rising to 65% if
financial services are included (see Chart 25).

able to maintain constant contact with clients.
The benefits of broadband connectivity in the
region may be even greater, but they are limited
by the low penetration of more advanced ICTs.
• Access must be supplemented by training in the
use of ICTs, and by building skills for new
work modalities, such as remote work. Skills
must be updated as employers’ needs change, in
order to provide the capabilities required to fill
job vacancies.

• ICTs are an effective, tangible tool for
optimizing the process of providing services;
thus, accessing them is fundamental for
workers. The mobility of cellular telephones
has meant new work opportunities for street
vendors and own-account workers, who are

Challenge: Conduct studies on the opportunities
that ICTs offer for job creation in the region,
especially in the service sector, and include a
review of the work skills needed.

TABLE 3
HORIZONTAL SKILLS NEEDED FOR TELEWORK
1. Organization of long-distance e-work
2. Long-distance human-resource management
3. Long-distance management
4. Effective long-distance communication
5. Effective use of ICTs for e-work
Source: ECLAC, Sonia Boiarov, “Report on Legislation and Regulations Relating to Telework in Latin America and the Caribbean,” for the
working group on Goal 5 of eLAC2007, December 2006.

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 5: Work
CHART 24
PROPORTION OF EMPLOYEES WORKING IN SERVICE SECTOR
ACCORDING TO REGION OF THE WORLD, 1960 - 1990
Latin America and the
Caribbean
Industrialized countries
Western Asia and North
Africa
World

Countries in transition

Asia Pacific

Industrialised countries
0%

10%

20%

Early 1960s

30%

1980s

40%

50%

60%

70%

Late 1990s

Source: International Labour Organization, Statistical Yearbook, various years.

CHART 25
DISTRIBUTION OF THE EMPLOYED URBAN POPULATION BY SECTOR OF ECONOJIC ACTIVITY, 2005
100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%
Argentina

Brazil

Colombia

Costa Rica

Other services
Financial services
Manufacturing
Mining
Construction

Ecuador

Mexico

Panama

Commerce
Transportation
Agriculture
Electricity, gas and water

Source: ECLAC: Statistics and Economic Projections Division. Social Statistics Unit, based on special tabulations of data from national household
surveys.

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 5: Work
Telework: an opportunity for job creation
• The work group for this goal coordinated and
supported the creation of a “Report on
Legislation and Regulations Relating to
Telework in Latin America and the Caribbean,”
which examines telework, its development and
characteristics, and its impact on the region’s
regulations and standards.

• In 2006, in Argentina, Colombia and Costa
Rica, 90% of teleworkers had education beyond
the secondary level, and 70% were university
graduates or holders of advanced degrees. This
may indicate that there is a certain barrier to
telework for those with only a primary
education, but it also suggests a great potential
for expansion in this type of work for
population segments seeking work. This
potential is confirmed by the fact that telework
takes place in the service sector, and that Latin
America’s employed population is concentrated
in this sector.

• Because telework is an incipient phenomenon
in the region’s countries, official data on the
number of teleworkers are not available.
However, data regarding home offices show an
increase of 150% in Argentina between 2004
and 2006, and the region was estimated to have
had over 17 million teleworkers as of 2005.1

CHART 26
DISTRIBUTION OF TELEWORKERS IN ARGENTINA, COLOMBIA AND COSTA RICA, ACCORDING
TO HIGHEST LEVEL OF SCHOOLING ATTAINED, NOVEMBER 2006
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Argent ina

Colombia

Cost a Rica

Complet ed primary school

Incomplet e secondary schooling

Complet ed secondary school

Incomplet e non-universit y tertiary schooling

Complet ed on-universit y tertiary schooling

Incomplet e college

Complet ed college

Incomplet e advanced degree work

Obtained graduat e degree

Source: ECLAC, Sonia Boiarov, “Report on Legislation and Regulations Relating to Telework in Latin America and the Caribbean,” for the
working group on eLAC2007 goal 5, December 2006, based on the Etis-lac Research, Export of teleservices for the social and labour inclusion of
Latin America and the Caribbean, www.etis-lac.org.ar.
Note: Data are provisional, and refer to teleworkers currently working. Argentina n=816, Colombia n=577 and Costa Rica n=66.

49

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Goal 5: Work
The need for regulatory reform to cover telework
• In Latin America, the countries that show the
greatest progress in regulations regarding
telework conducted under a dependent
employment relationship are Argentina, Chile,
Colombia and Ecuador. Table 4 summarizes the
regulations in these countries.

structuring of the work schedule is the
responsibility of the teleworker. Unlike Europe,
our countries do not make explicit reference to
professional training and career development
possibilities.
• The firms that use this type of work most are
associated with the financial sector, commercial
activity and telecommunications. The objective
of most of the firms is to provide customer
service on a 24-hour basis, but other reasons
include optimization of business processes,
results-based management and more flexible
work arrangements with lower labour costs.

• Though Chile pioneered the concept of
telework in the reform of the Labour Code
(Law 19.759) in 2001, it does not have specific
provisions for this type of work. The other
countries go beyond modifying existing
regimes to establish specific legal regimes,
though these are still in the draft stage.
• The common basis on which these countries are
changing regulations to include telework
involves conceiving of telework as an engine
for job creation, since it creates more flexibility
in labour arrangements and provides new
opportunities to different population segments,
including women and disabled people.

Challenge: Promote the incorporation of
telework in the labour market, conducting
studies and creating indicators that provide a
picture of this type of work in the region, taking
account of the characteristics of jobs that are
capable of being performed in this way and the
skills needed to perform them. Change the
sector’s regulations to cover telework, and
establish rights and obligations governing the
practice.

• The conditions governing employment include
the same rights as those accorded to traditional
employees, and hours worked must be
comparable to those of workers doing similar
work in-house. The workload limitation is
absent from Chile’s regulations. The ICT
equipment is provided by the firm, while

50

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Goal 5: Work
TABLE 4
REGULATIONS REGARDING LABOUR RELATIONS OF TELEWORKERS IN A DEPENDENT
EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP, DECEMBER 2006

Year

Definition

Conditions
of
employment

Structuring
of work
schedule

ICT
equipment

Training

Collective
rights

Argentina
Legal Regime for Telework on an
Employee Basis
2004
Telework: action, performance of tasks
or provision of services, where the object
of the contract is totally or partially
carried out in the worker’s home or
places other than the employer’s
establishment, by use of various types of
ICTs.

Ecuador
Labour Code, Chapter V, Paragraph 4

Teleworker: person performing telework
according to the above definition.

Regulation

Europe
European Framework Agreement

Teleworker: any person performing
telework under the above definition.

Teleworker: any person performing
telework.

The same rights as comparable workers
working on premises of firm. Specific
supplementary individual or collective
agreements may be necessary.

The same rights as employees. However,
the working conditions for such workers
must be established through collective
bargaining agreements.

The same rights as comparable
workers working on premises of firm.
Specific supplementary individual or
collective agreements may be
necessary.

1- The teleworker shall manage the work
schedule. The workload is to be
comparable to that of on-premises
workers.

Particular situations are to be negotiated
through collective agreements.

1- The teleworker shall manage the
work schedule. The workload is to be
comparable to that of on-premises
workers.

2002
Telework: form of structuring work
and/or working that uses ICTs within the
framework of a contract or work
relationship in which a job that could be
done in-house is done outside on a
regular basis.

2- Measures shall be taken to prevent
isolation.
Before telework commences, the issues
of equipment, responsibility and cost
must be clarified. The employer is
responsible for costs, as well as for
providing and maintaining the
equipment.

Employers must provide the worker the
equipment needed and pay for its
maintenance. If the teleworker provides
equipment, the employer must
compensate the worker for all costs. If
the equipment belongs to the employer,
the teleworker is responsible for its use
and maintenance.

2006
Telework: form of structuring work
and/or working at a distance on a
regular basis, outside the firm’s
premises, by using computer,
telecommunications or similar means.

2- The employer shall take measures
to prevent isolation.
The employer is responsible for
providing, installing, maintaining and
covering the cost of equipment needed
for the regularly performed telework,
unless the teleworker uses his/her own
equipment.

Right to the same access to training and
opportunities for professional
development as comparable on-premises
workers of the firm enjoy, and governed
by the same evaluation policies.
The same collective rights as the rest of
the firm’s workers. Telework is not an
obstacle to communicating with workers’
representatives.

Teleworkers have the same collective
rights as the rest of the firm’s workers.

Source: ECLAC, Sonia Boiarov, “Report on Legislation and Regulations Relating to Telework in Latin America and the Caribbean,” for the
Working Group on eLAC2007 Goal 5, December 2006.

Note:
1

ECLAC, Sonia Boiarov, “Report on Legislation and Regulations Relating to Telework in Latin America and the
Caribbean,” for the working group on Goal 5 of eLAC2007, December 2006, based on the Etis-lac Research, Export
of teleservices for the social and labor inclusion of Latin America and the Caribbean, www.etis-lac.org.ar

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Goal 6: Local government
Internet access in municipal government: a challenge to overcome
• Fewer local governments have websites—the
natural next step toward electronic local
government. Presently, less than 15% of
municipalities in El Salvador, Nicaragua,
Honduras and Panama have an online presence,
despite notable growth between 2004 and 2007.

• The connectivity of local governments
facilitates links with central governments and
enhances citizen services.
• eLAC2007 Goal 6 is designed to connect at
least half of local urban governments and one
third of rural municipalities to the Internet.

• The type of Internet connection that
municipalities have is also an important issue,
since this determines what services and online
applications can be offered. In Chile, 47% of
municipalities have dedicated Internet access
lines, and 25% have ADSL broadband,1 which
helps in maintaining a constant online presence.
Information is not available as to connection
types in other countries, but it is estimated that
in most cases broadband is not in place.

• Telephone connections are nearly—or are
rapidly becoming—universal among the
region’s municipal governments. The situation
is quite different for the Internet, though a large
number of countries have succeeded in meeting
the eLAC2007 goal during its three years of
implementation. These countries include El
Salvador and Guatemala, which have
significantly expanded email coverage for
their municipal governments between 2004
and 2007, exceeding the 50% benchmark (see
Chart 28).

Challenge: Continue to promote greater
connectivity and ICT use in municipal
government, as well as broadband access.

CHART 27

AVAILABILITY OF TELEPHONE, EMAIL, AND WEBSITES AMONG MUNICIPAL
GOVERNMENTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES, APRIL 2007
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%

2004

Telephone

Email

Website

Source: OSILAC, based on information published on websites of the countries’ institutions.2
Note: Number of municipalities: Costa Rica: 81; El Salvador: 262; Guatemala: 331; Honduras: 297; Nicaragua: 153; Panama: 75.

52

Panama

Honduras

Nicaragua

El
Salvador

Costa Rica

Guatemala

Chile

Panama

Honduras

Nicaragua

Guatemala

El
Salvador

Costa Rica

Chile

Panama

Honduras

Nicaragua

Guatemala

El
Salvador

Costa Rica

Chile

2007

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Goal 6: Local government
Internet access: the gap among small municipalities

Challenge: Ensure that, with the rapid
expansion of connectivity in local
government, consideration is given to
factors that provide for more even
progress among different municipalities.

100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%

Chile

Costa
Rica

El
Guatemala Nicaragua Honduras
Salvador

Over 10,000 inhabitants

Website

Email

Website

Email

Website

Email

Website

Email

Website

Email

Website

Email

0%
Website

• There is no single strategy for
Internet presence among local
governments. Some countries opt for
a centralized model (Chile and
Colombia), where all municipal
government sites follow the same
model. In other countries, there are
initiatives by the private sector, civil
society and NGOs to develop online
presences for municipal governments
by linking them to websites of other
organizations. In such cases, local
government websites are hosted on
third-party sites (see Chart 29)

CHART 28

AVAILABILITY OF EMAIL AND WEBSITES AMONG
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES,
ACCORDING TO THE POPULATION OF THE
JURISDICTION, APRIL 2007

Email

• Though the gap in telephone access
for local governments between
higher- and lower-density population
areas has been overcome, there
remain differences in Internet
connectivity. Even in Chile and
Costa Rica, which (of those selected)
are the countries
where local
government connectivity is greatest,
governments representing lowerpopulation
municipalities
have
significantly fewer websites and
email access for their personnel.

Panama

Under 10,000 inhabitants

Source: OSILAC, with information published on websites of countries’ institutions.
Note: Number of municipalities: Costa Rica: 81; El Salvador: 262; Guatemala: 331;
Honduras: 297; Nicaragua: 153; Panama: 75.

CHART 29
PERCENTAGE OF MUNICIPALITIES ACCORDING TO
TYPE OF WEBSITE, APRIL 2007
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Chile

Colombia

Guatemala

Costa Rica

Own site

El Salvador

Nicaragua

Honduras

Linked

Source: OSILAC, with information published on websites of countries’ institutions.
Note: (1) “Linked” refers to a situation where the institution functions through a link to a
website managed by a third party. (2) “Own site” refers to situations where institutions have
their own websites. (3) Number of municipalities: Costa Rica: 81; El Salvador: 262;
Guatemala:
331;
Honduras:
297;
Nicaragua:
153;
Panama:
75.

53

Panama

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Goal 6: Local government
Local government websites: an emerging presence

• The case of Chile, with a very low
presence
of
online
services,
illustrates the incipient functionality
of local government websites. 13%
of sites make it possible to carry out
procedures online; over 50% do no
more than provide information on the
municipality.
• Trends indicate that once a
government has an online presence
with basic information, expanded
information on procedures and
services tends to be added, ultimately
resulting in online services.

CHART 30
DISTRIBUTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT WEBSITES IN
CHILE ACCORDING TO THEIR FUNCTIONALITY
(2005 n=212, 2006 n=252)
1
00%

1
0%

1
2%

90%

3%

1
%

80%

1
7%

28%

70%
60%
50%
40%

70%

59%

30%
20%
1
0%

Challenge: Move from the phase of
expanding connectivity to the existence
of interactive content and local egovernment services. Take advantage of
national government applications that
have been implemented, in order to
exploit economies of scale, as a first step
in generating local content. For
municipalities with more advanced
websites, address the needs of the
population as a whole, considering the
particularities of the place and the
languages spoken by members of
indigenous populations.

0%
2005

2006

All of the above
Online procedures possible
Provides information on municipal procedures and services
Provides basic information
Source: OSILAC, with information from the National System of Municipal Indicators (Sistema
Nacional de Indicadores Municipales, or SINIM), official website at www.sinim.cl.

Notes:
1

2

Information from the National System of Municipal Indicators (Información del Sistema Nacional de Indicadores
Municipales, or SINIM), official site at www.sinim.cl
Federation of Municipalities of the Central American Isthmus (Federación de Municipios del Istmo Centroamericano, or
FEMICA), official site at www.femica.org; El Salvador: El Salvador Municipalities Corporation (Corporación de
Municipalidades de la República de El Salvador, or COMURES), official site at www.comures.org.sv, General Directorate of
Statistics and Census (Dirección General de Estadística y Censos, or DIGESTYC), official site at www .digestyc.gob.sv;
Nicaragua: Association of Municipalities of Nicaragua (Asociación de Municipios de Nicaragua, or AMUNIC), official site at
www.amunic.org, Nicaraguan Institute of Municipal Development (Instituto Nicaragüense de Fomento Municipal, or
INIFOM), official site at www.inifom.gob.ni, National Institute of Development Information (Instituto Nacional de
Información de Desarrollo, or INIDE), official site at www.inec.gob.ni; Costa Rica: Institute of Municipal Development and
Assistance (Instituto de Fomento y Asesoría Municipal), official site at www.ifam.go.cr, National Institute of Statistics and
Census (Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos, or INEC), official site at www.inec.go.cr; Chile: National System of
Municipal Indicators (Sistema Nacional de Indicadores Municipales, or SINIM), official site at www.sinim.cl; Panama:
Directorate of Statistics and Census (Dirección de Estadística y Censo, or DEC), official site at www.contraloria.gob.pa/dec/;
Guatemala: National Institute of Statistics (Instituto Nacional de Estadística, or INE), official site at www.ine.gob.gt; and
Google searches of websites of municipalities.

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Goal 7: Alternative technologies
Mobile telephony: a communications solution for rural areas
• Alternative technologies for access to the
information society, such as mobile telephony,
digital TV, WiMAX and VoIP, have
advantages as well as lower costs, providing
greater
geographic
coverage,
higher
transmission speed and the greater functionality
associated with convergence of services. This
represents an opportunity for providing
widespread access (see Chart 31).

• As Chart 32 indicates, the penetration of mobile
telephony in Bolivia and Paraguay in 2005—
35% for rural households—was ten times
greater than fixed telephony penetration for that
population. The rapid expansion of mobile
telephony is due to the fact that it involves
lower infrastructure costs than is the case for
landlines, thus providing a solution for
connectivity in rural and isolated areas.

• The region is beginning to overcome the urbanrural gap in voice communication thanks to
mobile telephony, which has reached
penetration levels in rural households far
beyond those attained by fixed lines.

Challenge: Consider models that provide
incentives for extending wireless networks in
outlying and rural areas, in order to provide
widespread access to voice- and data-transmission
services.

CHART 31
ACCESS TO ICTS IN URBAN AND RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
100%
Urban

Rural

80%
60%
40%
20%

Uruguay (2006)

Costa Rica (2005)

PC

Mobile
Telephony

Fixed
Telephony

TV

Internet

PC

Mobile
Telephony

Fixed
Telephony

TV

Internet

PC

Mobile
Telephony

Fixed
Telephony

TV

0%

Paraguay (2005)

CHART 32
FIXED AND MOBILE TELEPHONY PENETRATION IN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS
Fixed Telephony

60%

Mobile Telephony

50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Urban

Rural

Paraguay
(2005)

Urban

Rural

Brazil
(2005)

Urban

Rural

Chile
(2002)

Urban

Rural

Bolivia
(2005)

Source: OSILAC, based on national statistics agencies’ household surveys.

55

Urban

Rural

Venezuela
(2001)

Urban

Rural

Argentina
(2001)

Urban

Rural

Peru
(2004)

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 7: Alternative technologies
WIMAX as an alternative for broadband access
• The increasing importance of the
Internet and its applications creates
needs for broadband connectivity.
Current access is primarily via ADSL
over telephone lines, and through
cable modems linked to cable
television connections. However, as
has been seen with previous goals,
these
technologies
have
low
penetration in the region.
• WIMAX is a wireless datatransmission standard that covers up
to a 48-kilometre radius, and allows
access at speeds up to 70 Mbps. In
theory, 70 antennas would be
sufficient to cover the complete
territory of a country the size of El
Salvador. Its application in mobile
networks is expected to provide up to
15 Mbps of capacity within a 3kilometre cell radius. WIMAX could
be a solution for broadband access in
isolated areas or areas with lower
population density, at costs lower
than conventional technologies. As
shown in Table 5, the region’s
countries have been adopting this
technology since 2005.

TABLE 5
FIRMS THAT PROVIDE WIMAX SERVICE IN LATIN
AMERICAN COUNTRIES, MARCH 2007
Country
Argentina

Firm

Year Launched

Ertach (owned by Telmex)

2005

Velocom (owned by Nextel)

Colombia

2007

Entel

Chile

2005

Telmex

2006

Orbitel

2006

Telebucaramanga

2005

Costa Rica

RACSA

2006

El Salvador

Telecom

2007

Paraguay

Telecel (TIGO brand)

2005

Emax

2005

Telmex Perú

2006

Omnivisión

2005

Peru
Venezuela

Source: OSILAC, with information published by Latinwimax (official website at
www.latinwimax.com); TELECO, Información de Telecomunicaciones (official
website at www.teleco.com.br); and firms (official websites at www.ertach.com,
http://wimax.velocom.com.ar,
www.telmex.com/cl,
www.entelinternet.cl,
www.orbitel.com.co
www.telebucaramanga.com.co,
www.racsa.co.cr,
www.telecom.com.sv, www.tigo.com.py, www.emax.com.pe, www.x-plora.com.pe,
and www.movilmax.net).

CHART 33
COMPARISON OF CHARACTERISTICS OF NEW
GENERATION NETWORKS

• There are other technologies of
varying functionalities. Some provide
mobility, some greater coverage,
some lower costs, others more speed.
Thus, they are complementary
solutions for addressing different
problems in access and connectivity
(see Chart 33).

100

75

50

25

Fibra
ADSL
Cable
WiFi

Challenge:
Assess
different
technologies that provide solutions to
each type of access need, and make
corresponding changes in regulations.

WiMAX

0
3G
4G

Desarrollo
Costo(bit/$)
Velocidad
Movilidad

Source: “WiMAX en América Latina y El Caribe: Una Alternativa para la Brecha de Acceso
Aspectos Tecnológicos, de Mercado y Regulatorios,” Chistián Nicolai, ECLAC, 2006.

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Goal 7: Alternative technologies
Greater communication based on VoIP
• Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
makes it possible for a voice signal to
be transmitted over the Internet using
IP protocol, converting the voice
signal to digital data packet signals.
This service reduces the cost of a
telephone call to the cost of Internet
access, which is generally less than
conventional switched telephone
service. A number of providers offer
VoIP calling to conventional
telephone networks at lower cost,
charging the IP user for the service.
• The distribution of incoming traffic
by world region, according to the
technology used, surprisingly shows
an estimated 38% of IP traffic ending
in Latin America and the Caribbean,
contrasting with the region’s use of
traditional switched telephony, in
which the region represents merely
14% (see Chart 34).
• Though this technology is attractive
for users, many of the region’s
countries, unlike the OECD countries
(see Chart 35), do not yet authorize
or regulate this type of calling. This
is due to the conflict between the
operators who invested in creating
the networks and have the rights to
process this type of traffic, and the
new VoIP service providers.

CHART 34
INTERNATIONAL SWITCHED AND VOIP TRAFFIC BY
REGION OF DESTINATION, 2004
Switched

VoIP

Europe
17%

US 
Canada
8%
Africa
6%
Middle
East
4%

Africa
4%
Middle
East
5%

Asia
27%

Latin
America
14%

Latin
America
38%

Asia
20%

Source: Telegeography Research 2006 (official website at www.telegeography.com).
Note: The charts show the total percentage of switched and VoIP incoming traffic by
region. The voice over IP (VoIP) traffic includes all international calls to switched
telephone networks that are transmitted via IP networks, excluding PC-to-PC calls.

CHART 35
PERCENTAGE OF COUNTRIES, BY REGION, THAT
AUTHORIZE VOIP, AND PERCENTAGE OF COUNTRIES,
BY REGION, THAT REGULATE VOIP, 2004
93%
65%
47%
27%

22%

Authorized VoIP calls

Challenge: Seek ways of adapting the
region’s regulatory frameworks to the
new environment of convergence in
technologies and services, in order to
benefit users and without harming
operators.

US 
Canada
16%

Europe
41%

Caribbean

20%

VoIP Regulation
Latin America

OECD

Source: OSILAC, based on ITU data from the Regulatory Knowledge Center (official
website at http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/icteye/Default.aspx ).
Note: In the case of authorized VoIP calls, the data cover 15 Caribbean countries, 17
Latin American countries and 289 OECD countries. For VoIP regulation, the data
refer to 9 Caribbean countries, 10 Latin American countries and 20 OECD countries.

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Goal 7: Alternative technologies
Digital TV as a tool for digital inclusion
• Digital terrestrial television (DTT) reception
provides optimal audio and video quality, as
well as allowing for interactivity between the
consumer and the content provider via
interactive applications. In the US, Canada and
Europe, unlike the region, more TV signals are
received by cable or satellite. Thus, DTT has
great potential to promote digital inclusion.

in the adoption of standards hinders decision
making for the remaining countries.
• Over 30 countries worldwide have begun
transmitting using this technology over the last
several years: the US and the UK in 1998,
Spain in 2000, Austria, Finland, Germany, Italy
and Holland between 2001 and 2003 and
France in 2005.

• The region’s countries show a gap, and
confusion, in terms of the definition of the
technological DTT standard. While the vast
majority of the world’s countries have adopted
the DVB-T standard (over 55 countries as of
2007),1 the three region’s countries that, to date,
have adopted standards chose ATSC and a
variant of ISDB-T (see Table 6). This diversity

Challenge: Promote technical and regulatory
reforms necessary for implementation of DTT so
as to facilitate social inclusion and exchange of
content, taking account of the need for
coordination of regional standards.

CHART 36
DISTRIBUTION OF HOUSEHOLDS ACCORDING TO TYPE OF TELEVISION RECEPTION, 2005
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Argentina

Brazil

Mexico

Latin
America

Satellite

Cable

US

Germany
(2003)

Sweden
(2003)

Terrestrial

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Digiworld 2007, Fundación Telefónica and IDATE, and ECLAC, “TV Digital Terrestre y Convergencia en
América Latina,” CPqD for working group on eLAC2007 Goal 7, 2006.

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Goal 7: Alternative technologies
TABLE 6
ADOPTION OF DIGITAL TV IN LATIN AMERICA, JUNE 2007

Country

Entity Responsible

Year of
Initiation

Status

Standard
Adopted

Legal
Instrument

Date of
Decision

Start of
Transmission

Mexico

Consultative committee
of the Secretariat of
Communications and
Transportation, and the
National Chamber of the
Radio and Television
Industry

n.a.

Standard
adopted

ATSC

Secretarial
Agreement

2 July
2004

2006

Brazil

Casa Civil (Ministry of
the Interior)

1999

Standard
adopted

ISDB-T

Presidential
Decree no.
5.820

29 June
2006

December 2007

Honduras

National
Telecommunications
Commission

2006

Standard
adopted

ATSC

Normative
Resolution no.
001/07

16
January
2007

n.a.

Argentina

Commission for
Research and Analysis
on Digital Television
Systems

1997

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Chile

Ministry of
Transportation and
Telecommunications,
National Television
Council

1999

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Experimental
transmission

Colombia

National Television
Council

n.a.

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Experimental
transmission

Peru

Ministry of
Transportation and
Communications

2006

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Experimental
transmission
(ATSC)

Venezuela

National
Telecommunications
Commission with
working group

n.a.

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Guatemala

n.a.

2005

In process

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

Experimental
transmission
(ATSC)

Source: OSILAC, with data from ECLAC, “TV Digital Terrestre y Convergencia en América Latina,” CPqD for working group on eLAC2007 Goal 7, 2006.

Note:
1

DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting), DVB worldwide: http://www.dvb.org/about_dvb/dvb_worldwide/index.xml

59

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IV. Capacity-building and knowledge creation

The capacity-building and knowledge creation goals are:
Goal 8: Software
Goal 9: Training
Goal 10: Research and education networks
Goal 11: Science and technology
Goal 12: Businesses
Goal 13: The creative and content industries
Goal 14: Internet governance

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Goal 8: Software
The potential of the software and related services industry
• The Latin American software and
related services market is growing
faster than the world average, and the
local industry’s share of world sales
is increasing. Between 2001 and
2005, the cumulative share of
Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
Ecuador, Mexico and Uruguay
increased from 1.7% to 2.4%.1
• Uruguay, Chile and Brazil, in that
order, are the region’s most softwareproduction-intensive countries, with
sales representing 1.7%, 1.46% and
1.36% of GDP, respectively.
• The great majority of the software
produced is for use within the
producing country, though a small
portion is exported (see Table 7). On
average, 6% of these countries’
production is export-oriented. In
Uruguay, 39% of sales are exports.
• Analyzing the software and related
services industry according to the
orientation of the business, we find that
equipment, systems and services firms
represent more job creation than
packaged software (see Table 8).
Challenge: Take advantage of the vast
potential for expansion of the small but
growing software and related services
industry.

TABLE 7
SALES AND EXPORTS OF SOFTWARE AND RELATED
SERVICES, 2004
Country

Sales
(Millions of
USD)

Exports
(Millions of
USD)

Sales / GDP

Exports /
Sales

Argentina

1,173

192

0.77%

16%

Brazil

8,213

314

1.36%

4%

Chile

1,385

69

1.46%

5%

Colombia

340(1)

10(2)

0.35%

3%
12%

Ecuador

90

11

0.28%

Mexico

2,871

125

0.42%

4%

226

89

1.70%

39%

14,298

809

0.85%

6%

Uruguay
Total

Source: ECLAC, “La industria de software y servicios en América Latina: una visión
de conjunto,” Tigre and Marques, March 2007.
Notes: (1) Does not include local services firms. Estimated on the basis of billings of
561 firms: 542 local software developers (US$ 150 million) and 19 multinationals
(US$ 190 million). (2) Exports of 542 local software developers.

TABLE 8
JOBS CREATED BY 9 TRANSNATIONAL SOFTWARE AND
RELATED SERVICES FIRMS, 2005

Country

Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Mexico
Uruguay
Total

Related
services
firms(1)

3,500
12,300
1,257
70
3,550
650
21,327

Equipment,
systems and
services
firms(2)

2,730
15,400
1,000
750
200
2,804
22,884

Packaged
software
firms(3)

775
1550
75
250
217
1,383
4,250

Estimated
total
software
and services
in the
country(4)
32,000
219,321
24,912 (5)
31,665(5)
4,468(5)
53,915
4,902(5)
365,483

Source: ECLAC, “La industria de software y servicios en América Latina: una visión
de conjunto,” Tigre and Marques, March 2007.
Notes: (1) Outsourcing, systems integration, data centers, consulting: Accenture, EDS and
TCS. (2) Planning, systems integration, data centers, call centers, applications, outsourcing:
HP, IBM and Unisys. (3) Operating systems, databases, applications: Microsoft, Oracle and
SAP. (5) 2004 data. (6) The firms reflected here represent 30% of the world software and
related services market. (1), (2) and (3) reflect information on the 9 transnational firms, and (4)
represents the country total.

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Goal 8: Software
Job creation by domestic software industry
• Latin America’s countries have software and
ICT services industries that have potential for
job creation.

develop most of their products and services
within the region.
• Though the domestic firms focus on domestic
markets, they are seeking to increase their
exports. However, their small size in the
context of the worldwide market, as well as
their low visibility, constitutes an impediment.

• The three largest companies with a majority of
domestic ownership in the software and ICT
services industry in Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Mexico and Uruguay collectively billed over
US$ 1.4 billion, employing over 24,000
workers. Comparing this with multinational
firms in Latin American countries, we see that
the domestic firms are more labor-intensive.
This is due to the fact that domestic firms

Challenge: Promote public and corporate policy to
encourage the development of domestic software
firms to satisfy the growing domestic and
international demand and contribute to local job
creation.

TABLE 9
PRINCIPAL DOMESTIC SOFTWARE AND RELATED SERVICES FIRMS, 2005
Country

Argentina

Firm

Number of
employees(b)

28

Jobs per million
USD billed
(b)/(a)

Business segment

-

-

Grupo ASSA

24

a

600

25

DATCO
Brazil

Anectis

Total revenue
(Millions of
USD)
(a)

Marketing of third-party software

19a

280a

15

Professional services

CPM

255

2,600

10

Systems integration, Outsourcing

Professional services

Politec

6,500

33

Systems integration, Outsourcing

162

1,779

11

Software (ERP)

Sonda

350

4,500

13

Integration, Development, Consulting

Coasin

Chile

196

Microsiga

60

950

16

Consulting, Development, Software

Adexus
Mexico

50

400

8

Consulting, Development, Marketing

Sofftek

140

4,000

29

Professional services, Outsourcing

94

 1,300

 14

Professional services

7

200

29

Software (administrative)

20

446

22

Professional services

Hildebrando
Aspel
Uruguay

Grupo Quanam
ARTech

 15

100

7

Software (tools)

Infocorp

6

197

33

Microsoft platform solutions

 1,420

 23,852

~ 17

7,474

48,461

7

Domestic firms
Multinationals

Source: ECLAC, “La industria de software y servicios en América Latina: una visión de conjunto,” Tigre and Marques, March 2007.

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Goal 8: Software
Free software: an issue calling for more study
• eLAC2007 Goal 8 involves, among
other things, gaining a better
understanding of the free and opensource software phenomenon. Some
studies, such as one conducted in
Chile in 2006,2 showed that although
users of such software emphasized
certain disadvantages in terms of
functionality and user-friendliness of
interfaces compared with commercial
software, greater security and
transparency
are
generally
recognized as advantages. Cost
savings are also an advantage.
Another case study showed that
between 1999 and 2005, the São
Paulo Metro system saved US$
3,790,515 by using free software.
• Despite these advantages, no general
trend toward using this type of
software is apparent in the region.
While Guatemala, Venezuela and
Ecuador—and to a lesser degree
Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Costa
Rica, Dominica and Granada—have
seen an increase in Linux users as a
proportion of all operating-system
users since 2005, the proportion of
Linux users is declining in the other
countries (see Chart 37).
• A number of the region’s countries
are attempting to promote the use of
free software by developing plans to
make it standard in public
administration (see Table 11).
Challenge: Strengthen communication
between governments and other users of
free software, in order to encourage
sharing of experiences regarding the
potentials and limitations of this type of
software.

TABLE 10
SAVINGS FROM USE OF FREE AND OPEN-SOURCE
SOFTWARE IN THE SÃO PAULO METRO SYSTEM IN
BRAZIL, 1999-2005
Year
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005

Total average cost MS
Office + 3-year software
insurance
(USD)
1,059,224
97,194
139,378
1,153,939
436,257
297,192
1,266,675

Total cost
Open Office
(USD)
109,324
89,222
90,041
91,062
95,809
92,345
91,541

Annual
savings
(USD)
949,900
7,973
49,337
1,062,877
340,448
204,846
1,175,134

Source: Relogio da Economia [Savings Clock] (official website at http;//www.relogio
daeconomia.sp.gov.br).

CHART 37
LINUX(*) USERS AS A PERCENTAGE OF ALL COMPUTER
USERS, 2005-2007
Cuba
Chile
Guatemala
Venezuela
Uruguay
Argentina
Brazil
Ecuador
Colombia
Panama
El Salvador
Dominica
Costa Rica
Honduras
Trinidad and Tobago
Nicaragua
Granada
Barbados
Peru
Jamaica
Mexico
Paraguay

2007
0%

5%

10%

2005

15%

Source: OSILAC, with information from The Linux Counter (official website at
http://i18n.counter.li.org/) and UTI, “World Telecommunications Indicators Database,
2006.”
Note (*): Between 2% and 5% of Linux users are estimated to have registered with the
Linux Counter. The estimated number of registered users as of January 2005
accounted for 0.8%, representing 1 out of every 125 Linux users. This estimate has
been used as an approximation.

64

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 8: Software
TABLE 11
LEGISLATION/REGULATIONS DESIGNED TO PROMOTE THE USE OF FREE SOFTWARE IN
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, FEBRUARY 2006
Country
Argentina

Brazil

Colombia
Costa Rica
Peru
Uruguay
Venezuela

Level of government
National
National
National
Province of Buenos Aires
City of Buenos Aires
City of Buenos Aires
City of Buenos Aires
Province of Córdoba - City of Porteña
Province of Jujuy
Province of Misiones
Province of Santa Fe
Province of Santa Fe - City of Santa Fe
City of La Plata
City of Mar del Plata
City of Rosario
National
National
National
National
National
National
State of Paraná
State of São Paulo
State of Rio Grande do Sul
Campinas
Recife
Amparo
Porto Alegre
Solonópole
Viçosa
São Carlos
National
National
National
San José
National

Legislation/Regulations
Bill 5613-D-00
Bill 904-D-02
Bill 1280
Bill E-135/02-03
Bill 1416-D-02
Bill 1499-03
Bill 2801-04
Ordinance 1275/2004
Bill 207-D-2002
Bill D-22034/03
Law 12360
Draft Ordinance 25495-O-04
Draft Ordinance 37202
Ordinance 17584
Ordinance 7787/2004
Draft Ordinance 2269/1999
Draft Ordinance 3051/2000
Draft Ordinance 4275/2001
Draft Ordinance 7120/2002
Draft Ordinance No. 2152/2003
Draft Ordinance No. 3280/2004
Law 14195
Resolution CC-52
Law 11871
Law 11113
Law 16639
Bill 57/2001
Bill 53/00
Law 614/2001
Law 1472/2001
Law 12883/2001.
Bill 83
Draft Ordinance 15191
Law 28612
Resolution
Decree 3390

Date
Sept. 2000
March 2002
March 2004
June 2002
Sept. 2002
Sept. 2003
Apr. 2004
Apr. 2004
May 2002
Oct. 2003
Nov. 2004
Oct. 2004
nov-2002
May 2006
Mar. 2005
Aug. 1999
May 2000
March 2001
Nov. 2002
Oct. 2003
Mar. 2004
Nov. 2003
Apr. 2004
Dec. 2002
March 2001
Apr. 2001
n.a.
March 2000
n.a.
n.a.
n.a.
Dec. 2002
Apr. 2003
Oct. 2005
June 2003
Dec. 2004

Source: OSILAC, based on Marco normativo del software libre en América Latina y el Caribe, Fernando Maresca, Alfa-Redi Argentina,
December 2004, and Resultados de Investigación: Software Libre en América Latina y el Caribe, Bellanet International, Office for Latin
America and the Caribbean, with support from IDRC PAN-Americas, Lena Zúñiga, Verónica Xhardez and research team, March 2006; and data
from Brazil: Chamber of Deputies (official website at http://www.camara.gov.br/Internet/sileg/Prop_Detalhe.asp?id=159126); Peru: Congress of
the Republic (official website at http://www.congreso.gob.pe/ntley/imagenes/Leyes/28612.pdf); Venezuela: Online government (official website
at http://www.gobiernoenlinea.gob.ve/docMgr/sharedfiles/Decreto3390.pdf).

Notes:
1

2

“La industria de software y servicios en América Latina: una visión de conjunto,” Tigre and Marques, ECLAC,
March 2007.
“
Economic Efficiency of Free and Open Source Software in the Public Sector: the example of Chile,” Matthias
Sax, ECLAC. LC/W.106, October 2006.

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Goal 9: Training
ICT Training: a factor promoting inclusiveness and competitiveness

• This trend is confirmed by data from
occupational training institutions,
which
believe
that
computer
illiteracy on the part of students is
less significant in preventing the
incorporation of ICTs in occupational
training than is teacher resistance
(see Chart 39).
• However, it cause for concern that, as
shown in Chart 38, the percentage of
the population without computer
skills is significantly greater among
the working-age population (over 15
years old). This may affect the
employment level, while at the same
time leading to unmet demands for
labor,
as
employers
depend
increasingly on these technologies.
Challenge: Promote the development of
ICT skills among adults, particularly
among those of working age.

CHART 38
PERCENTAGE OF BRAZILIAN POPULATION WITHOUT
INTERNET AND COMPUTER SKILLS, BY AGE,
SEPTEMBER 2005
93%

63%

69%

49%
40%
25%

10-15 years
old

16-24 years
old

25-34 years
old

35-44 years
old

45-59 years 60+ years old
old

Source: Center for the Study of ICTs (official website at http://www.cetic.br).

CHART 39
FACTORS LIMITING OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING
INSTITUTIONS FROM INCORPORATION ICTS IN
TEACHING, 2005
12
10
Number of responses

• Brazilian data show that a high
percentage of the population under 35
years of age considers itself skilled in
Internet and computer use (see Chart
38). This is surprising, considering that
the penetration of these technologies is
below 15%. However, it suggests that
there are more ICT users than
individuals with their own Internet
access, and that basic use of these
technologies does not necessarily
require sophisticated training.

8
6
4
2
0

Teacher
resistance

High cost

Lack of
Students’ lack Lack of Internet
access
continuity in
of computer
public policy on
literacy
ICTs

Source: OSILAC, with data from Las Instituciones de Formación Profesional (IFP)
en América Latina y el Caribe, y las Tecnologías de Información y el Conocimiento
(TIC), ECLAC, Guillermo Labarca, May 2006.
Note: Based on multiple-choice responses from 14 institutions.

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Goal 9: Training
Formal training for the digital age: a challenge for occupational
training institutions
• eLAC2007 Goal 9 is to train at least
2.5% of the working-age population
in ICT skills annually, with due
regard for gender equity. Progress
toward this goal is difficult to
measure, since basic ICT learning
takes place in a wide variety of
public and private institutions.
Nevertheless,
the
occupational
training institutions are the traditional
venue for addressing this challenge.
For decades, they have been the
leaders in formal training in the
region.

TABLE 12
ICT TEACHING IN OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING
INSTITUTIONS, AND ITS IMPACT ON THE
ECONOMICALLY ACTIVE POPULATION, 2005
Percentage
of students
in ICT
courses (1)

Institution

INATEC Nicaragua

Students in courses at
occupational training
institutions as a
percentage of the
economically active
population

10.0%

INSAFORP El Salvador

no data avail.

8.3%

no data avail.

19.0%

9.1%

INA Costa Rica

22.0%

2.4%

SENATI Peru

23.5%

1.6%

SENA Colombia

• In many of these institutions, the
percentage of students registered in
ICT courses is significant (see Table
12). These students represent, of
course, a small percentage of the
economically active population,
though Trinidad and Tobago and
Costa Rica are exceptions, where
occupational training institutions
have, by themselves, succeeded in
meeting the eLAC2007 goal. In Peru,
Colombia and Honduras, the
contribution of such institutions goes
a significant way toward meeting the
goal.

Nat.Training Ag. Trin.. Tob.

4.9%

1.5%

INFOP Honduras

5.0%

1.1%

Secretariat of Labor, Mexico

47.0%

0.3%

HEART Jamaica

18.0%

0.1%

INAFORP Panama

9.0%

0.1%

INFOTEP Dominican Republic

0.5%

0.0%

Source: ECLAC, Las Instituciones de Formación Profesional (IFP) en América Latina y el
Caribe, y las Tecnologías de Información y el Conocimiento (TIC), Guillermo Labarca, 2006.
Notes: (1) Total number of students registered in specific ICT courses (not including
students receiving ICT training as a part of curricula in other fields). (2) Reflects
sectors that use ICTs, excluding personal services and agricultural workers.

CHART 40
DISTRIBUTION OF NEW COURSES IN OCCUPATIONAL
TRAINING INSTITUTIONS, ACCORDING TO COURSE’S
THEMATIC AREA, 2005
(n=30)

• Responding to demand, occupational
training institutions have introduced
new courses, of which 57% are in the
ICT area, designed to prepare the
labor force for the digital age (see
Chart 40).

Sectoral
20%

Telemarketing
3%
Networks
13%
ICTs for teaching
7%
Business
management
13%

Computing,
computer
technology,
software
31%

Challenge: Support and take advantage
of the efforts of occupational training
institutions to train the labor force of the
information society.

Computer repair
3%

Graduate and
specialized
10%

Source: OSILAC, with data from Las Instituciones de Formación Profesional (IFP) en
América Latina y el Caribe, y las Tecnologías de Información y el Conocimiento (TIC),
ECLAC, Guillermo Labarca, May 2006.

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Goal 9: Training
ICTs: an opportunity for women’s training and development

Challenge: Use the potential provided
by women’s access to the Internet to
promote
their
development
and
participation in all spheres of society.

Note:
1

Internet Steering Committee of Brazil,
Survey on ICT use, 2005.

31% 28%
22%

20%

22%

23%

21%
19%

21%
19%

18%
15%

14%

13%

Men

Paraguay

Honduras

Dom.
Rep.

Mexico

Costa
Rica

Panama

Uruguay

Brazil

8% 8%

Women

Source: OSILAC, with data from household surveys.
Note: The data for Brazil, Costa Rica, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic are for 2005.

CHART 42
INTERNET ACTIVITIES, BY SEX,
2005
Interaction
Formal
with
education,
governmental
Information
training
organizations Entertainment
seeking Communication activities

• Women take advantage of these
opportunities. According to Brazilian
data, they make greater use of the
Internet for purposes of training and
education than do men. This
phenomenon
represents
an
opportunity to improve their quality
of life since, in addition to
facilitating
greater
access
to
education, ICTs open up new job
possibilities and new opportunities
for social participation. It is
noteworthy that 20% already use the
Internet to perform paid work and
conduct business.1 The same data
show that activities such as online
shopping,
electronic
banking
transactions and interacting with
government are less prevalent.

CHART 41
PERCENTAGE OF INDIVIDUALS USING INTERNET, BY
SEX, 2006

Purchases
/orders for goods Electronic
and services
banking

• There is a slight difference between
the number of male and female
Internet users, the difference is not
significant. Compared with other
indicators of gender inequality, the
relatively equal use of ICTs appears
to be an opportunity to promote the
inclusion of women, rather than a
force for exclusion.

Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.
Mexico
Paraguay
Brazil
Dominican Rep.

Women

Mexico
Paraguay
0%

10%

20%

Source: OSILAC, with data from household surveys

Note: The Mexican data are for 2006.

68

Men

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Meta 10: Research and education networks
Scientific and technological development through integration of networks
• In 2003, the academic networks of 16
Latin American countries formed the
Latin American Cooperation of
Advanced Networks (Cooperación
Latino
Americana
de
Redes
Avanzadas, or CLARA) as a means
of integrating research and academic
institutions and linking up with
scientific communities in the rest of
the world, in order to stimulate
regional cooperation in education,
science and cultural activities.

CHART 43
THE TOPOLOGY OF REDCLARA, APRIL 2007

• To date, RedCLARA has linked 12 of
its members (in a “ring,” as reflected in
Chart 43). Bolivia, Costa Rica, Cuba,
Honduras, Nicaragua and Paraguay
remain to be connected. A significant
portion of RedCLARA is funded by the
project, Latin America Interconnected
with
Europe
(América
Latina
Interconectada con Europa, or ALICE),
whose members are responsible for
connections to the network.
• RedCLARA provides access to other
networks around the world, such as
GEANT2, Internet2, CANARIE,
APAN and SINET, either directly or
through transit agreements with
GEANT2 and Internet2.
• In eLAC2007 Goal 10, the countries
promoted the expansion of the
RedCLARA
model
into
the
Caribbean. 2005 saw the birth of the
Caribbean Knowledge and Learning
Network
(CKLN),
which
is
supported by organizations in the
region, such as CARICOM and the
Organization of Eastern Caribbean
States.

Source: RedClara (official website at www.redclara.net).

Challenge: Continue expanding the
interconnection of advanced networks,
with emphasis on making them selfsustaining.

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Goal 10: Research and education networks
TABLE 13
CHARACTERISTICS OF ADVANCED RESEARCH NETWORKS IN THE REGION, APRIL 2007
County

Name of
network

Year
created

Type of
coordinating
organization

Number of
members
2004

2007

2004

2007

42 higher education
institutions, 8 research
organizations,
5 government agencies

Yes

Yes

In process of
reorganization via
ADSIB

No

No

Yes

Yes

InnovaRed

2006

no data avail.

52

55

Bolivia

BOLNET

1990

Public
educational
organization
(self-financed)

20

no data
avail.

Colombia

Costa Rica

Whether connected
to RedCLARA

2007

Argentina

Brazil

Characteristics of
members

RNP

1989

Mixed nonprofit
organization

369

156

100 higher education
institutions,
35 research
organizations,
8 development
organizations,
2 hospitals,
6 governmental
agencies, 6 NGOs

RENATA

2007

Currently being
organized as a
private nonprofit
organization

75

57

54 higher education
and research
institutions, and
3 government agencies

No

Yes

2002

Governmental
organization
(Ministry of
Science and
Technology)

no
data
avail.

9

5 higher education
institutions, 2 research
organizations and
2 government agencies

No

No

21

22

17 higher education
institutions, 5 research
organizations

No

No

19

17

15 higher education
institutions, 1 research
center and CONICYT

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

CR2Net

Cuba

REDUNIV

2005

Governmental
organization
(Ministry of
Higher
Education)

Chile

REUNA

1986

Self-financing
private nonprofit
organization

38

24

17 higher education
institutions, 3 research
organizations,
3 gov. agencies, 1 private
sector organization

Ecuador

CEDIA

2002

Governmental
organization
(Ministry of
Education and
Culture)

El
Salvador

RAICES

2003

Self-financing
private nonprofit
organization

8

9

8 higher education
institutions, 1 research
organization

No

Yes

Guatemala

RAGIE

no data
avail.

Nonprofit civic
organization

no
data
avail.

9

7 higher education
institutions, 2 privatesector organizations

No

Yes

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Goal 10: Research and education networks

Honduras

Mexico

Nicaragua

RHUTA

not
applic.

No

Yes

Yes

1999

Nonprofit civic
organization

no
data
avail.

80

RENIA

2005

Nonprofit civic
organization

not
applic.

8

7 higher education
institutions, 1 privatesector organization,
1 NGO

not
applic.

No

2002

Nonprofit
educational
organization

10

10

7 higher education
institutions, 1 research
organization,
2 government agencies

Yes

Yes

not
applicable

Nonprofit
educational
organization

22

not
applica
ble

No physical network.
The project is inactive.

No

No

2003

Nonprofit civic
organization

7

5 higher education
institutions, 2 research
organizations

no data
available

Yes

16

4 higher education
institutions, 6 research
organizations,
4 government agencies,
1 international
organization,
1 private-sector
organization

No

Yes

67

34 higher education
institutions, 2 research
organizations,
7 academic institutions,
5 foundations,
19 government agencies

Yes

Yes

Paraguay

ARANDU (1)

Venezuela

Public and private
universities, 1 private
organization,
1 government agency

CUDI

REDCYT

Uruguay

no data avail.

no data
avail.

37 higher education
institutions,
37 research
organizations,
4 private organizations,
2 international
organizations

Panama

Peru

2005

not
applic.

RAAP

RAU

REACCIUN

1990

Nonprofit higher
education
institution

1994

Nonprofit civic
organization
(Ministry of
Science and
Technology)

no
data
avail.

16

73

Source: OSILAC, with information from national networks: Bolivia, Agencia para el Desarrollo de la Sociedad de la Información (official website
at www.adsib.gob.bo); Brazil: Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa (official website at www.rnp.br); Chile: Red Universitaria Nacional (official
website at www.reuna.cl); Colombia: Red Nacional Académica de Tecnología Avanzada (official website at www.renata.edu.co); Costa Rica: Red
Nacional de Investigación Avanzada (official website at www.crnet.cr/cr2net); Cuba: Red Nacional de Educación e Investigación (official website
at www.mes.edu.cu); Ecuador: Consorcio Ecuatoriano para el Desarrollo de Internet Avanzado (official website at www.cedia.org.ec); El Salvador:
Red Avanzada de Investigación, Ciencia y Educación Salvadoreña (official website at www.raices.org.sv); Guatemala: Red Avanzada
Guatemalteca para la Investigación y Educación (official website at www.ragie.org.gt); Honduras: Red Hondureña de Universidades con
Telecomunicaciones Avanzadas (official website at www.unitec.edu); Mexico: Corporación Universitaria para el Desarrollo de Internet (official
website at www.cudi.edu.mx); Nicaragua: Red Nicaragüense de Internet Avanzada (official website at www.renia.net.ni); Panama: Red Científica y
Tecnológica (official website at www.redcyt.org.pa); Paraguay: Arandu (official website at www.arandu.net.py); Peru: Red Académica Peruana
(official website at www.raap.org.pe); Venezuela: Centro Nacional de Tecnología e Información (official website at www.reacciun.ve); Uruguay:
Universidad de la República de Uruguay (official website at wwww.rau.edu.uy); and RedClara (official website at www.redclara.net).
Note: (1) Data are as of July 2003.

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Goal 11: Science and technology
Research and development, and associated budgetary constraints
• Most of the countries in Latin
America spend small amounts on
RD—around 0.5% of GDP,1
significantly less than figures for
developed countries, which are over
2%. The highest figure in the region
is Brazil’s 1% of GDP, though
between 2001 and 2004, Brazil’s
spending on RD decreased, as did
Cuba’s and Panama’s. Chile, Peru
and, to a lesser extent, Mexico
slightly increased their RD
spending (see Chart 44).
• The gap between the region’s
countries and the developed countries
is even greater if viewed in terms of
RD spending per capita. While per
capita income in the United States is
approximately six times what it is in
Chile, the ratio of per capita RD
spending between the two countries
is 33 to 1 (US$ 1000 versus US$ 30).
This limited spending in Latin
America translates into a figure for
patents per 100,000 inhabitants that
is nearly 10 times less than the
corresponding figure for the United
States.
• Research organizations oriented to
ICT development are scarce in Latin
America. In 2002, only 36 ICT
research groups or centers were
identified in Mexico,2 of which 12
were private and 24 public. Most of
them focus on projects that they
consider to include both basic
research
and
technological
development/transfer.

CHART 44
RD SPENDING AS A PERCENTAGE OF GDP, 2001-2004
3,0%

2.5%

2.0%

2004

2001
2004

1.0%

0.8%

1.5%

0.6%
1.0%
0.4%
0.5%

0.2%

0.0%

0.0%
US

Brasil Brazil Chile

Canada

Chile
Cuba

CubaALC

LAC
México Mexico
Argentina Argentina
Panamá Panama
Perú

Peru
Paraguay

Source: Red de Indicadores de Ciencia y Tecnología (online at www.ricyt.edu.ar).
Notes: The region’s data are estimates. For Cuba, the official exchange rate was used: 1 Cuban
peso = 1 USD. Figures for Mexico include only federal science and technology spending.

CHART 45
RD SPENDING PER INHABITANT AND NUMBER OF
PATENT APPLICATIONS PER 100,000 INHABITANTS
(Average 2001 – 2004)
1,200

63

RD spending per inhabitant
Patents requested per 100,000 inhabitants

1,000

35
6
800

30
USD per
inhabitant

25

600

20
3
400

15

2
2

10
200

1
5
6
3
US

Chile

0,7

0,5
2

0

0

Challenge: Increase resources for RD
in the region, including ICT RD
conducted by both public- and privatesector organizations.

2001

1.2%

Chile
Brasil

2

0
Brazil
Argentina
México Mexico
Argentina
ALC LAC

0,3
0,2
0,1
1
0
0
0
Panama Trinidad Perú
Peru Paraguay
Paraguay
Cuba Cuba Panamá
Trinidad y
and
Tobago
Tobago
1

Source: Red de Indicadores de Ciencia y Tecnología (online at www.ricyt.edu.ar).
Notes: For Cuba, the official exchange rate was used: 1 Cuban peso = 1 USD. Figures
for Mexico include only federal science and technology spending. Panama figures
include spending of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. The region’s figures
are estimates. Dollar estimates were obtained by applying IMF exchange rate data to
information on local currencies provided by each country.

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Goal 11: Science and technology
RD: a necessity for the creation of value added
• The ICT industry in the region
remains limited. The ICT sector
lacks, by a large margin, the
importance it has in the developed
countries.
• As Chart 46 shows, the value added
(VA) of communications equipment
in the United States represents 19%
of all manufacturing VA. In Brazil,
Mexico and Argentina, it is less than
5%, comparable to levels in Canada
and Germany. The VA of office and
computer equipment is significantly
less than that of communications
equipment—zero,
indeed,
in
Argentina. Notably, the contribution
of office and computer equipment to
total industrial VA in Mexico and
Brazil is higher than it is in Canada
and Germany.
• Imports
of
computer
and
communications equipment in the
region’s countries are far higher than
exports, unlike the situation in the
United States and China, which is
more balanced (see Chart 47). In
Mexico, Brazil and Costa Rica, the
percentage of equipment exported is
greater than in other countries of the
region. However, this is due to
maquila activity and other regimes
under which imported components
are assembled.

CHART 46
CONTRIBUTION OF THE PRODUCTION OF
COMMUNICATIONS, OFFICE AND COMPUTER
EQUIPMENT TO THE VALUE ADDED OF COUNTRIES’
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES, 2003
20%
18%

Communications equipment

16%

Office and computer equipment

14%
12%
10%
8%
6%
4%
2%
0%
U.S.

China

Mexico

Germany

Brazil

Argentina

Spain

Note: Gross value added is calculated as the gross value of production minus intermediate inputs.

CHART 47
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF COMPUTER AND
COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT IN SELECTED
COUNTRIES, 2003
(millions of 1997 USD)
500.000
450.000
400.000

Imports

350.000
14.000

300.000

Exports

12.000

250.000

10.000

200.000

Challenge: Strengthen ICT research and
development in both public- and privatesector organizations involved in
developing basic domestic capacities for
the production of equipment essential
for the information society.

Canada

8.000

150.000

6.000

100.000

4.000

50.000

2.000
0

0
U.S.

China

Mexico

Brazil
Francia Belgium

Costa
Chile
Canada Argentina Spain
Italy
Rica

Peru

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Science and Engineering Indicators 2006,”
National Science Foundation (online at www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind06).

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Goal 11: Science and technology
The productivity of ICT clusters
• The so-called “technology parks” referred to in
eLAC2007 Goal 11 provide shared physical
and technological resources, skilled human
resources, support services, prestige and the
ability to deal with high international
certification costs, which are significant in the
case of ICT activity.3

facility housing 42 software firms whose
operations will be centered there, employing
over 1,000 software developers. Panama’s
Tecnoparque Internacional de Panamá is a
science and technology center that promotes
direct
relationships
between
research
organizations and the business community.
Blumenau’s collaboration with the software
industry in Brazil arose as the result of a large
computer services firm in the region, driven by
textile firms and the municipality, along with
the appearance of a new generation of
entrepreneurs.

• Comparing ICT clusters with agricultural,
furniture and metallurgical clusters, software
clusters show high productivity (see Table 14).
On average, they generate products with
significantly higher value per-employee.
• In Colombia, ParqueSoft has 11 computer and
ICT research laboratories based on alliances
with universities in the region and elsewhere.
Mexico’s Parque Tecnológico de Monterrey
will include the Monterrey IT Cluster in a

Challenge: Facilitate the creation of clusters that
innovate for the production of high value-added
goods and services.

TABLE 14
PRODUCTION, JOBS AND PRODUCTIVITY IN SELECTED CLUSTERS IN LATIN AMERICA, 2002
Type of
industry

Cluster’s
activity

Number of
firms

Region/Country

Salmon (1)

Southern region - Chile

Dairy

Boaco, Chontales - Nicaragua

Mangos and
grapes

Production
(thousands
of USD)

Direct
employment

Thousands
of USD
produced
per
employee
34.7

10,605

25,400

15,624

1.6

Petrolina, Juazeiro – Brazil

580

93,000

17,400

5.3

Río Grande del Norte - Brazil

120

13,000

19,000

0.7

Santa Catarina – Brazil

750

51,700

23,500

2.2

Furniture

Chipilo, Puebla – Mexico

146

6,700

5,400

1.2

Metallurgy(2)

Espíritu Santo – Brazil

66

33,300

12,000

2.8

Software

Aguascalientes – Mexico

13

4,300

121

35.5

Software

Mexico City. – Mexico

130

57,500

2,000

28.8

Software

Electronics

29,000

Apples
Manufacturing

1,005,000

Melons

Food

65

Monterrey – Mexico

76

120,000

2,000

60.0

Source: OSILAC, with data from Upgrading in clusters and value chains in Latin America, The Role of Policies, Pietrobelli and Rabellotti, InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB), January 2004.
Notes: (1) 65 firms in the main value chain. There are an additional 150 local providers. 40% of direct employment is seasonal. (2) Only firms
associated with CDMEC.

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Goal 11: Science and technology
International scientific collaboration
• Global connectivity of digital networks
presents new opportunities for international
collaboration in science and engineering. There
was a major intensification of this
collaboration in years during which the
Internet was becoming a mass medium. In
1996, the region’s researchers collaborated
with researchers in 69 countries, while in 2003
the number had grown to approximately 90
countries.

of articles have one of the region’s researchers
as a co-author.
Challenge: Maximize the use of digital networks
to integrate the region’s science and engineering
community and promote its role in the process of
worldwide knowledge creation.

• There was also noticeable progress during
these years in Latin American researchers’
participation as co-authors of international
articles in science and technology. Nearly 20%

CHART 48
SCOPE OF INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, 1996-2003
(Scope, measured in terms of number of countries)
180
160

1996

2003

Number of countries

140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
U.S.

Canada

Spain

Brazil

China

Mexico

Argentina

Chile

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Science and Engineering Indicators 2006,” National Science Foundation (online at
www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind06).
Note: The figures refer to the number of countries whose authors have co-authored publications with the indicated country (based on institutional
address).

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Goal 11: Science and technology
TABLE 15
LATIN AMERICA’S PARTICIPATION IN CO-AUTHORING INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE AND
ENGINEERING ARTICLES, BY COUNTRY/REGION INVOLVED, 1996-2003
Region/Country
Cuba
Uruguay
Costa Rica
Peru
Venezuela
Argentina
Colombia
Chile
Spain
Brazil
Mexico
United States
Portugal
France
Italy
Canada
United Kingdom
Belgium
Germany
India
Sub-Saharan Africa
Eastern Europe, former USSR
Northeastern Africa
China

International articles
1996
2003
Change
157
302
92%
111
214
93%
121
158
31%
97
232
139%
247
438
77%
916
1,716
87%
212
391
84%
612
1,231
101%
4,771
8,624
81%
2,090
3,794
82%
1,119
2,215
98%
39,046
60,180
54%
807
2,010
149%
13,105
19,900
52%
8,011
12,669
58%
9,065
12,978
43%
16,292
24,999
53%
3,514
5,547
58%
16,464
26,689
62%
1,719
3,187
85%
2,332
3,765
61%
13,624
20,477
50%
4,782
7,192
50%
3,341
9,132
173%

Latin America’s contribution
1996
2003
29.3%
36.2%
28.4%
33.3%
9.5%
21.2%
11.1%
20.6%
19.6%
18.6%
15.5%
17.9%
17.8%
17.6%
16.1%
14.7%
8.0%
10.7%
8.0%
10.1%
10.2%
9.5%
4.9%
5.4%
3.7%
5.4%
3.8%
4.4%
2.5%
3.1%
2.6%
2.8%
2.7%
2.7%
1.9%
2.6%
1.8%
2.6%
1.7%
2.2%
1.5%
2.1%
1.9%
1.9%
1.1%
1.5%
0.9%
0.9%

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Science and Engineering Indicators 2006,” National Science Foundation (online at www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind06).
Note: Participation is calculated as the number of articles from each country that are co-authored with institutions in other countries, as a proportion
of the former country’s total number of articles.

Notes:
1
2
3

ECLAC. In press. Progreso técnico y cambio estructural en América Latina.
INEGI. Encuesta sobre investigación y desarrollo en tecnología de información, 2002.
Federico Anzil 2007. http://www.econlink.com.ar/node/546

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Goal 12: Businesses
Basic connectivity for businesses: a challenge nearly solved
• Business connectivity has progressed
significantly in recent years. Though
the nature of the sample here dictates
caution in extrapolating the data to
entire sectors and to firms of all
sizes, the results show that most
businesses with over 10 employees in
Brazil, Argentina, Costa Rica and
Cuba are connected to the Internet.
Indeed, in Argentina’s manufacturing
sector and in Brazil, the Internet
penetration rates are similar to them
observed in Denmark and Canada.
• Though Internet presence in the
region generally remains limited to
providing information on businesses
and their products, in some region’s
countries the Web is used in ways
comparable to its use in developed
countries.
• Use of the Internet as a business tool
depends on connection speed (see
Chart 50). Also in this area there has
been improvement. The broadband
access gap between Latin American
businesses and businesses in the
United States is significantly
narrower (by a factor of 2 to 4) than
the gap for households. In fact, the
great majority of the region’s
medium-sized
businesses
have
advanced connections—currently a
prerequisite
for
global
competitiveness.
Challenge: Increase the proportion of
firms with an Internet presence and with
connection speeds of at least 1 Mbps, so
as to promote the transition to more
complex applications.

CHART 49
PENETRATION OF INTERNET AND WEBSITE OWNERSHIP
IN BUSINESSES OF SELECTED COUNTRIES, 2004
(Percentage of all businesses)
97%

95%

94%

94%

81%
70%

64%

56%

60%

57%

18%
10%

Denmark

Brazil

Canada
Internet Use

Argentina

Costa Rica

Cuba

Have website

Source: OSILAC, with data from UNCTAD, “Information Economy Report. The
Development Perspective,” 2006.
Note: Includes businesses with over 10 employees. Argentina: Survey covers manufacturing
sector only. Costa Rica: Businesses with 10-249 employees. Brazil: 2005 data.

CHART 50
BROADBAND ACCESS AMONG ORGANIZATIONS IN
LATIN AMERICA, 2005
8%
10%

9%

7%

8%

16%

20%

15%

14%

39%
54%

71%

62%

60%

38%
21%

10%
Brazil

Mexico

≤ 64 kbps

128 - 768 kbps

14%

15%

9%

Argentina, Chile,
Colombia, Costa
Rica

Latin America

United States
(2003)

≥ 1 Mbps

NK/NR (not known/no response)

Source: Net Impact 2005, América Latina. De la Conectividad al Crecimiento,
AHCIET Journal.
Note: The Latin American data reflect 1,212 businesses in the manufacturing, retail
distribution, financial services and public (government and health) sectors with more
than 25 employees in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico.

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Goal 12: Businesses
Toward more sophisticated applications in the overall productive process
• Despite high levels of connectivity in
the business world, there is a
considerable gap in terms of the
productive use of investments
already
made.
The
famous
“productivity paradox” of the digital
era—the fact that possessing a large
quantity of ICT equipment does not
guarantee increased productivity—
underlines the importance of
productive use of equipment and
technology.
• To date, Latin American firms have
concentrated on relatively simple
operational applications, for purposes
such as accounting and finance and
human resources management. A
smaller, but already significant,
proportion of firms use ICTs in areas
such as automated sales and input
management (see Chart 51). These
data reflect the current state of
learning, involving both internal and
external reorganization of the
business process.
• As Chart 52 indicates, lack of
training in new technologies is the
principal constraint in regard to
incorporating the technologies in the
region’s medium-sized and large
firms. This is consistent with the
results of the ICT Policy Delphi
priorities for the year 2010 in the
region,1 in which the region’s experts
identified training of businesspersons
in small and medium-sized firms, as
well as computer training of the
labour force, as two priorities for the
coming years.
Challenge: Facilitate the transition from
connectivity to productive use of ICTs,
particularly through the training of
economic agents.

CHART 51
PERCENTAGE OF INTERNET-CONNECTED
ORGANISATIONS WITH ONLINE APPLICATIONS IN
LATIN AMERICA, 2005
Accounting and
finance

78%

Human resources

67%

Websites

59%
52%

Planning

50%

Customer relations

49%

Sales automation
40%

Supply management

Source: Net Impact 2005, América Latina. De la Conectividad al Crecimiento, AHCIET Journal.
Note: The Latin American data reflect 1,212 businesses in the manufacturing, retail
distribution, financial services and public (government and health) sectors with more than
25 employees in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico.

CHART 52
OBSTACLES TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF NEW
TECHNOLOGY IN MEDIUM-SIZED AND LARGE
ORGANISATIONS IN LATIN AMERICA, 2005
Lack of training of staff

44%

Lack of systems integration

25%

Non-standardized procedures

25%

Poorly defined objectives

22%

Lack of management support

21%

Regulatory constraints

20%
18%

Inadequate connectivity
None

6%

Source: Net Impact 2005 América Latina. De la Conectividad al Crecimiento, AHCIET Journal.
Note: The Latin American data reflect 1,212 businesses in the manufacturing, retail
distribution, financial services and public (government and health) sectors, with more than
25 employees, in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico.

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Goal 12: Businesses
The rapid progress of small and medium-sized enterprises

• The example of Brazil shows that the
dividing line between basic and more
sophisticated use of ICTs lies
approximately at the 100-employee
point. Larger firms place equal
importance
on
training
ICT
specialists and general users, whereas
smaller firms place greater emphasis
on the latter.

Administration
Distribution
and sales

Large
Medium
Medium-small
Small
Large
Medium
Medium-small
Small
Large

Other

• The case of Chile illustrates the
situation of small firms, in regard to
access to computers in different
organisational areas. Though large
firms have progressed more in areas
where use of ICTs is still relatively
uncommon, such as supply and
production, it appears to be the case
that once more than half of
employees have access to PCs, the
externalities of connectivity tend to
lead to rapid connection for the
remaining employees. In the realm of
management, this critical mass has
already been achieved, while in
distribution and sales it is still an
ongoing process. In these latter areas,
surprisingly, greater penetration is
seen among medium-sized firms.

CHART 53
EMPLOYEES IN CHILEAN FIRMS WITH COMPUTERS
AND ICT SKILLS, BY FUNCTIONAL AREA, ACCORDING
TO SIZE OF FIRM, 2006

Medium
Medium-small
Small

Supply and
production

• Statistical data show that there are no
longer sharp differences between
large and small firms in regard to
ICT access and capacity. Rather,
ICTs appear to be a levelling factor
between firms of different sizes.

Large
Medium
Medium-small
Small
0%

10% 20% 30% 40%
Trained staff

50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Employees with computer

Source: Undersecretariat of Economy, Encuesta Acceso y Uso TICs en Empresas, 2006.
Note: (1) The percentage of employees trained is calculated as a proportion of the total number of
employees with computers. (2) Firms’ size is based on annual sales, small firms being those with sales
of approximately US$ 86,000 to US$896,000; medium-small US$ 896,001 to US$ 1,800,000;
medium-sized: US$ 1,801,000 to US$ 3,500,000; and large over US$ 3,501,000.

CHART 54
TRAINED EMPLOYEES IN BRAZILIAN FIRMS
ACCORDING TO TYPE OF TRAINING, BY SIZE OF FIRM
50
45
40
35
30
25

Challenge: Promote training and support
policies for small and medium-sized firms.

20
15
10
5
0
10 -19

20 - 49

50 - 99

100 - 249 250 - 499 500 - 999

1000 +

Number of employees

Note:
1

ICT specialists

Results of the 2nd round of the ICT
Policy Delphi for the year 2010,
http://www.cepal. org/socinfo

ICT users

Source: OSILAC, with data from the Internet Steering Committee, Survey of Firms, 2006
(official website at http://www.cetic.br/empresas/2006/).

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Goal 13: The creative and content industries
Content on digital networks reflects the interests of cybernauts
• Cyberspace is a mirror of the users, who
construct it by creating content that reflects
their linguistic and cultural interests. On
interactive networks, users create their own
content through websites, music or video.

gained proportionately, with a corresponding
slight
decline
in
the
proportionate
representation of Latin languages.
• Current information on Internet content in Latin
America’s indigenous languages is not
available for assessing equity or lack of equity
of Internet use, or linguistic balance as related
to ethnicity.

• While data confirm this hypothesis—inasmuch
as there is a similarity between the distribution
of the population associated with a given
language, and the language of Internet users
and content—Spanish and Portuguese have
fallen slightly behind in the last few years. In
2000, there was proportionately more content in
these languages than there were cybernauts,
while as of 2006, other languages, such as
German and various Asian languages, had

Challenge: Study the creation of electronic content
in Latin America’s indigenous languages, so as to
gain a better grasp of the cultural diversity in
cyberspace.

CHART 55
DISTRIBUTION OF WORLD POPULATION, INTERNET USERS AND WEBSITES,
BY LANGUAGE, 2000-2006
100%
90%
80%
Others

70%

English

60%

German

50%

French
Italian

40%

Spanish

30%

Portuguese

20%
10%
0%
Population

Users

Websites

Population

2000

Users

Websites

2005

Source: OSILAC, based on data from Fundación Redes y Desarrollo (FUNREDES), Observatorio de las lenguas y las culturas (online at
www.funredes.org/LC /); Internet World Stats (official website at www.internetworldstats.com).

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Goal 13: The creative and content industries
The communications media as generators of digital content

Newspapers online per 100,000 literate individuals

0,2

0,4

0,6

0,8

1,0

1,2

1,4

Source: OSILAC, with data from the website Prensa Escrita (online at
www.prensaescrito.com), UNESCO Institute for Statistics (official website at
www.uis.unesco.org), and CELADE (official website at www.eclac.cl/celade.)

CHART 57
NUMBER OF ONLINE TV STATIONS, BY TYPE OF
STATION, JUNE 2007
350
IPTV
300

Web TV
Conventional TV

250

200

40
35

150

30
25
20

100

15
10

50

5

Br
az
il

Sp
ai
n

M
ex
ic
o
Ar
ge
nt
Ar i n
g a
Ve ent
n in
Ve ezu a
n e el
zu a
Co el a
l
Coom
l o bia
Co mb
ia
C st
os a
taRi
Rca
ica
Pe
Pe
ru
ru
Ho
Ho
nd
nd
ur
ura
ass
E
Ell
Sa
Sa
llvva
ad
do
o rr
Pa
Pa n
a
na m
ma
a

0

0
Ca
na
da

Challenge: Bring traditional newspaper
and TV content into the digital age by
breaking the vicious circle created by
lack of content and insufficient
bandwidth.

Newspapers printed per 100,000 literate individuals

-

Fr
an
ce

• Many of the region’s countries already
provide television content over digital
networks. Considering that this
technology is still new, the number of
available IPTV and Web TV stations
must be considered a reflection of the
extraordinary ease of providing
content via digital networks. The fact
that the online presence of television
stations is significantly lower in the
region than in the developed countries
is associated with differing bandwidth
capacities.

Uruguay
Argentina
Venezuela
Mexico
Chile
Peru
Ecuador
Bolivia
Panama
Nicaragua
Paraguay
Brazil
Costa Rica
Dominican Rep.
El Salvador
Colombia
Honduras
Cuba

Ut
al
y

• The strength of online newspapers is
notable. Despite the fact that the
region’s information societies are still
in their infancy, online newspapers
have practically the same penetration
as their printed forerunners (see Chart
56). In countries such as Cuba and
Honduras,
with
fewer
printed
newspapers (as measured by the
number of newspapers per 100,000
literate individuals), online media are
on a par with traditional newspapers.

CHART 56
NUMBER OF PRINTED AND ONLINE NEWSPAPERS PER
100,000 LITERATE INDIVIDUALS, 2006

Number of channels

• ICTs constitute an advance for the
traditional communications media
(newspapers and magazines, and
television content), since lower costs
and the ease of dissemination provided
by electronic media open the door for
local content.

Source: OSILAC, with data published at www.global-itv.com.

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Goal 13: The creative and content industries
Latin American film as a factor in strengthening cultural identity
• Film production contributes to the
development of the region’s national
identities, its particularities and
culture, its artistic expressions, the
approaches to its history and to local
problems, and the dissemination of the
urban and natural images of countries.
• The availability of digital equipment
of all sizes and prices for recording,
manipulating
and
presenting
sequences
of
images
creates
opportunities for a new generation of
filmmakers and producers to find their
place, allowing them to create
alternative material for presentation in
different venues. Phenomena such as
YouTube signal a trend that is also
having an impact on the production of
more elaborate films. The advent and
rapid spread of production, distribution
and exhibition techniques is significantly
reducing barriers to filmmaking.

CHART 58
NUMBER OF VIEWERS OF CINEMATIC FILMS IN CHILE,
BY ORIGIN, 1997-2004
12,000,000
10,000,000
8,000,000
6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000
1997

1998

1999

2000

Foreign films

2001

2002

2003

2004

Chilean films

Source: “Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación e Industrias Culturales.
Una perspectiva latinoamericana,” Katz, ECLAC, June 2006.

CHART 59
NUMBER OF CINEMATIC FILMS OPENING IN
COLOMBIA, BY ORIGIN, 1994 – 2004

• Interest in national films and film
production is increasing in the region,
though the sector is still dominated by
large transnationals.1

3
4
7
6

Challenge: Exploit the possibilities that
digital tools offer for development of the
region’s film industry, as a means of
strengthening the cultural identity of the
region’s information societies.

8

270
237

1996

1998
Foreign films

199

2000

176

2002

162

2004

Colombian films

Source: “Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación e Industrias Culturales.
Una perspectiva latinoamericana,” Katz, ECLAC, June 2006.

Note:
1

ECLAC, Katz Jorge, “Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicación en industrias culturales. Una perspectiva
latinoamericana,” June 2006.

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Goal 14: Internet governance
The management of ccTDL, a determinant of Web presence
• There are different approaches to managing
Internet domain names in the region. The
organisations responsible for this in the region
include governmental and private-sector
organisations, as well as academic and
nongovernmental institutions. Governmental
schemes with private-sector cooperation are also
to be found. The most common arrangement
(used in 10 of the region’s countries) assigns the
responsibility to academic institutions. Less
common are mixed governmental/private-sector
schemes
(4
countries),
private-sector
arrangements (4 countries) and management by
governmental organisations (2 countries).
• Rates for the maintenance of country code toplevel domain (ccTDLs) vary from country to
country, since the free modality in the case of

domains “.ar of Argentina, to US$ 380 in
Bolivia for domains “.bo (level 2) for two
years of lease. There is not yet a clear
relationship between the price of maintaining
and using a national domain name and the cost
of generic domains (.com, .org, .info, etc.).
Argentina stands out as the extreme case. With
free domain registry, it has 171 ccTDLs per
1,000 Internet users (hence its non-inclusion in
Chart 60).
Challenge: Assess in greater detail the
implications, advantages and disadvantages of the
different Internet governance models in use in
Latin America and the Caribbean, with emphasis
on participation by all sectors of society, as well as
by international organisations.

CHART 60
COST OF REGISTERING CCTDLS AND MAINTAINING THEM FOR 2 YEARS, AND NUMBER OF
ccTDLS PER 1,000 INTERNET USERS, AUGUST 2007
50
Chile

45

ccTDL per 1,000 Internet users

40
35
30
Brasil
25

Paraguay

20

Nicaragua

Panama

15
Venezuela
10

Ecuador
El Salvador

5

Costa Rica

Guatemala

Mexico

Honduras

Dominican Rep.
Peru

Colombia

0
0

20

40

60

80

100

US$ per 2 years of m aintenace

Source: OSILAC, with data published on the websites of national domain name registries; NIC.cl (official website at www.nic.cl), and
LatinoameICANN (official website at www.latinoamericann.org).

83

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Goal 14: Internet governance
TABLE 16
DOMAIN NAME ADMINISTRATION ORGANISATIONS IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN,
COST OF MAINTAINING DOMAINS, AND NUMBER OF CCTDLS REGISTERED, AUGUST 2007
ccTDL

Organisation responsible

Description of
organisation
responsible

.ar
Argentina
.bb
Barbados

Ministry of Foreign Relations,
International Trade and Culture

Governmental

Cable  Wireless Ltd.

Private firm

.bo
Bolivia
.br
Brazil
.bs
Bahamas

Agency for the Development of the
Information Society in Bolivia

Governmental,
with collaboration
Governmental,
with collaboration
Academic
institution

.bz
Belize
.cl
Chile
.co
Colombia
.cr
Costa Rica

.cu
Cuba
.do
Dominican Rep.

.ec
Ecuador
.sv
El Salvador
.gt
Guatemala
.mx
Mexico
.hn
Honduras
.pa
Panama
.py
Paraguay
.pe
Peru
.tt
TrinidadTobago

Internet Steering Committee of Brazil
College of The Bahamas
University Management Ltd., joint
enterprise of Datapro International
Ltd. and the University of Belize

Website

www.nic.ar
http://domains.org.
bb/

1,395,786

114
(level 2) 380

1,010
3,518

www.nic.br

30

www.nic.bs

data not avail.

1,175,654
data not
avail.

www.belizenic.bz

34

41,773

www.nic.cl

39

187,819

www.nic.co

73

19,719

www.nic.cr

56
(level 2 and 3
national  state) 16
(level 2 and 3
national  state) 404

6,679

CITMATEL (organisation associated
with the Ministry of Science, Technology
and Environment)
Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre
y Maestra

Governmental
Academic
institution

www.nic.cu

Private firm
Governmental,
with collaboration
Academic
institution
Academic
institution

www.nic.ec

Universidad del Valle de Guatemala
Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios
Superiores de Monterrey
Sustainable Development Network,
supported by the National Telecommunications Enterprise (Hondutel)

0

(level 3) 70

University of Los Andes
National Academy of Sciences (public
nongovernmental institution)

NIC.ec S.A.
National Science and Technology
Council

Number of
ccTDLs
registered

www.nic.bo

Private firm +
university
Academic
institution
Academic
institution
Academic
institution

University of Chile

Cost of first two years
of registration (US$)

www.nic.do

www.svnet.org.sv

70
(.ec, com.ec, net.ec,
org.ec, edu.ec for
nationals) 60
(pro.ec, med.ec,
fin.ec, info.ec for
nationals) 36

1,429
10,205

13,884

45
(residents and
organization) 40

3,921

www.nic.mx

66

215,818

www.gt

5,904

Civil society +
state enterprise
Academic
institution

www.nic.hn

100

3,731

www.nic.pa

(all less .net.pa) 70

4,255

Academic
institution

www.nic.py

75

5,629

Peruvian Scientific Network

Private firm

www.nic.pe

70

TTNic

Private firm

www.nic.tt

data not avail.

17,697
data not
avail.

(.com.uy) 83
(.edu.uy, .gub.uy,
.org.uy, .net.uy,
.mil.uy) 25

13,101

23

51,986

Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá
Digital Electronics Laboratory of the
Catholic University, and Nat.
Computer Centre of the Nat. Univ.

.uy
Uruguay

University of the Republic

Academic
institution

www.rau.edu.uy/r
au/dom/

.ve
Venezuela

National Information Technologies
Centre

Nongovernmental
organisation

www.nic.ve

Source: OSILAC, with data published on the websites of national domain name registries, with the collaboration of LACNIC (official website at
www.lacnic.net), LACTLD (official website at www.lactld.org) and LatinoameICANN (official website at www.latinoamericann.org).

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Goal 14: Internet governance
Spam as an Internet governance challenge
• In Brazil, 52% of people with email
state that they receive spam,1 a
situation that causes serious problems
for users: non-receipt of email
because of filled mailboxes, time
spent in deleting spam messages, loss
of productivity, and receipt of
undesired, offensive and possibly
fraudulent content.
• 70% of those receiving spam state that
they receive between 1 and 10 such
messages daily, while 6% receive as
many as 60 per day (see Chart 61).
• In Brazil, the amount of spam reported
in 2005 and 2006 was less than in
2004. This could be associated with
technological progress in spam filters,
more educated users, and more
concerted efforts by the country’s
Internet governance authorities, among
other reasons. Regulation and
monitoring of Internet activity is the
responsibility of the Internet Steering
Committee (CGI.br), which is
comprised of members of the
government, the business community
and the services sector, as well as the
academic
community.
Security
incidents are addressed by the Centre
for Study, Response and Handling of
Security Incidents (Centro de Estudos,
Resposta e Tratamento de Incidentes
de Segurança, or CERT.br), which has
developed early-warning mechanisms.
Challenge:
Develop
Internet
governance mechanisms and approaches
to reduce security problems and
undesired email.

CHART 61
AVERAGE VOLUME OF SPAM RECEIVED DAILY IN
MAIN EMAIL ACCOUNT IN BRAZIL, JULY-AUGUST 2006
(Percentage of all people receiving spam)
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
1 a 10

11 a 20

21 - 40

41 - 60

60

NK/NR

Average daily number of spams received

Source: Centros de Estudios sobre TIC (CETIC) (official website at www.cetic.br).
Note: NK/NR: not known/no response

CHART 62
ANNUAL VOLUME OF SPAM REPORTED IN BRAZIL,
2003 – 2007
4.072.334

4.156.382
3.403.430
2.414.200

1.229.670

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007
(jun. 07)

Source: Centre for Study, Response and Handling of Security Incidents in Brazil
(official website at www.cert.br).
Note: The spam statistics are generated by information obtained from complaints sent
to SpamCop and forwarded to CERT.br.

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Goal 14: Internet governance
Better Internet governance through regional cooperation
• Internet security goes beyond the
issue of spam. A security incident
may be defined as any confirmed or
suspected adverse event related to the
security of computer systems or
networks. Included are unauthorised
attempts to access systems or data,
service-denial attacks, unauthorised
use of or access to a system,
modification of a system without the
prior knowledge, instructions or
consent of the system’s owner, and
disregard for the security policies of
a firm or service provider.
• Brazilian data provide information on
online security in that country. Chart
67 shows the increasing number of
security incidents reported annually.
• In regard to types of incidents,
although 44% of Internet users state
that they have no problems, 28% of
users (and 52% of businesses
connected to the Internet) state that
they have been affected by a virus,
making this the most common type
of attack.
• There are few cases of fraud, but
since
the
consequences
are
potentially so serious, this is
understandably one of users’ greatest
fears in carrying out electronic
transactions.
Challenge: Take advantage of the
experience of the region’s countries to
improve security and confidence in
networks by sharing knowledge and
technical cooperation.

CHART 63
INTERNET INCIDENTS PER YEAR IN BRAZIL, 1999- 2007
1
97,892

1
2,301

2000

2001

68,000

2004

54,607
5,997

94,809

75,722

2005

25,092

2002

2003

2006

2007
(jun. 07)

Source: CERT (official website at www.cert.br).
Note: Reflects incidents voluntarily reported to CERT.

CHART 64
SECURITY PROBLEMS IN INTERNET USE IN BRAZIL,
JULY-AUGUST 2006
Users: Percentage of total Internet users
44%

No problem
30%

Do not know
Virus with unauthorized access, waste of
time or data
Virus that resulted in software or
hardwaredamage
Abuse of personal information sent by
Internet

20%
8%
2%

Another problem of Security

1,1%

Banking fraud or another problem with
banks

0,6%

Fraud with credit cards 0,3%

Businesses: Percentage of total number of businesses with Internet access
Virus attack

52%

Trojans

35%

Worms

21%

Unauthorized external access

10%

Unauthorized internal access

9%

Attack on Web server
Denial of service (DoS) attack

7%
6%

Source: CERT (official website at www.cert.br).
Note: Total is over 100% due to the fact that questions have multiple answers.

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Goal 14: Internet governance
Decreasing regional participation in world governance
• The United Nations Working Group on Internet
Governance was created after the 2003 World
Summit on the Information Society, in order to
research and propose actions in this area.
• In July 2005, it presented a report focusing on
four topics: IP addresses and domain names,
security and privacy issues, property rights, and
issues relating to national development.
• The proposed policy for Internet management
included the creation of an Internet governance
forum with participation from civil society, the
private sector and governments, in order to
discuss a wide range of questions related to this
issue and make recommendations to the
international community.

• Brazil is slated to host the second meeting of
the Internet Governance Forum, to be held in
November 2007. The meeting will facilitate
greater participation, concerning the various
aspects of this issue, by entities throughout the
region, in an attempt to boost what has been
flagging participation in such events in recent
times.
Challenge: Agree on a position that protects and
takes account of regional needs and particularities,
while increasing attendance at international
Internet governance meetings, so as to provide for
greater contributions by the region in the global
debate on relevant issues.

TABLE 17
WORLD AND REGIONAL PARTICIPATION IN MEETINGS OF THE UNITED NATIONS WORKING
GROUP ON INTERNET GOVERNANCE, 2004 – 2006
Date

Sept. 20-21, 2004
Nov. 23-25, 2004
Feb. 14-18, 2005
Apr. 18-20, 2005
Jun. 15-17, 2005
Oct. 30– Nov. 2, 2006

Total
participants

Name
Consultations on the creation of the
Working Group on Internet Governance
First meeting
Second meeting
Third meeting
Fourth meeting
First Internet Governance Forum

185
104
124
data not avail.
184
1193

Region
participants
30
9
14
data not avail.
7
38

The region as
a percentage
of total
16%
9%
11%
data not avail.
4%
3%

Source: OSILAC, with information from the Working Group on Internet Governance (WGIG) (official website at www.wgig.org) and the Internet
Governance Forum (official website at www.intgovforum.org).

Note:
1

Centre for the Study of Information and Communication Technologies, ICT survey of households, 2006

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

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V.

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Public transparency and efficiency

The public transparency and efficiency goals are:
Goal 15: Electronic government
Goal 16: e-Education
Goal 17: e- Health
Goal 18: Disasters
Goal 19: e-Justice
Goal 20: Environmental and natural resource protection
Goal 21: Public information and cultural patrimony

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Goal 15: Electronic government
Government online: standard-bearer of the information society
• The situation is not as encouraging for the rest
of the region. Some countries’ e-government
efforts are far behind, creating a gap between
countries. It is clear that the wealth factor alone
does not explain this gap. However, it is
encouraging that even with scant resources it is
possible to create e-government policies and
initiatives that have a positive impact on efforts
to modernise the State.

• The online presence of government is important
for the development of the information society,
since it promotes the use of ICT applications by
the population, improves the provision of
services to citizens and increases transparency
and democracy through greater dissemination of
information.
• In view of the fact that governments in more
developed countries have greater online
presences, it is notable that a number of egovernment efforts in Latin American and
Caribbean countries with considerably lower per
capita incomes have created a substantial online
presence. Chile, Mexico and Brazil are among
the 20 countries whose public sectors have the
greatest online presence (occupying positions 6,
12 and 17, respectively, in the world ranking).

Challenge: Promote e-government programmes as
a catalyst for other sectors of the society and
economy. Share practices of countries in the region
that are more advanced in this area with countries
that are less so, and incorporate the practices in the
societies by designing and implementing policies
and developing appropriate solutions.

CHART 65
PER CAPITA GDP AND INDEX OF ONLINE GOVERNMENTAL PRESENCE, 2005
1,00

Singapur
Chile

0,90

República de Corea

Reino Unido

México

Alemania

Index (Max. value=1)

Finlandia
Japón

Brasil
Bélgica

Argentina
Colombia

0,60

Dinamarca

Australia
Canadá

0,80
0,70

EE.UU.

Francia

Perú
Jamaica

0,50

Uruguay
0,40

España

Guatemala
Rep. Dominicana

0,30
Bolivia

Santa Lucía

Costa Rica
Honduras

0,20
0,10
0,00
0

10.000

20.000

30.000

40.000

50.000

60.000

US$ per inhab.

Source: OSILAC, with data from Global e-government readiness report 2005, from e-government to e-inclusion, Department of Economic and
Social Affairs of the United Nations (online at http://www.unpan.org/egovernment5.asp); and ITU “World Telecommunications Indicators
Database,” 2006.

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Goal 15: Electronic government
Online presence: a target moving too fast for the region
• Though many Latin American and
Caribbean countries are in a
promising position in terms of the
online presence of their public
sectors, the fact that the process has
been somewhat stalled is a matter of
concern. Between 2003 and 2005, 15
of the region’s countries rose in the
world ranking of countries according
to the online presence of their
governments.
Meanwhile,
18
remained in the same position or
declined in the ranking.
• The countries that advanced are
principally the ones that are furthest
behind. Colombia and Brazil are
exceptions, since their performance
in this area improved.
• The greatest progress was among the
countries that lagged most severely,
at rankings of 150 or lower, out of
the 191 countries ranked. The
countries whose decline was most
noticeable are the ones whose
rankings in 2003 were above 100,
namely Paraguay, the Dominican
Republic and Guyana, whose
positions declined drastically, though
some countries notable for their
progress in this area also fell in the
rankings. Thus, Chile, Mexico and
Argentina
declined,
though
remaining among the 30 countries
with the greatest government online
presence.
Challenge:
Strengthen
online
government programmes to maintain the
pace of improvement that other
countries in the world are achieving in
this area.

CHART 66
CHANGE IN RANKING OF COUNTRIES ACCORDING TO
ONLINE PRESENCE OF THEIR PUBLIC SECTORS, 2003 - 2005
(United Nations Internet Index)

Country (Rank)
Venezuela (41)
Sn. Vte. y las Gran.(98)
Colombia (31)
Ant.and Barbuda (138)
Dominica (159)
Honduras (113)
Suriname (170)
Grenada (156)
Barbados (117)
Trinidad yTobago (76)
Bahamas (85)
Panama (53)
Brasil (17)
Peru (44)
Guatemala (62)
Ecuador (101)
Jamaica (52)
Haiti (185)
Uruguay (58)
Chile (6)
Mexico (12)
Costa Rica (96)
Argentina (27)
Belize (97)
El Salvador (64)
Saint Lucia (88)
Saint Kitts  Nevis (147)
Nicaragua (103)
Bolivia (87)
Cuba (141)
Guyana (121)
Dominican Rep. (82)
Paraguay (133)
-80

-60

-40

-20

0

20

40

60

80

Variation in number of rank positions

Source: OSILAC, with data from Global e-government readiness report 2005, from
e-government to e-inclusion, Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the
United Nations (online at http://www.unpan.org/egovernment5.asp).
Note: The Internet index comprises the United Nations Global e-Government
Readiness Index, and is based on a model of online governmental presence. It reflects
the status of 191 United Nations member States.

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Goal 15: Electronic government
The progress of e-government based on regional cooperation
• The considerable diversity in the degree of
development of e-government among the
region’s countries presents an opportunity to
advance through regional cooperation, a process
in which mechanisms for exchange are
important. One example is the Electronic
Government Network of Latin America and the
Caribbean (Red de Gobierno Electrónico de
América Latina y El Caribe, or RedGEALC),
referenced in eLAC2007 Goal 15. This network
includes 31 countries; its objective is to create
opportunities for sharing of knowledge, experts
and solutions in all areas related to egovernment, in order to facilitate collaboration
among the region’s governments.

through RedGEALC. Many of these focused on
design and strategy for the development of egovernment, as well as on sharing computer
solutions and applications for providing online
services (see Table 18).
• Workshops and other events are an effort to
expand and deepen knowledge of different
aspects
of
e-government,
such
as
interoperability and customs management
systems. Since 2004, 11 events of this type have
been held, involving different countries in the
region (see Table 19).
Challenge: Promote regional cooperation for the
transfer of knowledge, and for sharing of solutions
and applications relevant to online government,
through active participation in schemes such as
RedGEALC.

• Between 2005 and 2007, over 10 cooperation
and technical assistance exercises took place

TABLE 18
CASES OF HORIZONTAL COOPERATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AMONG
REDGEALC MEMBER COUNTRIES, AUGUST 2007
Countries involved

Year

Date

Peru - Nicaragua

2007

July 23 - 25

Brazil - Uruguay

2007

June 28–29

Chile – Panama

2007

June 3–6

Peru - Uruguay

2007

May 10-11

Mexico - Colombia

2006

Aug. 28Sept. 1

Panama - Bolivia

2006

May 22-24

Chile – Caribbean

2005

Nov. 28-30

Colombia – Dominican
Rep.

2005

August

Mexico – Argentina

2005

Brazil – Dominican Rep.

2005

Aug 30Sept. 2
June 4-7 .

Peru – Chile

2005

May 2-3

Objective of the cooperation
Technical support to Nicaragua in Digital Certification and regulatory
aspects of the electronic government.
Working meetings to define the interoperability architecture, and the
processes and standards for exchange of information.
Agenda focused on information on Chile’s experience with standards.
Formulate legislative bills, regulations and standards as a basis for reform
of the State, using e-government tools.
Share Mexico’s experience for implementing a public employment
information and management system in Colombia.
Create a framework for the Bolivian government to familiarise itself with
Panama’s experience in interoperability for government procurement.
Provide an opportunity for Latin American and Caribbean e-government
experts to collaborate.
Based on Colombia’s experience, provide advice on designing a plan of
action and implementing the citizen’s website project and the government
services project.
Share good e-government practices of Mexico’s Secretariat of Public
Service.
Share experiences in the implementation of a government intranet.
Review the experience of CONSUCODE in formulating and interpreting
standards, and the experience of Peru’s Procurement Tribunal.

Source: OSILAC, with information from REDGEALC (official website at www.redgealc.net ).

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Goal 15: Electronic government
TABLE 19
EVENTS HELD BY REDGEALC, AUGUST 2007
Date/Place

2007

May 24-25 de
Dominica Rep.

Annual meeting

May 2-4 Costa
Rica

Interoperability and
Governmental Intranet
workshop
Interoperability and
Governmental Intranet
workshop

24

Modernisation of
Customs Systems:
Transparency and its
impact on collections
Working visit to customs

17

2006

Nov. 8-10
Colombia

August 2-4
Dominican Rep.

July 24-26 de
Jamaica
April 4-7 de
Brazil

Event

Number of
participants
49

Year

25

Participating countries and organisations
ATG (2), ARG (1), BHS (1), BRB (1), BLZ (1),
BRA (1), CHL (2), COL (2), CRI (1), DMA (1),
ECU (1), SLV (1), GTM (1), HTI (3), HND (1),
JAM (1), NIC (1), PAN (1), PRY (1), PER (2),
DOM (3), VCT (1), KNA (1), LCA (1), SUR (2),
TTO (1), URY (1), VEN (1), ICA (3), SEDI (2),
IDB (1), ECLAC (1), World Bank (1),
Development Gateway (1), CARICAD (1),
RedGEALC (2)
ARG (1), BRA (3), COL (1), CHL (2), JAM (1),
MEX (1), NIC (1), URY (1), VEN (1) CRI (7),
USA (4)
ARG (1), BRB (1), BRA (1), COL (7), CRI (1),
CHL (1), ECU (1), GTM (1), JAM (1), MEX (1),
NIC (1), PRY (1), PER (1), DOM (1), TTO (1),
ECLAC (1), RedGEALC (1), OAS (1), IDB (1)
CHL (1), CRI (1), ECU (2), GTM (1), NIC (1) and
DOM (11)

GEALC meeting in
Brazil.
ICT Solutions for the
Public Sector

30

Sharing Canadian
experiences in Electronic
Government workshop

37

July 26-28
Trinidad and
Tobago

Caribbean workshop on
Best Practices in
Electronic Government

28

May 10 – 12
Brazil

Workshop on Building
Electronic Government
Capacity

25

April 27-28 Peru

2003

ATG (2) GRD (2) USA (2), JAM (28)

March 6-8 de
Canada

2004

34

Workshop on Building
Electronic Government
Capacity

30

Nov. 17-21
Chile

Workshop on Building
Electronic Government
Capacity

31

ATG (1), ARG (1), BRB (1), BHS (1), BLZ (1),
BOL (1), COL (1), CRI (1), DMA (1), ECU (1),
SLV (1), GRD (1), GTM (1), HND (1), JAM (1),
MEX (1), NIC (1), PAN (1), PRY (1), PER (1),
DOM (1), VCT (1), KNA (1), LCA (1), SUR (1),
TTO (1), URY (1), VEN (1), OAS (1),
RedGEALC (1)
ATG (2), ARG (1), BHS (1), BRB (1), BLZ (1),
BRA (1), CHL (1), COL (2), CRI (1), DMA (1),
ECU (1), SLV (1), GTM (1), HND (1), JAM (1),
NIC (1), PAN (1), PRY (1), DOM (2), VCT (1),
KNA (1), LCA (1), SUR (1), TTO (1), URY (1),
VEN (1), ICA (3), SEDI (2), IDB (1), ECLAC (1),
Development Gateway (1), CARICAD (1),
RedGEALC (2)
ATG (1), BHS (1), BRB (1), BLZ (1), CHL (1),
DMA (1), GRD (1), GUY (1), JAM (1), MEX (1),
VCT (1), KNA (1), LCA (1), SUR (1), TTO (5),
ICA (1), ECLAC (1), UN (1), OAS (1),
CARICAD (1), RedGEALC (2)
ARG (1), BOL (2), BRA (3), COL (2), CRI (1),
CHL (1), ECU (1), SLV (1), GTM (2), HND (1),
MEX (1), NIC (1), PAN (2), PRY (1), PER (1),
DOM (2), URY (1) VEN (1)
ARG (1), BOL (2), BRA (1), COL (2), CRI (2),
CHL (1), ECU (2), SLV (1), GTM (2), HND (2),
MEX (1), NIC (2), PAN (2), PRY (1), PER (5),
DOM (2), URY (2) VEN (1)
ARG (2), BOL (2), BRA (1), COL (2), CRI (2),
CHL (5), ECU (2), SLV (1), GTM (2), HND (2),
MEX (1), NIC (2), PAN (2), PRY (1), PER (1),
DOM (2), URY (2), VEN (1)

Source: OSILAC, with information from REDGEALC (official website at www.redgealc.net).

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Goal 15: Electronic government
Interoperability: a prerequisite for government equipped for e-transactions
• A second group of countries is in an
intermediate stage, with approximately 20% of
their websites in an advanced state of
development, covering transactions and
networking. In these cases, information can be
transmitted in both directions. Payments can be
processed online, and there is online bidding for
government contracts. Services are available on
a 24/7 basis. The functionality includes online
advice to the public, and the system integrates
various public-sector entities.

• An advanced phase in the development of egovernment is the single-window, a single
website that provides for all types of citizen
transactions, regardless of what government
agency they involve, and even if the information
associated with the transaction is scattered
among different databases. The fundamental
prerequisite for this is interoperability of
systems inside and outside different sections of
government.
• In the region, there are different degrees of
sophistication in the online presence of the
public sector. For one group of countries, this is
a basic level: institutions have official websites
with essential information relating to the
institution. Policies, laws, reports and
downloadable databases are also provided, but
the
transmission
of
information
is
unidirectional. In some cases, there are
downloadable forms for subsequent processing
through traditional offline channels, a degree of
audio and video functionality is provided, or the
government office may be contacted via email.

• In a third group of countries (Chile, Mexico and
Brazil), over 85% of the websites are at the
basic level, while over 50% are at an advanced
stage of development.
Challenge: Promote the interoperability of public
administration systems within and between
different agencies, in order to improve processing
of citizen issues and government processes by the
use of single windows.

CHART 67
DEGREE OF SOPHISTICATION OF PUBLIC SECTOR’S ONLINE PRESENCE IN THE REGION
COUNTRIES, ACCORDING TO PHASE OF DEVELOPMENT OF E-GOVERNMENT, 2005
(Percentage of websites)
80%
Chile
Advance Level
Transactional-Online Phase

70%
60%
México
Brasil

50%
40%

Argentina

30%
Jamaica
Panama
Guatemala
Barbados
Paraguay Honduras
Ecuador Dominican Rep.
San Kitts  Nevis
Costa Rica Bolivia
Cuba
Granada
Bahamas

20%
10%
0%
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Colombia

90%

100%

Basic level
Phase Emerging - Consolidated - Interactive

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Global e-government readiness report 2005, from e-government to e-inclusion,” Department of Economic and
Social Affairs of the United Nations (online at http://www.unpan.org/egovernment5.asp).

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Goal 15: Electronic government
Significant savings through electronic government
• The provision of services by
government requires significant State
resources. The gains in efficiency
from providing services to citizens
are particularly important for
developing countries. ICTs are an
important tool for generating savings,
insofar as they can improve the
processes involved in providing
services.
• As illustrated by the case of the state
of São Paulo, in Brazil, the Internet
significantly reduces the cost of
providing individuals’ police records
from US$ 7 to US$ .02, i.e., a 99%
saving over the traditional method.
Collection of the automobile tax via
electronic
platforms
generates
savings of US$ 7 per case processed,
reducing cost by 89%, from US$ 8 to
US$ .87.
• The greater efficiency associated
with the adoption of technology goes
beyond economic factors. It also
provides benefits for citizens, such as
24-hour availability of services 365
days a year, savings in transportation,
as well as savings in time. Chile has
reduced the length of time needed for
processing of municipal matters by
as much as 24 days.
Challenge: Adopt ICTs to improve
citizen services, taking advantage of
regional cooperation and sharing of
experiences.

CHART 68
COST TO THE STATE OF SÃO PAULO (BRAZIL) FOR
PROCESSING CITIZEN ISSUES, ACCORDING TO
TYPE OF PROCESS
(USD per process) (Based on 2003 procedures)
8
7

0.87
0.02
Criminal records

Automobile tax
Traditional

Electronic

Source: “Relógio da Economia,” (official website at www.relogiodaeconomia.sp.gov. br).
Note: The official exchange rate was used.

CHART 69
TIME REQUIRED FOR PROCESSING OF MUNICIPAL
MATTERS IN CHILE, ACCORDING TO TYPE OF
PROCESS, 2005
Building permit
Small-works permit
Completion inspection approval
Change of use classification
Certification of prior information
Zoning certification
Commercial patent payments
0

5

Days (online procedure)

10

15

20

25

30

35

Days (normal procedure)

Source: Gobierno Electrónico en Chile 2000-2005, Estado del Arte II, Ministry,
General Secretariat of the Presidency, Government of Chile.

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Goal 15: Electronic government
Substantial savings through electronic contracting

• In Brazil, the state of São Paulo reduced
its operating costs by 55% through the
use of ICTs. Costs fell from US$ 427 to
US$ 194 per purchase. For tenders,
costs fell 73% from US$ 1,875 to US$
513 per bidding process.
• Moreover, the availability of
information on prices resulted in
lower purchase prices. São Paulo’s
savings as a result of processing
efficiency and pricing are estimated
to be on the order of US$ 2,600 from
2000 through August of 2007. For
these purposes, the state uses its
online Electronic Procurement and
Bidding Exchange. Savings in Chile
in 2004 totalled US$ 70 million, once
again representing both improved
efficiency and better prices.2
Challenge: Utilize digital solutions to
improve government’s use of scarce
public resources, while increasing
government transparency.

140

800

120

700
600

100

500

80

400
60

300

40

200

20

Millions of USD transacted

• In Chile, the government procurement
website is used more and more
widely, as shown by increases in the
volumes and values transacted.

CHART 70
VOLUME AND VALUE OF TRANSACTIONS CARRIED
OUT THROUGH CHILE’S CONTRACTING WEBSITE, 2005
– 2007

Thousands of purchase orders

• The use of ICTs in governmental
procurement and contracting makes it
possible to automate and simplify
formalities
and
improve
the
management of information, which
reduces operational costs for the State
and for participating firms. Thus, a great
number of the region’s countries have
websites for government contracting.1

100

0
0
Jan-05 May-05 Sep-05 Jan-06 May-06 Sep-06 Jan-07 May-07
No. of purchase orders

Amount transacted

Source: OSILAC, with data from Chile Compra (official website at www.chilecompra.cl).

CHART 71
COST TO THE STATE OF SÃO PAULO (BRAZIL) OF
COMPLETING PUBLIC CONTRACTS, ACCORDING TO
METHOD OF PROCESSING
(US$ per contract) (Based on 2003 procedures)
2.000

1.875

1.800
1.600
1.400
1.200
1.000
800
600

513

427

400

194

200
Traditional

Electronic

Direct Purchase

Traditional

Electronic

Bidding

Source: “Relógio da Economia,” (official website at www.relogiodaeconomia. sp.gov.br).
Note: The official exchange rate was used.

Notes:
1

2

Argentina: www.argentinacompra.gov.ar; Bolivia: www.sicoes.gov.bo; Brazil: www.comprasnet.gov.br; Chile:
www.chilecompra.cl; Colombia: www.contratos.gov.co/puc/; Costa Rica: www.hacienda.go.cr; Ecuador: www.contratanet.
gov.ec; Guatemala www.guatecompras.gt; Honduras: www.honducompras.gob.hn; Jamaica: http://www. Procurement.gov.
jm/procurement/; Mexico: www.compranet.gob.mx; Nicaragua: www.nicaraguacompra.gob.ni; Panama: www.panamacom
pra.gob.pa; Paraguay: www.contratacionesparaguay.gov.py; Peru: www.contraloria.gob.pe/compras/compras.htm; Uruguay
www.comprasestatales.gub.uy; Venezuela: www.compras. gov.ve.
Brazil: information published at www.relogiodaeconomia.sp.gov.br; Chile, “Informe de Gestión Chile Compra,
Balance año 2005.”

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Meta 16: e-Education
Moving toward full use of ICTs in education
• The presence of pedagogical content
is essential in maximizing the
effectiveness of school connectivity.
Cognizant of this, the countries of the
region subscribed to the World
Summit on the Information Society
Plan of Action (Geneva, 2003),
making a commitment to “adapt all
primary and secondary school
curricula to meet the challenges of
the information society” by 2015.

CHART 72
CONTENT OF THE OFFICIAL EDUCATION PORTALS OF
LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES, FEBRUARY 2007
(Percentage of websites) (n=17)
Educatio nal co ntent

76%

64% according to school grade

71
%

Teacher info rmatio n
Educatio nal so ftware

65%

Student info rmatio n

65%
59%

Online training

• There are educational portals in the
region created by private initiatives
and civil society, along with
governmental
ones,
generally
administered by education ministries.

Dictio naries, translato rs, libraries

53%

P arent info rmatio n

53%

• Only 76% of the region’s official
education portals have educational
content. In many cases, what they
provide is ministerial and sectoral
information.
Only
64%
of
educational content is grouped by
grade level. Educational software is
the least frequently available type of
content on government education
websites.

Classro o m so ftware

• As Chart 73 indicates, unlike the
situation in OECD countries, the lack
of educational software is perceived
by Latin American and Caribbean
teachers as a high-impact factor in
their ability to teach effectively. This
is not surprising, considering the
expectations of a generation of
children accustomed to PlayStations
and Xboxes.
Challenge: Promote the creation and
updating of educational content, taking
advantage of the almost infinite
economies of scale provided by digital
information (copy-and-paste).

35%

Links to educational centres
M inisterial info rmatio n

24%
1
2%

Source: OSILAC, with information from the educational portals of members of
RELPE (Latin American Education Portals Network), as identified by the Ministries
of Education.
Note: Classroom software includes software used by teachers to prepare and conduct
classes.

CHART 73
TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF HOW THE LACK OF
SOFTWARE IMPACTS TEACHING CAPACITY, 2003
(Percentage of schools consulted)
OECD

Uruguay

Mexico

Brazil
0%
NK/NR

20%
No impact

40%
Low impact

60%

80%

Some impact

100%

High impact

Source: OSILAC, with information from the Program for International Student
Assessment, OECD, Database 2003 (official website at www.pisa.oecd.org).

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Goal 16: e-Education
Regional collaboration for ICT-based educational development
• eLAC Goal 16 is to “link national educational
portals to create a Latin American and
Caribbean network of educational portals to
facilitate the sharing of experiences and
content, while promoting the adaptation,
localisation and development of educational
content to be disseminated through this
network.”

is made independently. The content developed
by each member circulates freely on the
network. Since the cost of digital content can be
high, whereas reproducing it costs almost
nothing, enormous economies of scale can be
achieved.
• Currently, 7 of the 18 RELPE partners are full
members, which means that they have
completed the protocol for indexing of the
network content and have made the technical
adaptations needed to connect to it (see Table
20).

• The last three years saw the creation of the
Latin American Education Portals Network
(Red Latinoamérica de Portales Educativos, or
RELPE), designed as a regional distribution
system for storing and circulating teaching
content. Its nodes consist of the national
educational portals designated for this purpose
by each country. The network is expected not
only to maximise exchange of educational
software and content, but also to build a
community for sharing and collaboration
among educational personnel in different
countries, so as to take advantage of existing
educational content and the experiences of the
network’s members.

• 76% of the RELPE portals are purely
educational, while 12% are institutional sites
that also offer ministerial and administrative
information. The remaining 12% are Ministry
of Education websites focused exclusively on
the dissemination of institutional and sectoral
information.
Challenge: Maximize the benefits of the network
for the development of educational content for
students and teachers, and promote sharing of
experiences in the region for the benefit of
different groups interested in educational issues
(students, teachers, parents, heads of educational
institutions, etc.).

• In RELPE, each country develops its portal
according to its educational plans and national
interests. The choice of technological platform

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Goal 16: e-Education
TABLE 20
MEMBERS OF THE LATIN AMERICAN NETWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PORTALS, FEBRUARY 2007
Country

Portal

Type of member

Argentina

www.educ.ar

Full

Bolivia

www.minedu.gov.bo

Subscriber

Brazil

www.webeduc.mec.gov.br

Full

Colombia

www.colombiaaprende.edu.co

Full

Costa Rica

www.mep.go.cr

Subscriber

Cuba

www.rimed.cu

Subscriber

Chile

www.educarchile.cl

Full

Ecuador

www.educarecuador.ec

Subscriber

El Salvador

www.miportal.edu.sv

Subscriber

Guatemala

www.mineduc.gob.gt/default.asp

Subscriber

Mexico

www.sepiensa.org.mx

Full

Nicaragua

www.portaleducativo.edu.ni/default.asp

Subscriber

Panama

www.meduca.gob.pa

Subscriber

Paraguay

www.educaparaguay.edu.py

Subscriber

Peru

www.huascaran.edu.pe

Full

Dominican Rep.

www.educando.edu.do

Full

Uruguay

www.todosenred.edu.uy

Subscriber

Venezuela

portaleducativo.edu.ve

Subscriber

Source: Latin American Network of Educational Portals (RELPE) (official website http://ww2.relpe.org/Relpe/).
Note: Full members are those, designated by the respective Ministry of Education (one per country), that have completed the network protocol for
indexing and content and made the technical adaptations to connect virtually to the network. Subscribing members are those portals, designated by
the corresponding Ministry of Education, that are in the design or development process, or that have not completed the activities necessary for
actual connection to RELPE. These will become full members once they meet the conditions referenced above.

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Goal 17: e- Health
Healthcare’s failure to exploit digital technology

• Recent advances in diagnostic
equipment and software are even
more important—examples of these
being
ultrasound
and
MRI
technologies. There are no indicators
in Latin America and the Caribbean
to gauge the extent to which these
technologies have been adopted
within the healthcare community.
Challenge: Develop policies and
research to modernise the health sector,
using ICTs to improve provision of
health services through national
networks.

90%

Chile (2006)
Spain (2004)

80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%

Contact information

Hospital
information

Organizational
information

Links

Publications

Online course
registration

Courses

Health advice

Other
hospitals

Professional
associations

Management
information

Organizational
mission

Making
appointments

Medical
directory

Specialties

0%
Address

• The possibility of offering services
online flows from systematization of
back-office processes, for which
there
are
computer
solutions
designed
specifically
for
the
healthcare industry. The survey
conducted by the Global Observatory
for e-Health shows that developing
countries place significant value on
e-health
applications,
thus
highlighting the necessity of these
tools.

100%

Email

• A comparison of the website content
of Chilean hospitals (2006) and
Spanish hospitals (2004) shows that
the former primarily provide
information on the institution and its
services, while the latter provide
interactive content such as online
courses or mechanisms for making
appointments online.

CHART 74
CONTENT OF HOSPITAL WEBSITES IN CHILE AND SPAIN
(Percentage of websites) (Chile n=26; Spain n=64)

Telephone

• The Latin American and Caribbean
healthcare sector is notably lacking
in
digital
activity.
Available
information
is
dispersed
and
incomplete, reflecting desires rather
than realities.

Activities

Source: OSILAC. Chile data reflect information from hospital websites; Spanish data
are from “eEspaña 2005, la eSalud,” Fundación Auna.
Note: Chilean data reflect all hospitals for which websites were found based on the list
of Chile’s National Health Services System. Spanish data are from the 171 hospitals
listed by Spain’s Ministry of Health and Consumer Affairs that have websites. It is
considered representative in terms of number of beds or clinical capacity.

CHART 75
HEALTHCARE TOOLS THAT ARE CONSIDERED
EXTREMELY USEFUL, 2005
(Percentage of countries) (n=78)
Georeferenced information systems
Hospital information system
National electronic registries
Registro electrónico de salud
Telemedicine
National pharmaceutical registries
Patient information system
Decisionmaking support system
Directory of professional institutes of health
General information system for practitioners
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
OECD

Non OECD

Source: eHealth, Tools  Services, Needs of the Member States, Global Observa tory for eHealth, 2006.
Note: Covers 78 non-OECD countries and 30 OECD member countries.

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Goal 17: e-Health
Without digital content there can be no e-health: an inexcusable deficiency

• The content of the health information
campaign websites maintained by the
centre overseen by the region’s
health authorities provides links to
government institutions, as well as to
sectoral statistics and regulations. As
Chart 77 indicates, health ministries
significantly
increased
their
websites’ administrative content
between 2004 and 2006, while the
dissemination
of
interactive
educational and training content
remained unchanged, or even
declined.
Challenge: Take advantage of the
experience of other e-sectors, such as
education and government, in order to
begin the important catch-up process
and bring healthcare into the digital age.

90%
85%
75%
70%
65%

65%
50%
45%
40%

35%
30%30%

Ministerial information

Health prevention and
treatment

Sexual

Hygiene

Malaria
Maternal/Child

Vaccinations

Tuberculosis

Anti-smoking

AIDS

Influenza

Procedures
Distance
training
Telemedicine

20%
13%

20%
15%

10%

Group health

20%

Nutrition

30%

Addiction

35%

Regulations

• In 2006, 38% of the health ministries
of Latin America and the Caribbean
countries had no website. 65%
provide information on AIDS, 30%
on tuberculosis and 15% on malaria.
Only 35% have information on
maternal/infant
health
issues.
Considering that the three major
illnesses referenced in Goal 6 of the
Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs)
(www.cepal.org/mdg)
related to maternal health—and that
MDG 5 is exclusively concerned
with this issue—this situation can
hardly be justified.

CHART 76
CONTENT OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
HEALTH MINISTRY WEBSITES, DECEMBER 2006
(Percentage of websites) (n=20)

Health
campaigns
Links
Publications
and VHL
Statistics

• The websites of governmental health
agencies are oriented more to
dissemination of ministerial information
that to actual healthcare content.

Health promotion

Source: OSILAC, with information from health ministry websites.1

CHART 77
CONTENT OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
HEALTH MINISTRY WEBSITES, 2004-2006
(Percentage of websites) (n=14)
85%92%

92%

85%
69%
62%

62%
46%

23%23%

Health
campaigns

Statistics

Online
publications
2004

Epidemiology Sex education

2006

Source: OSILAC, with information from the countries’ health ministries.2

101

31%
15%

Distance
training

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 17: e-Health
Virtual libraries as health information networks
• BIREME, an entity of the PanAmerican
Health
Organisation
(PAHO), represents a major initiative in
attempts to advance the sector toward
the digital age. BIREME’s mission is to
contribute to improving health teaching,
research and care in the Latin America
and the Caribbean countries, through
creation and coordination of the Latin
American and Caribbean System of
Scientific
Information
of
the
Community of Health Professionals.
• Its principal objectives are to develop
administrative and operational capacity
among the national information systems
of the region’s countries, including
libraries and documentation centres for
healthcare; promote informational
products and services based on shared
methodologies
and
information
technologies, in order to increase the
efficiency and effectiveness of
providing
information;
establish
ongoing monitoring of health sciences
endeavours in each of the region’s
countries; facilitate access to scientific
Latin America and the Caribbean-based
information on health; and promote
national and international sharing of
experiences among the system’s
entities.

TABLE 21
VIRTUAL LIBRARIES ON HEALTH THAT HAVE BIREME
LINKS, DECEMBER 2006
Country
Argentina
Barbados
Belize
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Cuba
Dominican Rep.
Ecuador
Spain
Guatemala
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
El Salvador
Trinidad  Tobago
Uruguay
Venezuela

Website
www.bvs.org.ar
www.vhl.bb
www.paho.org.bz
www.saludpublica.bvsp.org.bo
www.saudepublica.bvs.br
www.bvs.cl
www.col.ops-oms.org
www.binasss.sa.cr
www.bvs.sld.cu
www.bvs.org.do
www.bvs.org.ec
http://bvs.isciii.es
www.medicina.usac.edu.gt/bvsgt
www.bvs.hn/html/es/collection.html
Site under development
www.bvs.insp.mx
www.bvs.org.ni
www.bvspanama.gob.pa
http://paraguay.bvsalud.org
www.bvs.org.pe
http://www.bvs.edu.sv
http://www.vhl.org.tt/html/en/home.html
http://www.bvssp.org.uy
www.bvs.org.ve

Source: OSILAC, with data from BIREME (official website at www.bvsalud.org).

Challenge: Strengthen virtual libraries
through greater integration of their
networks and information systems, and
bring their experience and progress to other
actors in the healthcare sector.

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Notes:
1

2

Argentina: Ministry of Health (official website at www.msal.gov.ar); Belize, Ministry of Health (official website at
www.health.gov.bz); Bolivia, Ministry of Health and Sports (official website at www.sns.gov.bo); Brazil, Official
Health Website (online at http://portal.saude.gov.br); Chile, Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsal.cl);
Colombia, Ministry of Social Protection (official website at www.minproteccionsocial.gov.co); Costa Rica,
Ministry of Health (official website at www.ministeriodesalud.go.cr); Cuba, Official Health Website (online at
www.sld.cu); Ecuador, Ministry of Health (official website at www.msp.gov.ec; El Salvador, Ministry of Health
(official website at www.mspas.gob.sv); Guatemala, Ministry of Public Health (official website at
www.mspas.gob.gt); Guyana, Ministry of Health (official website at www.health.gov.gy); Jamaica, Ministry of
Health (official website at www.moh.gov.jm); Mexico, Secretariat of Health (official website at
www.salud.gob.mx), and Official Health Website (online at www.e-salud.gob.mx); Nicaragua, Ministry of Health
(official website at www.minsa.gob.ni); Panama, Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsa.gob.pa); Peru,
Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsa.gob.pe); Trinidad  Tobago, Ministry of Health (official
website at www.health.gov.tt); Uruguay, Ministry of Health (official website at www.msp.gub.uy); Venezuela,
Ministry of Health (official website at www.msds.gov.ve).
Argentina: Ministry of Health (official website at www.msal.gov.ar); Bolivia, Ministry of Health and Sports
(official website at www.sns.gov.bo); Brazil, Official Health Website (online at http://portal.saude.gov.br); Chile,
Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsal.cl); Colombia, Ministry of Social Protection (official website at
www.minproteccionsocial.gov.co);
Costa
Rica,
Ministry
of
Health
(official
website
at
www.ministeriodesalud.go.cr); Cuba, Official Health Website (online at www.sld.cu); Ecuador, Ministry of Health
(official website at www.msp.gov.ec); El Salvador, Ministry of Health (official website at www.mspas.gob.sv);
Nicaragua, Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsa.gob.ni); Panama, Ministry of Health (official
website at www.minsa.gob.pa); Peru, Ministry of Health (official website at www.minsa.gob.pe); Uruguay,
Ministry of Health (official website at www.msp.gub.uy); Venezuela, Ministry of Health (official website at
www.msds.gov.ve).

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Goal 18: Disasters
ICTs as tools for dealing with disasters
• Information management is a basic aspect of
mitigating and dealing with natural and other
disasters. Efficient humanitarian response and
numbers of lives saved in these situations are
directly related to the capacity to compile,
analyse and disseminate information, and to the
speed with which this can be achieved.

floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, droughts and
tsunamis. The content is generally focused on
the types of disasters most prevalent in the
particular country where the centre is located.
• Between 2004 and 2007, no significant change
in content was seen, though there was a major
increase in dissemination of information
concerning drougths, as well as more weather
forecasting data provided through this medium,
often in real time.

• Voice messages, cellular and satellite telephony
and teleconferencing are fundamental tools in
ensuring the flow of information1 needed for
disaster response, and Internet websites are an
important means of disseminating the
information necessary for managing these
crises.

Challenge: Take advantage of the potential of
ICTs as tools for disaster response, mitigation and
management, through greater connectivity of
disaster assistance centres and by generating and
disseminating content to help people learn about
dealing with such situations.

• At present, the national disaster management
centres in Latin America and the Caribbean
with websites disseminate information on

CHART 78
CONTENT OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT CENTRE WEBSITES IN LAC, 2004 AND JANUARY 2007
(Percentage of websites) (n=13)
Earthquakes
Floods
Hurricanes
Droughts
Weather forecasts
Landslides
Tsunamis
Fires
Satellite information
Volcanoes
0%

20%

40%
2007

60%

80%

100%

2004

Source: OSILAC, with data from websites of the countries’ official disaster management centres.2
Note: Data reflect Argentina, Belize, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Dominican Rep.
and Venezuela.

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Goal 18: Disasters
Digital disaster readiness, but not yet equipped for real-time use
• The websites of the region’s national disaster
prevention
centres
primarily
provide
information on types of disasters and their
characteristics. To a lesser extent, they offer
information to assist citizens in preparing for
possible disasters and to alert them to events
that, based on historical information for the
different regions of a given country, have a high
probability of occurring.

information is shared among the Caribbean
countries, using ICTs as tools for preparing
citizens to deal with natural phenomena.
• Despite their vast potential, the use of websites
as a method of warning populations and
providing disaster information in real time
remains largely unexploited.
Challenge: Increase the use of websites to
disseminate information that educates and trains
the population to deal with disasters, while
providing timely warnings through real-time
information.

• The most common information provided by the
region’s disaster response and management
centres is related to floods and hurricanes. This

CHART 79
CONTENT OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN DISASTER PREVENTION CENTRE
WEBSITES, ACCORDING TO TYPE OF INFORMATION, JANUARY 2007
(Percentage of websites) (n=22)

Educational-theoretical
information

Floods

68%

Earthquakes

59%

Hurricanes

59%

Volcanoes

55%

Landslides

45%
45%

Tsunamis
Drougths

41%

Historical information

Educational-training information

Fires

32%
68%

Floods
Hurricanes

64%

Earthquakes

50%

Fires

41%

Landslides

41%

Volcanoes

41%

Tsunamis

36%
18%

Droughts
Hurricanes

45%

Earthquakes

32%

Floods

32%

Fires

23%

Landslides

23%

Volcanoes

23%
18%

Tsunamis
Real-time
information

Droughts

18%
9%

Hurricanes
Volcanoes

5%

Source: OSILAC, with data from websites of the countries’ official disaster management centres.

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Goal 18: Disasters
Regional cooperation to confront shared threats
• Regional organisations play an
important
role
in
disaster
management, especially through their
activity in promoting regional
management and coordination of
assistance.
• The centres aid a wide range of users
in searching for and localising
information
on
these
events,
employing both physical and digital
means. They provide electronic
access to documents and other data
sources,
distribute
technical
information, and share disaster
information with other institutions.
They conduct projects to manage
information, as well as to implement
and strengthen information systems.
Moreover, they provide for sharing of
bibliographic documents, complete
texts, Internet sources of information,
institutional contacts, etc.
Challenge: Improve the management
and sharing of digital information
among regional agencies, utilizing realtime
applications
and
network
interconnections.

TABLE 22
REGIONAL DISASTER INFORMATION/PREVENTION
CENTRES, JANUARY 2007
Disaster information/prevention centres

Website

Regional Disaster Information Centre, Latin
America and the Caribbean (Centro
Regional de Información sobre Desastres de
América Latina y el Caribe, or CRID)

www,crid.or.cr

Network of Social Studies in Prevention in
Latin America (Red de Estudios Sociales en
Prevención de Desastres en América Latina,
or LA RED)

www.desenredando.org

Central American Coordination Centre for
Natural Disaster Prevention (Centro de
Coordinación para la Prevención de los
Desastres Naturales en América Central, or
CEPREDENAC)

www.cepredenac.org

International Strategy for Disaster
Reduction in Latin America and the
Caribbean (ISDR)

www.eird.org

The Caribbean Disaster Emergency
Response Agency (CDERA)

www.cdera.org

Andean Committee for Disaster Prevention
and Assistance (Comité Andino para la
prevención y atención de desastres, or
CAPRADE)

www.caprade.org

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
Disaster Office

www.paho.org/desastres

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
– Office for Central America

www.disasterinfo.net/desastresCR/

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
– Office for the Caribbean

www.disasterinfo.net/carib/

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)
– Office for South America

www.disasterinfo.net/PED-Sudamerica

Source: OSILAC.

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Notes:
1

2

Stolzenburg, Kathrin, Regional Perspectives on digital disaster management in Latin America and the Caribbean.
ECLAC. April 2007.
Barbados: Central Emergency Relief Organization http://cero.gov.bb; Belize: National Emergency Management
Organization (official website at www.nemo.org.bz); Bolivia: Vice Ministry of Civil Defence and Cooperation for
National Integral Development (official website at www.defensacivil.gov.bo); Brazil: National Secretariat of Civil
Defence (official website at www.defesacivil.gov.br); Colombia: General Directorate for Disaster Prevention and
Assistance (official website at www.dgpad.gov.co); Costa Rica: National Commission on Emergency Risk
Prevention and Assistance (official website at www.cne.go.cr); Cuba: Health and Disasters—InfoMed (official
website at www.sld.cu/sitios/desastres); Ecuador: National Directorate of Civil Defence (official website at
www.defensacivil.gov.ec); El Salvador: National Emergency Committee (official website at
www.gobernacion.gob.sv/eGobierno/direcciones/COEN); Guatemala: National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction
(official website at www.conred.org); Granada: National Disaster Management Agency (official website at
www.spiceisle.com/nero); Haiti: Directorate of Civil Protection; Jamaica: Office of Disaster and Emergency
Preparedness (official website at www.odpem.org.jm); Mexico: National Centre for Disaster Prevention (official
website at www.cenapred.unam.mx); Nicaragua: National System for Disaster Prevention, Mitigation and
Assistance (official website at www.sinapred.gob.ni); Panama: National Civil Protection System (official website
at www.sinaproc.gob.pa); Paraguay: National Emergency Committee (official website at www.pla.net.py/cen);
Peru: National Civil Defence Institute (official website at www.indeci.gob.pe); Saint Lucia: National Disaster
Emergency Office (official website at www.geocities.com/slunemo); Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: National
Emergency Management Office (official website at www.gov.vc/Govt/Government/Executive/Ministries/
PMOffice/NEmergencyM); Trinidad and Tobago: National Emergency Management Agency (official website at
www.odpm.gov.tt/resources/default.asp); Uruguay: National Emergency System (official website at
www.sne.gub.uy); Venezuela: Civil Protection and Disaster Administration (official website at
www.pcivil.gov.ve).

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Goal 19: e-Justice
Use of ICTs to enhance efficiency and transparency in judicial processes
• The content of these strategies is limited to
identifying the infrastructure needs involved in
developing e-justice and to implementing
applications for the dissemination of judicial
information, or for internal management of
judicial processes.

• The work of the judicial branch is informationintensive, in terms of both information use and
information management. Thus, there is the
potential for judicial systems to benefit greatly
from digital technology.
• The incorporation of ICTs in the judicial
systems of the Latin American and Caribbean
countries is still in its infancy. According to a
study conducted by the Ibero-American Judicial
Summit1 as a part of its e-justice project, while
most of the countries have national ICT
strategies that provide for government and
public administration to move toward using
electronic media, electronic justice is almost
never mentioned as a priority area.

• Though the sector is one of the most recent to
adopt these technologies, the countries of the
region do have in place databases dealing with
regulations and, to a lesser extent,
jurisprudence.
Applications
have
been
developed to manage documentation of cases,
thus facilitating the monitoring of judicial
procedures.
Challenge: Enhance awareness regarding the
potential that ICTs have for judicial systems, in
order to promote the political leadership needed to
modernise judicial systems, with the support of
regional organisations such as the Ibero-American
Judicial Summit.

• Strategies to implement e-justice generally do not
depend on the existence of overall digital strategies,
but rather are specific freestanding strategies,
linked in some cases to e-government strategies
(see Table 23).

CHART 80
PERCENTAGE OF IBERO-AMERICAN COUNTRIES DISSEMINATING JUDICIAL INFORMATION
THROUGH INTERNET PORTALS, ACCORDING TO TYPE OF INFORMATION
(September 2005 – April 2006) (n=18)
Organization of the
judicial power

100%

78%

Legislation

Services offered

61%

Judicial processes

61%

33%

Jurisprudence

Otro

17%

Source: Estudio Comparado e-Justicia: La Justicia en la Sociedad del Conocimiento, August 2006, XIII Ibero-American Judicial Summit, under
the auspices of the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3), a body associated with Universidad Oberta de Catalunya (UOC).
Note: Includes Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal,
Puerto Rico, Dominican Rep., Uruguay and Venezuela.

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TABLE 23
NATIONAL STRATEGIES FOR APPLYING ICTs IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE , 2006
Country
Argentina

Oversight body
Council of Magistrates
Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation
General Administration Judicial System;
chambers

Legal reforms adopted
Law No. 25506 on Electronic and Digital
Signatures (12/14/2001)
Law No. 25326 on Protection of Personal
Data (10/30/2000)

Commission to Study Instituting the
Technology Platform within the Federal
Judiciary
IT Commission of the National Council of
Justice
Judicial Branch (the institutions are
autonomous in terms of their internal
functioning)
Administrative Chamber of the High Council
of Magistrates

Provisional Measure 2200-2 (8/24/2001)
Supplementary Bill No. 71 of 2002
Rulings of the Federal Justice Council and
the High Court of Justice

Specific document:
Strategic Plan for the
Judicial Branch 2000-2005
Costa Rican System for the
Management of Judicial
Dispatches and Related
Systems
Program for the
Informatization of the
Courts System (2001)
Strategic Plan for the
Modernization of the
Judicial System
None

Full Court
Office of the President of the Court
High Council

General Code of Procedures
Law on Notifications and other judicial
communications
Law on Certifications, Digital Signatures and
Electronic Documents
Regulation of the Use of Electronic Mail

People’s Supreme Court
Government and Office of the President of
the Republic
No data available

No specific reforms

Honduras

Strategic plan for Judicial
Branch Information
Systems 2004 - 2009

Body of the Judicial Branch
Supreme Court of Justice

Mexico

Strategic IT Planning for the
Supreme Court of Justice
IT Strategy for the Judicial
System (1999-2006)

Council of the Federal Judiciary
Supreme Court of Justice

Peru

Strategic Plan for IT
Systems

Office of the President of the Judicial Branch
Executive Council of the Judicial Branch
Judicial IT Users Committee

Puerto
Rico
Dominican
Republic

Strategic Plan for the
Judicial Branch 2002-2006
National Strategy for the
Information Society
Strategic Plan for the
Judicial Branch IT Office

Presiding Judge of the Supreme Court

Uruguay
Venezuela

Specific report
General National Strategy
and Plan for Modernization
of the Judicial Branch

Supreme Court of Justice
Supreme Court of Justice

Brazil

Chile

Colombia
Costa Rica

Cuba

El
Salvador
Guatemala

Panama

e-Justice strategy
Bases for informatization of
the judicial system;
Strategic Plan for
Information Systems (in
process)
General strategic document
for all of Public
Administration

General strategic document
for all of Public
Administration
Specific document

Supreme Court of Justice

Electronic signatures
Digital registry of hearings
Agreement 201/1997 for procedures based
on institutional data of the Judicial Branch

Reform of the Law of Constitutional
Procedures
Internal provisions of the Supreme Court of
Justice
Legislative Bill on Access to Information
Framework Bill on Information Technology
Legislative Bill on Electronic Signatures
Creation of the Electronic Centre for Judicial
Information and Documentation
No specific reforms
Law 13 (4/15/1997)
Executive Decree 108 (9/14/1992)
Executive Decree 102 (9/1/2004)
Legal provision for incorporating email in
judicial notifications
Law 27444 on General Administrative
Procedures
Regulatory amendments for incorporating the
use of technology in the courts
Law 126-02 on Electronic Commerce
Digital Signatures and Documents
Law 200-04 on Free Access to Public
Information
No data available
Reforms to the Law on Labour Claims
Electronic signatures
Electronic crimes
Decrees and Resolutions issued by the
Ministry of the Interior and Justice

Source: Estudio Comparado e-Justicia: La Justicia en la Sociedad del Conocimiento, August 2006, XIII Ibero-American Judicial Summit,
overseen by the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3), a body associated with Universidad Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) (official website at
www.ejusticia.org).

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Goal 19: e-Justice
Digitisation of judicial procedures
• Chart 81 shows that in 2006, of 18 IberoAmerican countries, 10 offered online
procedures for at least one phase of the process,
while 8 did not (Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras,
Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal and Uruguay).

• Accessibility to judicial-system information is
an instrument of transparency. Latin America
and the Caribbean saw little progress between
2004 and 2006 in this regard (see Chart 82). Of
the 21 countries analysed, only 11 showed
increases in the index of accessibility to
information. The Caribbean countries continue
to lag behind other countries in the region.

Challenge: Reform the procedural rules to allow
for adoption of ICTs and their benefits, taking into
account experiences of the various countries, in a
framework of regional cooperation.

• In terms of incorporating electronic media in
judicial processes, there are few situations in
which there are applications that make it
possible to carry out all phases of the process
online (submission of claims, processing of
paperwork, notifications and payment of fees).

CHART 81
COUNTRIES THAT ALLOW FOR ONLINE PROCESSING OF LEGAL PROCEDURES, ACCORDING TO
THE NUMBER OF PHASES OF THE JUDICIAL, SEPTEMBER. 2005 – APRIL 2006
Payment of rates
Notifications

Processing

R
ep
.
n
ic
a

to

R
ic
o
D
om
in

Pu
er

Sa
lv
ad
or
El

C
ol
om
bi
a

Sp
ai
n

R
ic
a

il

C
os
ta

Br
az

a
tin
Ar
ge
n

Ve
ne
zu
el
a

C
hi
le

Presentation of
the demand

Source: Estudio Comparado e-Justicia: La Justicia en la Sociedad del Conocimiento, August 2006, XIII Ibero-American Judicial Summit,
overseen by the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3), a body associated with Universidad Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), based on surveys of
Ibero-American countries.
Note: Includes Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal,
Puerto Rico, Dominican Rep., Uruguay and Venezuela. Of the 18 Ibero-American countries that responded to the survey, 10 offer online
processing of legal procedures, while 8 do not.

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Goal 19: e-Justice

CHART 82
INDEX OF ACCESSIBILITY TO JUDICIAL-SYSTEM INFORMATION, JANUARY 2006
U.S.A.
Argentina
Costa Rica
Mexico
Peru
Canada
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Bolivia
Venezuela
Dominican Rep.
El Salvador
Uruguay
Trinidad  Tobago
Jamaica
Paraguay
Ecuador
Panama
Antigua and Barbuda
Belize
Dominica
Honduras
Guatemala
Barbados
St. Vincent and Grenadines
St. Lucia
St. Kitts and Nevis

2004

2006

Grenada
Nicaragua
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Source: Índice de Accesibilidad de la Información Judicial en Internet, Centro de Estudios de Justicia de las Américas (CEJA) (official website at
www.ejusticia.org).
Note: The global index quantifies the accessibility of information on the activity of the judicial branch, such as information on prosecuting
authorities.

Note:
1

The Ibero-American Judicial Summit is the cooperation and coordination network of the judicial branches of the
twenty-two Ibero-American countries.

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Goal 20: Environmental and natural resource protection
Digital monitoring for sustainable use of natural resources
• As set forth in eLAC2007 Goal 20, a coherent
approach to the development of information
societies must include the use of ICTs for
environmental protection and sustainable use of
natural resources.

and regional organisations that focus on
developing technologies and knowledge for the
agricultural sector.
• Information technology has also facilitated the
development of model scenarios to analyse and
assess climate change, desertification and other
environmental phenomena.

• The use of satellite images, along with global
positioning and geographic information
systems, has enabled greater monitoring of
natural resources. In the countries of Latin
America and the Caribbean, these technologies
are at varying levels of development, both in
terms of infrastructure, and in terms of the areas
in which they are being implemented.

Challenge: Make greater use of ICTs as tools to
monitor natural resources by promoting greater
interaction and sharing of knowledge among the
different local and regional initiatives, so as to
share information on teledetection and geographic
information systems based on specific needs.
Create the capacity needed to properly use the new
technologies in the agricultural sector, with a focus
on regional and international cooperation to
achieve this end. Conduct studies on the use of
ICTs in the mining, petroleum and gas industries.

• Most of the region’s countries have websites
through which it is possible to obtain
information on, and monitoring of, natural
resources. Most of the sites provide access to
databases and information systems related to
the agricultural industry (see Table 24). There
also are a number of initiatives by international

TABLE 24
PUBLIC SECTOR AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION WEBSITES WITH AGRICULTURAL
INFORMATION AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS, 2007
Country
Argentina

Information system / Organisation

Website
www.sagpya.mecon.gov.ar

INTA Agricultural Information System

www.inta.gov.ar

Agricultural Geographic Information System
Bolivia

Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Fishing and Food

www.sigagropecuario.gov.ar

Ministry of Rural, Agricultural and Environmental Issues –
AgroBolivia

www.agrobolivia.gov.bo

Bolivian System of Agricultural Technology
INFOAGRO Agricultural Information System – National
Outreach Committee

Colombia

Confederation of Agriculture and Fishing of Brazil (CNA)

www.cna.org.br/cna/index.wsp
www.ruralnet.com.br

Agricultural Market Information System (SIMA)
Chile

www.infoagro.gov.bo

Portal Rural Brasileiro Informações – RuralNet

Brazil

www.sibta.gov.bo

www.agricultura.gov.br

Office of Agricultural Policy and Research
Agricultural Information System of Colombia

www.odepa.gob.cl/odepaweb/jsp/odepad.jsp
www.minagricultura.gov.co/17_sistemas.html

Strategic Information System for the Agrifood Sector

www.cci.org.co/cci/cci_x/scripts/index.php

Costa Rica

Costa Rican Agricultural Information System

www.infoagro.go.cr/

Ecuador

Agricultural Information and Census Service

www.sica.gov.ec

Geographic and Agricultural Information Service
(SIGAPRO)

www.mag.gov.ec/sigagro/

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Country
El Salvador

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Information system / Organisation

Website
www.centa.gob.sv

FIAGRO – Foundation for Innovation in Agricultural
Technology
Agricultural Sector Support Information System (SIASA)
Guatemala

National Agricultural Technology Centre (CENTA)

www.fiagro.org.sv
www.agroelsalvador.com/directorio/index.php

Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology (ICTA)

www.icta.gob.gt

INFOAGRO- Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food

www.maga.gob.gt

Honduras

INFOAGRO – Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock

www.sag.gob.hn

Jamaica

Agribusiness Information System (ABIS)

www.abisjamaica.com.jm

Ministry of Agriculture

www.moa.gov.jm

Rural Agricultural Development System (RADA)

www.radajamaica.com.jm

Agrifood and Fishing Integral Information System

www.siap.gob.mx

Agricultural Information System – Ministry of Agriculture
and Forestry

www.sia.net.ni

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

www.magfor.gob.ni

Institute of Agricultural Marketing

www.ima.gob.pa

Mexico
Nicaragua

Panama

Agricultural Portal

www.mida.gob.pa

Paraguay

Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock

www.mag.gov.py

Peru

Agricultural Portal

www.portalagrario.gob.pe

Agriculture and Forestry Documentation and Information
Network (REDIAF)

www.agora.org.do

Secretariat of State

www.agricultura.gov.do

Agricultural Statistics (DIEA)

www.mgap.gub.uy/Diea/default.htm

Dominican Rep.

Uruguay

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fishing
Venezuela, (Bol.
Rep. of)

www.mgap.gub.uy

Agricultural Products Exchange of Venezuela

www.bolpriaven.com
www.zulia.infoagro.info.ve

National Agricultural Information System
Agricultural Information and Documentation System
(SIDVEN)
International
and regional
organizations

INFOAGRO Zulia

www.sian.info.ve

Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture:
INFOAGRO.NET

www.sidven.info.ve
http://infoagro.net

FAO - World Agricultural Information Centre - WAICENT
Agricultural Information and Documentation System of the
Americas

www.fao.org/waicent/portal/about_es.asp

Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

www.iica.org.uy/online/Inicial.asp

Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology

www.fontagro.org

International Centre for Tropical Agriculture
Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

www.ciat.cgiar.org
www.iicanet.org

Caribbean Knowledge Management Centre

www.eclacpos.org/kmc/default.asp

Observatory on Science and Technology for ACP Agriculture
and Rural Development

http://knowledge.cta.int/

Caribbean Agricultural Information Service

www.caisnet.org/

www.sidalc.net

Source: OSILAC, with data form the Agricultural Information and Documentation System of the Americas (official website at www.sidalc.net), and
Internet searches.

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Goal 20: Environmental and natural resource protection
Online agricultural information for the development of the sector
• Between 2005 and 2007, there has been no
observable progress in the sophistication of this
online presence, though there is greater use of
tools to disseminate information, particularly in
relation to regulations and training aimed at
enhancing export capacities. Despite the abovementioned benefits of digital information for
those involved in agriculture, there has been a
decline in the offerings of ministries in the
virtual marketplace.

• The portals of the ministries of agriculture and
livestock, through their own websites and
through the creation of agricultural portals,
provide useful data for agents in the sector.
• The content of the portals focuses on the
dissemination of digital publications, market
information, and sectorial legislation and
regulations. Fewer than 25% of the sites make it
possible to submit online queries, access virtual
libraries, or carry out online exchanges (virtual
market), indicating that this web presence is
still in the emerging stage, with only
unidirectional transmission of information.

Challenge: Make greater use of ICTs as a tool for
developing agricultural businesses.

CHART 83
INFORMATION AND SERVICES AVAILABLE ON AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION WEBSITES OF
MINISTRIES OR OTHER PUBLIC-SECTOR ENTITIES, 2005-2007
(n=4)
Digital publications
Market information
Legislation and regulations
Thematic product guides
Weather information
Training manuals
Virtual market
Insurance information
2007

Virtual library

2005
Agricultural assistance
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Source: OSILAC, based on data from Costa Rica: INFOAGRO Agricultural Information System – Costa Rican Agricultural Sector (official website
at www.infoagro.go.cr); Guatemala: INFOAGRO Information Service- Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (official website at
www.maga.gob.gt); Peru: Agricultural Portal (official website at www.portalagrario.gob.pe); Dominican Rep.: Information System – Secretariat of
the State of Agriculture (official website at www.agricultura.gov.do).

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Goal 21: Public information and cultural patrimony
The Internet as a path to more transparent public information
• Freedom of information legislation removes the
burden of justifying a request for information
from the citizen, who no longer needs to prove
his or her reasons. On the contrary, the State
agency has the burden of justifying any refusal
to provide information.

• ICTs contribute to governmental transparency
by online publishing of information on public
administration.
• In the countries of Latin America and the
Caribbean, there are legal instruments that
facilitate access to information in State agencies
by instructing them—and certain other
institutions that provide public services or
perform administrative functions—to make
information on their activities available to the
public (see Table 25).

• The obligation to provide access to information
is exempted only in cases of information that is
confidential for legislative reasons, for reasons
of national or international security, when it
involves personal or professional secrets, etc.

• The challenge, for countries that have
regulations in this area, is to use ICTs for online
publication of information, as well as to provide
for online consultations. In some cases, there
are requirements that questions be answered
within a specified period of time.

Challenge: Promote the use of ICTs as a means of
expanding access to information, in order to
promote transparency and democracy in public
administration, with the associated benefits to
citizens.

TABLE 25
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LEGISLATION IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
COUNTRIES, 2006

Argentina

Belize

Bolivia

Regulatory
precedents

Use of
electronic
media

Cost of the service
and response time
(in days)

Any agency,
entity or body
with Executive
Branch
jurisdiction, or
that receives
government
funds.

1994:
Constitution
of Argentina,
Art.
1,33,41,42,75
(22)

Internet
Publications:
website of the
Boletín Oficial
of the Republic
of Argentina.

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays cost of
reproduction of the
information.

Freedom of
Information
Act (Chapter
13)
2000

Government
Departments.
Does not apply
to the courts or
to the Office of
the Governor
General.

1994:
Freedom of
Information
Act (No. 9)

Supreme
Decree No.
27329
2004

Country

Entities of the
Executive
Branch.

1995:
Political
Constitution
Art.7, 23.
2002: Law of
Administrativ
e Procedure
No. 2341
Art.18

Legislation
and year
Access to
Public
Information
(Decree
1172/2003)
2003

Scope of target
organisations

Formalities
Written request
with the
identification of
the requestor.

National
security,
international
relations,
business secrets,
personal
information,
criminal
investigations.

Not mentioned
max. 14

Written request.

Not mentioned
Not specified

Not explicitly
mentioned in the
act.

National
security,
international
relations,
business secrets,
personal
information,
ministerial
operations,
economy.
National
security,
business secrets,
international
relations,
economic and
financial
stability.

max. 10
(+add. 10)

Individual
online
consultation:
must use the
medium of
communication
requested by the
citizen, save for
the exceptions
in Art. 17 (3).
Internet
Publications:
explicit
obligation to
post public
information in
electronic form.

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Exceptions

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Goal 21: Public information and cultural patrimony
Legislation
and year

Scope of target
organisations

Regulatory
precedents

General
Archives
Law (594 of
2000)
2000

Country

Public
Administration
at its various
levels, and
private entities
that carry out
public functions.

Organic Law
on
Transparency
of and Access
to Public
Information
(Law No.
337) 2004
Access to
Information
Act (No. 21)
2002

Public sector, and
any foundation,
corporation,
organization,
institution or
juridical person
whose purpose is
public in nature.
Public officials

1888: Political
and Municipal
Code 1985:
Law 57,
which
mandates
making public
official acts.
1991: Political
Constitution
Art. 74, 15,
78, 112 and
23.
1998:
Political
Constitution
Art. 81

Colombia

Ecuador

No prior
legislation

Jamaica

Mexico

Panama

Federal Law
on
Transparency
of and
Access to
Public
Government
Information
2002

Law on
Transparency
in Public
Administratio
n (No. 6)
2004: Reform
of the Political
Constitution
granting
access to
information
(Art.
42,43,44)
2002

Federal
government
departments,
autonomous
constitutional
entities and
other
government
agencies.

Government
agencies.

1997:
Political
Constitution
Art. 6

1972:
Constitution
(as amended
in 1978 and
1983) Article
41

Use of
electronic
media

Cost of the service
and response time
(in days)

Internet
Publications:
any technical,
electronic,
informatic,
optical or
telematic
medium may be
used, save for
the exceptions
in Art. 19.

Not explicitly
mentioned

Internet
Publications: a
period of one
year to post
public
information on
websites.

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproduction of the
information.

Online requests:
email and
Internet may be
used. Individual
online
consultations:
must use the
medium of
communication
requested by the
citizen.

Internet
Publications:
obligation to
post public
information in
electronic form.
Online requests:
the Federal
Institute of
Access to Public
Information has
in place an
electronic
system.
Online requests:
via email and
via the Internet.
Individual
online
consultations
use the means of
communication
requested by the
citizen; some
agencies may
respond via
Internet. (Article
4).

116

Formalities
Not explicitly
mentioned in the
act

Confidential
information
under the
Constitution or
under statutes,
personal
information on
third parties.
(Article 27)

Written request
with
identification of
requestor.

National
security,
information on
third parties,
criminal
investigations.
(Articles 6 and
17)
National
security,
international
relations,
economic
stability,
personal
information on
third parties,
criminal
investigations,
etc. (Articles 1422)
National
security,
international
relations,
economic
stability,
personal
information,
criminal
investigations,
etc. (Articles 13
and 14)

max. 10

max. 10
(+add. 5)
Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproduction of the
information (price
reduced when
appropriate).

Request in
writing, by
telephone or by
electronic
means.

max. 30
(+add. 30)

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproducing and
sending the
information, based
on rates established
by law .

Written request

max. 20

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays cost of
reproduction of the
information.
max. 30
(+add.30)

Exceptions

Written request,
either online or
offline. Online
request requires
name, ID
number, address
and telephone.

National
security,
economic
stability,
international
relations,
criminal
investigations
(Article 14),
personal
information on
third parties.
(Article 1(5))

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 21: Public information and cultural patrimony
Governmental
bodies and
private entities
that provide
public services
or perform
administrative
functions.

1993:
Constitution,
Article 2,
section 5

Law on
Access to
Information
(200-04)
2004

Peru

Law on
Transparency
of and
Access to
Public
Information
(27.808)
2002

Public
administration,
State entities,
public and
partially Stateowned private
enterprises, as
well as the
administrative
activities of the
judicial and
legislative
branches
Public officials,
including public
corporations and
private agencies
that exercise
authority on
behalf of the
State. Does not
apply to the
President.

2002:
Constitution,
Article 8

Dominican
Rep.

Freedom of
Information
Act (No. 26)
1999
Trinidad 
Tobago

No prior
legislation

Online
publication:
explicitly
requires
government
agencies to
publish
information
online.

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproduction of the
information.

Individual
online
consultations:
information
must be
transmitted in
original form, if
possible.

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproduction of the
information.

Individual
online
consultation:
must use the
means of
communication
requested by the
citizen, save for
the exceptions
in Art. 18 (4).

Free and no-cost
access. Requestor
pays the cost of
reproduction of the
information.

Written request

max. 7
(+add. 5)

Oral or written
request, with
identification of
requestor.

max. 15
(+add.10)

max. 30

Written request
signed by
requestor.

National
security,
international
relations,
economic
stability,
personal
information on
third parties,
criminal
investigations,
etc. (Articles
15,16)
Personal
information on
third parties,
international
relations,
national
security,
criminal
investigations,
etc. (Article 8)

National
security,
international
relations,
personal
information on
third parties,
economic
stability, etc.
(Articles 24-34)

Source: OSILAC, with information from Freedom of Information Around the World 2006: Global Survey of Access to Government Information
Law, September 2006 (official website at www.freedominfo.org).

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Goal 21: Public information and cultural patrimony
Digital preservation of cultural patrimony
• This goal is designed to develop initiatives and
policies that provide wider access to public
information and cultural, historical, scientific
and educational patrimony through the use of
ICTs, including digital preservation of these
patrimonies and information.

these Central American countries made notable
strides in this regard.
• Though most of these websites still function solely
as a source of information, there is growing interest
in developing databases with texts and images.
Software is currently being developed to facilitate
standardised incorporation of cultural patrimony on
the Internet.

• Over half of the museums in Mexico,
Venezuela and Chile have websites, while this
is the case for over two thirds of those in Costa
Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, the Dominican
Republic and El Salvador. The percentage of
those equipped with websites increased
between 2003 and 2006, during which time

Challenge: Encourage the online presence of
institutions that manage cultural, historical,
scientific and educational patrimony, by means of
websites that provide access to digitised content.

CHART 84
PERCENTAGE OF MUSEUMS AND PARKS WITH WEBSITES, 20032006
100%
90%

2003

80%

2006

70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%

Paraguay

Cuba

Brazil

Colombia

Uruguay

Puerto Rico

Ecuador

Nicaragua

Panama

Peru

Argentina

Bolivia

Venezuela

Mexico

Chile

Guatemala

Honduras

Costa Rica

El Salvador

0%

Dominican Rep.

10%

Source: OSILAC, based on data from the Latin American Institute of Museums (ILAM) (official website at www.ilam.org).
Note: Includes museums and parks with a presence on websites managed by third parties (ministries, cultural funds, tourist websites, etc.), as well
as those with their own institutional websites.

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VI. Policy instruments

The policy instruments goals are:
• Goal 22: National strategies
• Goal 23: Financing
• Goal 24: Universal access policies
• Goal 25: Legislative framework
• Goal 26: Indicators and measurement

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Goal 22: National strategies
The need for coordination on a multisectorial challenge
• In the World Summit on the Information
Society (Geneva 2003) Plan of Action, all of
the countries committed to “encourage the
formulation of national cyberstrategies by
2005.” eLAC2007 Goal 22 specifically called
for “establishing or confirming a body to
coordinate national strategies in each of the
region’s countries, with a view to drawing on
civil society and private sector participation.”

coordination
enhanced
by
institutional
interdependence—to centralized models in
which a specific authority assumes principal
responsibility.1 It is also necessary to have
strategic planning and implementation entities,
the former generally directed by the top
sectorial authorities, the latter overseen by
entities of a more technical nature.
• Despite progress in coordinating this multithematic challenge, problems have emerged in
implementing the agendas. Entities charged
with promoting these strategies often lack the
institutional strength and necessary political
support to implement broad policies that affect
various economic and social sectors. At the
same time, digital strategies have been subject
to limited budgetary allocations, changes in
priority policy objectives, and lack of
continuity, all of which has been exacerbated
by changes in government or in the officials
responsible for implementing these policies.
The difficulties are considerable, given the
problems involved in coordinating the
fragmented and wide-ranging budgets of the
different national authorities concerned with
addressing the digital challenge.

• The challenge of creating information societies
is of concern to authorities at all levels within
the countries. National strategies are aimed at
launching a multisectorial effort as broad and
varied as the issues addressed in this document.
• Table 26 shows the national strategies
regarding ICTs that the Latin America and the
Caribbean countries have been carrying
forward, distinguishing between coordinating
authorities and those involved in strategic and
operational oversight. Nearly all of the
countries in the region have implemented
national ICT strategies based, to one degree or
another, on the cooperation of the public and
private sectors and of civil society.
• In each of the Latin America and the Caribbean
countries, the digital strategies are progressing
at a different pace, with varying degrees of
political intensity and depth, affecting a crosssection of different economic and social sectors,
while responding to local needs and interests.

Challenge: Increase institutional and political
support for the entities in charge of national ICT
strategies, including efforts to enhance the ability
to coordinate ICT-related public expenditures, in
order to facilitate ongoing implementation and
monitoring of such policies.

• There are, moreover, a range of different
organizational and coordinative schemes, from
decentralized models—involving authorities
from various sectors, with cooperation and

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Goal 22: National strategies
TABLE 26
NATIONAL STRAGEGIES FOR THE INFORMATION SOCIETY, AUGUST 2007
Country/
Region

Document

Agend
a year

Year of
initiation

Principal coordinator

Strategic
oversight
body
No data
available

Operational
oversight body

Antigua
and
Barbuda

Information
Technology Strategic
Plan

2001

No data
available

Information Technology
Centre

Argentina

National Program for
the Information
Society
Policy Statement on
Electronic Commerce
and the Digital
Agenda
Barbados National
ICT Strategic Plan

2000

1998

Cabinet of
Ministers

2003

No data
available

Secretariat of
Communications of
Argentina
Ministry of Finance (eBusiness Development
Office)

2005

2005

National ICT Advisory
Committee

Interagency
Commission

Bolivia

Bolivian ICT Strategy
for Development

2005

2002

Agency for Development of
the Information Society

Brazil

Information Society in
Brazil, Green Book

2000

1999

Executive
Committee

Technical chambers of
various levels of
government

Chile

Strategic Plan for
Digital Development
2007-2010
Connectivity Agenda

2007

1998

Electronic Government
Executive Committee
(Ministry of Science and
Technology)
Digital Action Group

Committee of
Ministers

Undersecretariat of
Economy

2007

2000

Connectivity Agenda

Office of the
President

National Strategy for
the Information
Society 2005-2010
e-Pais Programme

2005

2002

National Connectivity
Commission

Interministerial

2005

2005

National Commission for
the Information Society

Presidency of
the Republic

Board chaired by the
Ministry of
Communications
National
Telecommunications
Council
Council of Ministers

ICT Strategy and
Action Plan 2006 –
2010
ICT4D National
Strategy
e-Powering Jamaica

2006

No data
available

2006

1999

Office of the Presidency

2007

2002

Central ICT Office

Sectorial Program for
Communications and
Transportation 2001 2006 (e-Mexico,
Chapt.7)
National Agenda for
Innovation and
Connectivity

2001

2001

National e-Mexico System

2005

2004

Secretariat for
Governmental Innovation

Interagency

Peruvian Digital
Agenda

2005

2003

Multisectoral Commission
for Development of the

Presidency of
the Council of

Bahamas

Barbados

Colombia
Ecuador
El
Salvador
Grenada
Guyana
Jamaica

Mexico

Panama

Peru

Interagency
Commission

Ministry of
Commerce, Consumer
Affairs and Business
Development
Vice Presidency for Interagency
Coordination

Central Agency for Information Management

121

Ministry of
Information,
Broadcasting and
Telecommunications
Programmers from
different levels of
government
Ministry of Finance

Office of the Prime
Minister

Interagency

Office of the Prime
Minister
Interagency
Independent,
connected with the
Ministry of
Commerce, Science
and Technology
Secretariat of Communications and
Transportation

Secretariat of the
Presidency for
Governmental
Innovation
Vice Ministry of
Communications, of

ECLAC - Project Documents collection

Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 22: National strategies
Country/
Region

Document

Agend
a year

Year of
initiation

Principal coordinator
Information Society

Dom.
Republic

National Strategy for
the Information
Society

2005

2002

National Commission for
the Information Society

Saint
Lucia
Trinidad
and
Tobago

Public Reform
Initiative
Fast Forward

2002

1998

Office of the Prime Minister

2003

2002

National Information and
Communications Plan
Steering Group

Uruguay

Uruguay Digital
Agenda

2007

2006

Agency for Development of
e-Government Management
and the Information Society

Venezuela
Caribbean

National Information
Technology Plan
CARICOM ICT
Agenda
Puebla-Panama Plan:
Information Society

2001

No data
available
No data
available
2006

MesoAmerica

2003
In
process

Strategic
oversight
body
Ministers
Technical
Secretariat of
the Office of
the President
ICT
Subcommittee
Interministeria
l, with
Ministry of
Public
Administration
and
Information
Presidency of
the Republic

Operational
oversight body
the Ministry of
Transportation and
Communications
Technical Secretariat
of the Office of the
President
ICT Subcommittee
Steering Group

Agency for
Development of eGovernment
Management and the
Information Society
Ministry of Science and Technology

National Information
Technology Centre
CARICOM Prime Minister’s Subcommittee

PPP Meso-American Initiative on Integration of Telecommunications
Services

Source: OSILAC, with information from: Observatorio del Desarrollo Digital de la Corporación Colombia Digital (official website at
http://colombiadigital.net); REDGEALC (official website at www.redgealc.net); documents of ECLAC, United Nations; “National Strategies for
the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Martin Hilbert, Sebastián Bustos, João Carlos Ferraz (2003); “Information Society
and Public ICT Policies in the Caribbean, Country Profiles,” Carlos Miranda, unpublished; and information published on official websites of the
countries.2
Notes: (1) CARICOM: Caribbean Community. Comprised of member states: Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica,
Granada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago;
and partner states: Anguila , Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos Islands.
(2) Puebla-Panama Plan: regional integration mechanism made up of Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico,
Nicaragua and Panama.

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Goal 22: National strategies
The positive impact of national strategies is evident
• An instructive exercise is to compare the
presence of a particular type of national strategy
with the degree to which countries have
succeeded in preparing for the information
society.

than four years—a process to be understood as
constituting the time between the point at which
there are formal initiatives in place and the
point at which an agenda is defined and is being
implemented (Table 26)—are those that have
shown the greatest (Chile, Barbados, Bahamas,
and Mexico).

• The e-readiness indices comprise a set of
different variables reflecting the degree of
progress a country has made toward the digital
paradigm. ECLAC analysed 12 e-readiness
indices.3 An average for the Latin America and
the Caribbean countries was calculated,
indicating a country’s progress with respect to
others in the region, with the best-positioned
country equal to 100%.

• It is important to cause to note that not
immediate causality exists between the
existence of a national strategy and the advance
achieved. It is emphasized the cases of Peru
and Rep. Dominican. Both countries approved a
national cross-sectorial strategy recently in
2005. As sample the Chart 85, these efforts
have not yet materialized in advance of ereadiness. It is to expect that public policies
contribute to improve their level of preparation
toward the construction of a digital society in
the future.

• This index was compared with different types
of national strategies. A three for three matrix is
utilized, in which is distinguished among the
existence or not of an official cross-sectorial
strategy at a national level, and the degree of
activities and initiatives TIC, although they be
dispersed. Thus it is possible to differentiate
among countries that do not have strategies
declared; those in the process of defining
strategies but with few initiatives; countries that
have a defined strategy, but with few initiatives;
countries with no defined strategies but with
many dispersed initiatives; countries that are in
the process of creating strategies and that
already have numerous initiatives in place; and
finally countries that have active strategies to
coordinate its efforts and many initiatives in
action.

• Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of
concrete actions evidenced by the results
achieved in Argentina, Costa Rica and Brazil,
which are related to the actual implementation
of a great many initiatives, despite the fact that
there is no defined digital strategy in place or
even being formulated. In these cases, there is
wide latitude to take advantage of synergies.
• Similar is the relation between progress and
public policy regarding electronic government
(see Chart 86). The index for measuring the
degree of Internet presence of governments
(UN/DESA e-government readiness report),
that is one of the 12 indices of e-readiness
utilized in the Chart 85, is correlated with the
extent to which national coordination activities
are occurring.

• As Chart 85 shows, the evidence indicates that
countries with a greater number of coordinated
national ICT activities on an ongoing basis are
best positioned for the information society. This
suggests that exists a virtuous circle between
the consolidation of a coherent national strategy
and advance toward the information society,
although an inverse causality logic, from
advances toward the existence of a strategy,
cannot be dismissed.

Challenge: Strengthen the coordination of
dispersed activities that are in place, in order to
avoid duplication of efforts and to create synergies,
providing savings in resources for launching more
initiatives aimed at more efficient use of ICTs for
development.

• Countries that have been engaged in the process
of developing the information society for more
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Goal 22: National strategies
CHART 85
INTENSITY OF ICT POLICIES AND DEGREE OF DIGITAL PREPARATION
100%

Chile

e-readiness with relation to LAC (2005)

90%

Barbados
Bahamas
Uruguay
Mex ic o

A rgentina
80%
Cos ta Ric a
70%
60%
50%

Saint Luc ia
Suriname

Grenada
Guy ana

40%

Trinidad  Tobago
Jamaic a

Braz il
Panama
A ntigua y
Barbuda

Colombia
Peru
Dominic an Rep.

Boliv ia
30%

El Salv ador

Paraguay

Guatemala

Ec uador

20%
Honduras
10%

Nic aragua

0%
Without s trategy in
Strategy in
def inition and f ew def inition and
initiativ es
f ew initiativ es

With s trategy
and f ew
initiativ es

Without
s trategy and
many
initiativ es

Strategy in
def inition and
many initiativ es

With s trategy
and many
initiativ es

State o f s tr ate g ie s 2000 - 2007

Source: OSILAC, with data from “Evaluation of e-Readiness Indices in Latin America and the Caribbean,” ECLAC, Minges, December 2005; and
“Digital Review of Latin America and the Caribbean,” ECLAC, UNDP, IDRC, DIRSI, unpublished.
Note: The index of e-readiness is an average of 12 indices that measure the degree of preparation for the information society, indicating the position
of a country in relation to the Latin America and the Caribbean countries as a whole, with the best-positioned country equal to 100%.

Index of online presence of e-government (2005)

CHART 86
INTENSITY OF ICT POLICIES AND INDEX OF ONLINE PRESENCE OF E-GOVERNMENT
1,0
Chile

0,9

Mexico

0,8

Brazil

0,7
Argentina
0,6
Panama

0,5
0,4

Guatemala

0,3
0,2

El Salvador
Nicaragua

Honduras
Paraguay

0,1

Bolivia
Ecuador
Guyana
Grenada

Saint Lucia
Costa Rica

Colombia
Peru
Jamaica
Uruguay
Trinidad  Tobago
Dominican Rep.
Bahamas
Barbados

Antigua and Barbuda
Suriname

0,0
Without strategy in Strategy in
definition and few definition and
initiatives
few initiatives

With strategy
and few
initiatives

Without
strategyand
many
initiatives

Strategy in
definition and
many initiatives

With strategy
and many
initiatives

State of strategies 2000 - 2007

Source: OSILAC, with data from Global e-government readiness report 2005, from e-government to e-inclusion, Department of Economic and
Social Affairs of the United Nations (online at http://www.unpan.org/egovernment5.asp); and “Digital Review of Latin America and the
Caribbean,” ECLAC, UNDP, IDRC, DIRSI, unpublished.
Note: The index showing Internet presence of electronic government is made up of the United Nations e-Government Readiness Index, and is
based on a model of online government presence. It takes into account 191 United Nations member states.

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Goal 22: National strategies
Strengthening national strategies
• The development of national strategies, the
creation or strengthening of a coordinating
body, and the development of a regulatory
framework are the priority issues in creating a
system for coordinating national strategies for
the information society, based on the results of
the survey of financing needs conducted by
eLAC2007 Regional Plan of Action’s Goal 23
Working Group.

ICT strategies, in order to better equip them to
execute transverse policies in the different areas
that make up the information society:
infrastructure, education, government, health,
productive development, etc.
Challenge: Strengthen national strategies and
reinforcing their transverse nature, as an
instrument for building the information society in
the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.

• This is in line with evidence showing the need
for greater institutional strength among the
entities charged with implementing national

CHART 87
PRIORITY ISSUES RELATED TO THE CREATION OF COORDINATING ENTITIES FOR
ESTABLISHING A NATIONAL STRATEGY, NOV. 2006
(n=890)
Creation or
strengthening of a
national entity for
coordinating
information society
activities and
projects 21%

Survey and
coordination of
expenditures on
public and private
information society
development
projects 14%
Analysis of the
development of the
information society
9%
Formulation of
statistics on the
development of the
information society
11%

Development or
strengthening of a
national information
society strategy
25%
Development of a
regulatory framework
suitable for
developing ICTs
20%

Source: Survey of financing priorities conducted by eLAC2007 Regional Plan of Action’s Working Group on Financing.
Note: 329 people participated, each entitled to 3 votes: Argentina (45), Bahamas (1), Brazil (16), Chile (98), Colombia (36), Costa Rica (2), Cuba
(2), Ecuador (12), Guatemala (10), Guyana (3), Haiti (1), Honduras (4), Jamaica (5), Mexico (8), Nicaragua (9), Panama (6), Peru (34), Dom.
Republic (19), Suriname (1), Trinidad and Tobago (1), Uruguay (5) and Venezuela (11). 41of participants belonged to the public sector, 23% to the
academic sector, 19% to the private sector and 17% to civil society.

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Notes:
1
2

3

ECLAC, “National Strategies for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Hilbert, Bustos
and Ferraz (2003).
Antigua and Barbuda: Information Technology Strategic Plan (official website at www.ab.gov.ag/gov_v1/itc.htm);
Argentina: National Program for the Information Society (official website at www.psi.gov.ar); Bahamas: Policy
Statement on Electronic Commerce and the Bahamian Digital Agenda (official website at
www.bahamas.gov.bs/finance); Barbados: Barbados National ICT Strategic Plan (Draft) (official website at
www.commerce.gov.bb); Bolivia: ETIC (official website at www.etic.bo); Brazil, Green Book on the Information
Society (official website at http://diamante.socinfo.org.br); Chile: Digital Agenda (official website at
www.agendadigital.cl); Colombia: Connectivity Agenda (official website at www.agenda.gov.co); Ecuador:
National Strategy for the Information Society (official website at www.conatel.gov.ec); El Salvador: Programa ePaís (official website at www.epais.gob.sv); Granada: ICT Strategy and Action Plan 2006–2010 (online at
http://www.unpan.org/tasf/ICTStrategy-Grenada.PDF); Guyana: ICT4D Guyana, National Strategy (Draft)
(official website at www.ict4d.gov.gy); Jamaica: Five-Year Strategic Information Technology Plan (official
website at www.cito.gov.jm); Mexico: Sectoral Program for Communications and Transportation 2001 –2006,
National e-Mexico System, Chapt. 7 (official website at www.e-mexico.gob.mx); Peru: Digital Agenda (official
website at www.codesi.gob.pe); Dom. Republic: National Strategy for the Information Society (official website at
www.edominicana.gov.do); Saint Lucia: Public Reform Initiative (official website at www.stlucia.gov.lc);
Trinidad and Tobago: Fast Forward (official website at www.fastforward.tt); Venezuela: National Information
Technologies Plan (official website at www.gobiernoenlinea.gob.ve/directorioestado/plan_nacional_02.html);
CARICOM: ICT Agenda (official website at www.caricom.org); and Puebla-Panama Plan (official website at
www.planpuebla-panama.org); Uruguay: Agenda Digital Uruguay (official website at www.agesic.gub.uy).
“Evaluation of e-Readiness Indices in Latin America and the Caribbean,” ECLAC, Minges, December 2005;

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Goal 23: Financing
Education: the financing priority for development of the information society
• Goal 23 mandates the establishment of
a working group to evaluate national
and regional financing needs for
development of ICTs. The resulting
working group, headed by Argentina,
conducted an online survey on this
topic, using eLAC2007’s virtual
dialogue platform.
• The results of the survey identified
education as the top financing
priority
for
developing
the
information society in Latin America
and the Caribbean, followed by
infrastructure improvements and the
capacity-building. Ten percent of the
votes went to statistics development
and analyses to support and assist in
coordinating national strategies (see
Chart 88).
• In regard to education (see Chart 89),
one third of the votes received in the
course of the survey chose, as
priorities, the financing of equipment,
connectivity, and content development
at educational institutions. One fourth
of the experts gave priority to
developing networks for exchange of
information
among
educational
institutions, highlighting their potential
for enhancing coordination and
collaboration.
• At the same time, 27% of the votes
supported the need to finance distanceeducation programs (14%+13%).
Challenge: Optimise the use of, and
mobilize greater resources for, the
priority issues for developing the
information society.

CHART 88
FINANCING PRIORITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE
INFORMATION SOCIETY, NOVEMBER 2006
(n=916 votes)
School education
23%
Creation,
maintenance or
improvement of
infrastructure 20%

Information,
statistics and
analysis for public
policy, including
coordination of a
national strategy
10%

Health 8%

Digital government
10%

Capacity-building
18%

Digital economy,
including SMEs
10%

CHART 89
FINANCING PRIORITIES IN EDUCATION AND ICTS,
NOVEMBER 2006
(n=853 votes)

Development of
distance
education
programs for
primary
education, 14%

Development of
networks for
information
exchange
among
educational
institutions, 25%

Development of
distance
education
programs for
secondary
education, 13%
Development of
distance
education
programs for
higher
education, 16%
Equipment,
connectivity and
development of
content in
educational
institutions, 33%

Source: Survey of financing priorities conducted by the eLAC2007 Regional Plan of
Action’s Working Group on Financing.
Note: 329 people participated, each entitled to 3 votes: Argentina (45), Bahamas (1),
Brazil (16), Chile (98), Colombia (36), Costa Rica (2), Cuba (2), Ecuador (12),
Guatemala (10), Guyana (3), Haiti (1), Honduras (4), Jamaica (5), Mexico (8),
Nicaragua (9), Panama (6), Peru (34), Dominican Republic (19), Suriname (1),
Trinidad and Tobago (1), Uruguay; (5) and Venezuela (11). 41% of the participants
belong to the public sector, 23% to the academic sector, 19% to the private sector, and
17% to civil society.

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Goal 23: Financing
Financing to create widespread access and develop capabilities
• In regard to infrastructure—the
second financing priority for the
information society in Latin America
and the Caribbean—the emphasis
was
on
developing
wireless
technological infrastructure for rural
and peri-urban areas, followed by
installation of public Internet access
centres.
• Among
the
issues
for
the
development of capabilities, the
priority concern is digital literacy for
educational personnel, in line with
the importance the interviewees
assigned to financing ICTs for
education.
• ICT research centres represent the
second most important priority
(18%), followed by the creation of
centres to foster the development of
projects related to these technologies.
Challenge: Increase efficiency in
utilizing
existing
resources,
by
centralizing information on national ICT
projects,
allowing
international
cooperation agencies to better evaluate
the allocation of resources.

CHART 90
FINANCING PRIORITIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF
INFRASTRUCTURE FOR ACCESS, NOVEMBER 2006
(n=898 votes)

Installation of
public Internet
access centres,
22%

Development of
cable
infrastructure in
rural and semirural areas, 8%

Development of
wireless
infrastructure in
rural and semirural areas, 25%

Development of
national, regional
and international
connectivity
nodes; 15%

Creation of new
connectivity
backbones
between the
country’s cities,
12%

Development of
wireless
infrastructure
within cities, 17%

CHART 91
FINANCING PRIORITIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF
CAPACITIES, NOVEMBER 2006
(n=930 votes)
Development of ICT
RD centres , 18%

Creation of centres for
ICT-project
entrepreneurs , 16%

Digital literacy for
workers, 12%
Development of projects
for the preservation of
regional languages, 2%

Digital literacy for
educational personnel,
19%

Digital literacy for
vulnerable groups, 14%

Digital literacy for public
employees, 14%

Digital literacy for health
personnel, 5%

Source: Survey of financing priorities conducted by the eLAC2007 Regional Plan of
Action’s Working Group on Financing.
Note: 329 people participated, each entitled to 3 votes: Argentina (45), Bahamas (1), Brazil (16), Chile
(98), Colombia (36), Costa Rica (2), Cuba (2), Ecuador (12), Guatemala (10), Guyana (3), Haiti (1),
Honduras (4), Jamaica (5), Mexico (8), Nicaragua (9), Panama (6), Peru (34), Dominican Republic
(19), Suriname (1), Trinidad and Tobago (1), Uruguay; (5) and Venezuela (11). 41% of the
participants belong to the public sector, 23% to the academic sector, 19% to the private sector, and
17% to civil society.

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Goal 24: Universal access policies
Nondeployment of universal access funds in Latin America
• Goal 24 is designed to foster an examination of
public policies regarding universal access to ICTs,
so as to include lower-income segments of the
population and those in rural or isolated areas.

these funds are limited to access to telephone
service, whereas the other countries also
envisage Internet connectivity.
• The information in Table 27 highlights the fact
that only Chile and Mexico, two countries with
high penetration rates, have already used all of
their universal access funds, while six countries
(Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Nicaragua, and Venezuela) have not made use
of theirs, and three (Colombia, Peru and the
Dominican Republic) have used less than 50%
of their funds. It is a matter of concern that,
despite the existence of policies dedicated to
improving equity in Latin America, many of
these policies remain realities on paper only,
without bringing about any improvement in the
lives of those they are intended to benefit.

• The most common practice for ensuring
universal access involves extending telephone
lines to isolated rural areas, along with
subsidized Internet access, through community
telecentres, for those with limited resources.
This is being effected through universal service
obligations imposed on service providers
operating on a concessionary basis, and/or by
establishing telecommunications access funds.
• In several Latin American countries, Universal
Access Funds have been created, drawing on
various sources of financing: a percentage of
the
revenues
from
telecommunications
operators; revenues from electromagnetic
spectrum use, licenses, fines and sanctions;
funds
resulting
from
energy
and
telecommunications concessions; and State
funds (see Table 28).

Challenge: Review potential legal pitfalls in
actually utilizing the funds, and reconsider the
functionality and efficacy of these funds, so as to
use them to optimal effect and expand their scope
of application to include more advanced ICTs.

• In many cases, such as those of Bolivia, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico and Panama,
TABLE 27
UNIVERSAL ACCESS FUNDS IN LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES:
AMOUNTS COLLECTED AND DISBURSED, 2006
(In USD)
Country
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
El Salvador
Guatemala
Mexico
Nicaragua
Paraguay
Peru
Dom. Republic
Venezuela

Fund
FNDR
FUST
FDT
FCM
FODETEL
FINET
FONDETEL
FCST
FITEL
FSU
FITEL
FDT
FSU

Year begun
1996
2001
1995
1994
2001
1998
1996
1995
2004
1998
1994
2001
2001

Collections
43,461,797
1,772,129,956
29,981,000
448,599,640
997,977
32,701,810
17,943,154
25,300,064
3,278,559
12,966,954
143,063,602
65,654,341
113,220,392

Source: “Universal Service Study,” REGULATEL, World Bank, ECLAC, March 2007.

129

Disbursements
29,981,000
165,995,817
7,756,518
25,300,064
12,485,360
45,076,256
10,774,157
-

Percentage disbursed
0%
0%
100%
37%
0%
0%
43%
100%
0%
96%
32%
16%
0%

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Monitoring of eLAC2007

Goal 24: Universal access policies
TABLE 28
FINANCING FOR UNIVERSAL ACCESS IN LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES, 2006
Country

Type of
strategy

Year
created

Name

Financing

Services

Argentina

Fund

Universal Access Fiduciary Fund
(FFSU)

Not formed

1% of net revenues of operators

Telephony 
Internet

Bolivia

Obligations
Fund

1995
1995

Brazil

Fund

Overseen by concessionaires
Revenues from spectrum
licenses, use and fines
1% of gross operating revenues
minus contributions

Telephony
Not limited to
telecommunications
No data avail.

Chile

Fund
Fund

Costa Rica
Cuba

None in place
Obligations

None in place
Not applic.

Not applic.
2003

Public Telephone and Internet
funds
5% of revenues from mobile
and long distance telephone
3% of revenues from valueadded services (VAS)
Revenues from spectrum
licenses and use
Not applic.
Overseen by ETECSA

No data avail.

Colombia

Rural Coverage Obligations
National Regional Development
Fund (FNDR)
Fund for the Universality of
Telecommunications Services
(FUST)
Telecommunications
Development Fund (FDT)
Communications Fund (FCM)

Ecuador

Fund

2000

1% of billings from providers

El Salvador

Fund

Fund for Telecommunications
Development (FODETEL)
Fund for Investment in Electricity
and Telephony (FINET)

1998

Guatemala

Fund

Fund for the Development of
Telephony (FONDETEL)

1996

Honduras

None in place

Not applic.

Public funds, 98.5% of the
proceeds from energy and
telecommunications
concessions; spectrum licenses,
use and fines.
Up until 2003, 70% of proceeds
from the auctioning of
spectrum rights
Not applic.

Mexico

Fund

2002

Public funds

Telephony

Nicaragua

Fund

2004

Panama

Obligations

Fund for the Social Coverage of
Telecommunications (FCST)
Telecommunications Investment
Fund (FITEL)
Universal Service Obligations

Telephony 
Internet
Telephony

Paraguay

Fund

Universal Service Fund (FSU)

1995

Peru

Fund

Telecommunications Investment
Fund (FITEL)

1993

20% of revenues from
TELCOR
Up until 2004, overseen by
Cable  Wireless, which had a
monopoly on the provision of
telecommunications services
40% of the contributions from
commercial use rates
1% of gross revenues from
providers, plus public funds

Dom.
Republic
Uruguay

Fund

Fund for the Development of
Telecommunications (FDT)
Not defined in the regulatory framework

1998

2% of billings from users

Venezuela

Fund

Universal Service Fund (FSU)

2000

Telephony 
Internet
Telephony 
Internet
Telephony 
Internet

2000
1994
1999

Not applic.

1997

Overseen by ANTEL
1% of gross revenues from
providers

Telephony 
Internet

Not applic.
National telephony
and Internet
Telephony 
Internet
Telephony 
Electricity

Telephony
Not applic.

Telephony 
Internet
Telephony 
Internet

Source: OSILAC, based on the “Universal Service Study,” REGULATEL, World Bank, ECLAC, March 2007; ITU’s ICT Eye (official website at
http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ICTEYE/Regulators/Regulators.aspx#); “DigiworldAmérica Latina 2007,” Fundación Telefónica.

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Goal 25: Legislative framework
Use of electronic signatures in developing means of exchange
• In recent years there have been major developments
in the regulatory frameworks of Latin America and
the Caribbean countries in regard to the protection
of data, digital signatures, and computer-related
crimes and crimes carried out by electronic means.
This has resulted in changes to legislation or to
specific regulations.
• While a description of all of these regulations is
beyond the scope of the present work,1 Table 29
illustrates some examples of important advances in
informatic law, particularly as concerns electronic
signatures, that emerged since the end of the 1990s.

transactions, in which it is essential that there be
certainty as to who is engaged in the transaction.
This is particularly relevant in developing electronic
commerce and activities involving the exchange of
personal information, such as banking services and
e-government.
Challenge: Promote the implementation of legal
instruments to facilitate the use of electronic means of
exchange, such as electronic signatures, in order to
further the use of ICTs for the development of
commerce and the provision of public administration
services.

• Having legal frameworks regulating the use and
validity of digital signatures is vital in an
information society, provided they serve to enhance
the security of using the Internet for various types of

TABLE 29
LEGISLATION ON ELECTRONIC/DIGITAL SIGNATURES, 2005
Country
Argentina
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Brazil

Regulation
Decree Nº 427
Law Nº 25506
Chapter 308 B
Chapter 290:01 B

Subject
Approves digital signatures for the public sector
Law on digital signatures
Law on electronic transactions
Law on electronic transactions
Law on electronic transactions
Establishes infrastructure for public keys

Year
1998
2001
2001
2003
1999
2001

Decree on public keys for the Federal Executive Branch
Law on electronic documents, electronic signatures and certification
Regulates data messages, electronic commerce and digital signatures.
Establishes certification entities and other provisions.

2000
2002
1999

Chile
Colombia

Provisional Measure
No 2200/01
Decree 3587
Law Nº 19.799
Law No 527

Ecuador
Cayman Islands

Law Nº 2002-67
Law No 7 del 2000

Law on electronic commerce, electronic signatures and data messages
Law on electronic transactions

2002
2000

Panama
Paraguay
Peru

Law No 43
Decree Nº 21
Law Nº 27269
Law Nº 27310
S.B. No 423 (188)

Regulates electronic documents and signatures, and deals with certification
Decree governing Law Nº 2051
Law on digital signatures and certifications
Amends the Law on digital signatures and certifications
Law on digital signatures

2001
2003
2000
2000
1998

Law Nº 126-02
Law Nº 16.713
Decree No 382/2003
Law No 1.204

Law on electronic commerce, electronic documents and digital signatures
Articles 694, 695, 696, 697, 698 of the National Budget
Regulates the use of digital signatures
Law on data messages and digital signatures

2002
1996
2003
2001

Puerto Rico
Dom. Republic
Uruguay
Venezuela

Source: ECLAC, “Estado situacional y perspectivas del derecho informático en América Latina y el Caribe” (LC/W.25), Erick Iriarte, 2005.

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Goal 25: Legislative framework
Digital legal framework: a priority on enforcement rather than legislation
• Legislation dealing with computer-related
crimes and crimes carried out by electronic
means has seen major advances in most of the
countries of Latin America and the Caribbean
since 2000 (see Table 30). Legal efforts have
focused on adapting legislation to address
crimes committed through the misuse of ICTs.
• At present, however, there are various problems
in terms of implementing the legislation. These
problems relate to the lack of knowledge on the
part of those in the judicial system (judges,
prosecutors, attorneys), as well as those in law
enforcement
concerned
with
forensic
investigation.
• Moreover, the prosecution of computer-related
crimes are also being encumbered by regulatory
disparity at the regional level.

• Many countries throughout the world have
launched efforts to ratify the international
Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. However,
as yet no Latin American country has signed the
treaty. Thus, although the signatory nations are
harmonizing their laws and making use of
collaborative tools, the Latin American region is
working in isolation and without coordination.2
Challenge: Provide training in prosecuting
computer-related crimes and crimes carried out by
electronic means for members of the judicial
system and law enforcement, so as to have an
appropriate judicial apparatus. Work in a collective
and coordinated manner on issues of informatic
law, in order to harmonize legislation at the
regional and international levels and enhance
participation in international agreements.

TABLE 30
LEGISLATION ON COMPUTER-RELATED CRIMES IN SELECTED COUNTRIES, JULY 2007
Country
Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Ecuador
Guatemala
Mexico
Mexico / Sinaloa
Peru

Dom. Republic
Venezuela

Regulation
Law Nº 25326
Legislative Bill, Res. No 476/2001
Law Nº 9983
Legislative Bill No 5460/01
Law No 19223
Law Nº 599
Law Nº 679
Law No 8148
Law Nº 8131
Law No 2002-67
Decree No 17-73 of Crim. Code

Subject
Year
Law on protection of personal data (Art. 32)
2000
Regulation on computer-related crimes
2001
Amends Decree Law No 2.848, the Criminal Code and other regulations 2000
On the dissemination of child and adolescent pornography via Internet
2001
Law on computer-related crimes
1993
Law implementing the Criminal Code (Art. 195)
2000
Countering exploitation of, and pornography involving, minors
2001
Law on computer-related crimes
2001
Law on financial administration (Art. 110 and 111)
2001
Law on computer-related crimes
2002
Regulation on computer-related crimes
1973
Criminal Code (Reform of 1999), Art. 211
1999

Decree No 539 (Art. 217)
Legislative Decree No 681
amended by Law No 26612
Law Nº 27309
Law N° 28251

Criminal Code of the State of Sinaloa, Art. 217
Regulation on computer-related crime

1992
1996

Incorporates computer-related crimes in the Criminal Code
Law on child pornography
Law on high-technology crimes and offences
Special law on computer-related crimes

2000
2004
2007
2001

Decree No 48

Source: ECLAC, “Propuestas Normativas sobre Privacidad y Protección de Datos, y Delitos Informáticos y por Medios Electrónicos”, Erick Iriarte, 2007.

Notes:
1
2

ECLAC, “Estado situacional y perspectivas del derecho informático en América Latina y el Caribe”, Erick Iriarte, 2005.
ECLAC, “Propuestas Normativas sobre Privacidad y Protección de Datos, y Delitos Informáticos y por Medios
Electrónicos”, Erick Iriarte, 2007.

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Goal 26: Indicators and measurement
Advances in harmonizing measurement of ICTs
• These efforts have helped in consolidating the
OSILAC network and creating a network of
national statistics offices to prioritize the
measurement of ICTs, with mutual support
through collaboration on, among other matters,
methodologies, instruments and general
knowledge concerning issues of common
interest, providing greater visibility to ICTs in
the different countries.

• eLAC2007 Goal 26 is designed to promote
development of ICT access and use indicators,
in order to assist in measuring progress toward
information societies within the countries of the
region.
• ECLAC, through OSILAC, has promoted
adoption of a basic set of indicators,
harmonized among the countries, aimed at
having national statistics offices include, in
their statistics on households and businesses,
the questions needed to construct ICT access
and use indicators. This task is part of a global
effort by the Partnership on Measuring ICT for
Development.1

• At the fourth meeting of the Statistical
Conference of the Americas (SCA), held in
Chile June 25-27, 2007, the databases of
OSILAC’s Information System (http://www.
cepal.org /SocInfo/OSILAC) were presented.
Officials from the national statistics offices of
the region’s countries acknowledged the
accomplishments that had been made, and
committed to increasing their efforts to
harmonize, produce and centralize statistics on
development of the information society in Latin
America and the Caribbean.

• The possession of radio, TV, landline and
mobile telephony, computers and Internet is
covered by basic indicators on access included
in household surveys providing data on
household equipment. Individual use of the
Internet, where it is used and the type of
activities engaged in online are covered by
basic indicators on use, with extended
indicators detailing frequency of use, speed of
Internet connection, and use of mobile phones
at a household level. In terms of businesses, the
indicators point to trends in the number of
computers and websites, Internet access, use of
networks, and types of activities carried out
online. Annexes provide data on ICT
penetration at the individual and household
levels for Latin America and the Caribbean
countries, where such information is available.

Challenge: Continue to build on progress in
methodology and in the formulation of indicators
for ICT access and use, supporting the definition
and monitoring of digital policies.

• Table 31 shows that between 2005 and 2006, 18
Latin America and the Caribbean countries
included almost all of the basic equipment and
ICT indicators in their surveys; 8 used
indicators for enterprises; 13, indicators for
households; and 17 incorporated in their
surveys at least one question on Internet use.
• Improvements in measuring ICTs have been
accompanied by the holding of regional
workshops and technical assistance meetings
with those overseeing the ICT measurement
process in the region’s countries (see Table 32).
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Goal 26: Indicators and measurement
TABLE 31
KEY INDICATORS INCORPORATED IN SURVEYS OF HOUSEHOLDS AND BUSINESSES, 2007
Key household indicators
Country

Institution

Basic equipment

Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Paraguay
Peru
Uruguay
Venezuela
Costa Rica
El Salvador
Honduras
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Dominican Rep.
Cuba
Barbados
Saint Lucia
Trinidad  Tobago

INDEC
INE
IBGE
INE
DANE
INEC
DGEEC
INEI
INE
INE
INEC
DIGESTYC
INE
INEGI
INEC
DEC, CGR
ONE
ONE
BARSTATS
–
Saint Lucian Stats
NeCS

no
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
partial 2003
yes
partial 2003

no
no
yes
yes
no (2007)
partial
yes
no
yes
no
yes
yes
yes
yes
no (2007)
partial
yes
partial
partial 2003
partial
partial 2003

Extended

Key indicators
for businesses

At least one
use
indicator

no
no
yes
yes
no
no
no
no
partial
no
Yes
partial
partial
yes
no
partial
yes
partial
partial 2003
no
partial 2003

yes
no
yes (CGIB)
yes
no
no
no
yes
yes
no
no
no
no
no
no
yes
yes
partial
partial 2003
no
partial 2003

yes
no
yes
yes
no
yes
yes
yes
yes
no
yes
yes
yes
yes
no
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes

Basic – equipment
and use

Source: OSILAC, based on information collected by ONE.

TABLE 32
WORKSHOPS CONDUCTED BY OSILAC ON MEASURING THE INFORMATION SOCIETY IN LATIN
AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, 2007
Participants
Workshop
First
Workshop
2004
Second
Workshop
2005
Third
Workshop
2006

Date
Countries
Nov. 3 and
4,
Santiago,
Chile

10 from S.
Amer.
5 from
Caribbean
2 from C. Amer.

Oct. 20 and
21, Santo
Domingo,
Dom. Rep.

10 from S.
Amer.
6 from C. Amer.
4 from
Caribbean

Nov. 22
and 24,
Panama
City

9 from S. Amer.
7 from C. Amer.
7 from
Caribbean

Agencies and other
institutions

Achievements
Persons

16 ONE, National ECommerce Secretariat
(Trinidad and Tobago), OECD,
ITU, RICYT, UNESCO, ICA,
ECLAC, CGI.br, LACNIC,
Social Watch.
20 ONE, OECD, ITU, CGI.br,
EUROSTAT, UNCTAD,
ECLAC, 9 public and private
entities from the host country.

34

Adopt a regional list of questions
for constructing ICT access and
use indicators.

51

20 ONE, CGI.br, Min.
Commerce Barbados, Min.
Telecomm. Antigua and
Barbuda, OECD, ITU,
EUROSTAT, UNCTAD, IDB,
IDRC, DIRSI, ECLAC, and 6
entities from the host country.

50

4 countries incorporated ICT
indicators in their statistics on
households, and 3 in their
statistics on businesses.
2 countries presented their
strategies for measuring ICTs.
12 countries incorporated all or
some of the ICT indicators in
their statistics on households, and
6 incorporated them in their
statistics on businesses.

Source: OSILAC

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Goal 26: Indicators and measurement
ICTs account for more than 10% of the growth in Latin America
• Goal 26 is also focused on developing studies
on the economic and social impact of ICTs.

the United States and Europe, positive effects
on economic growth were observed.

• ECLAC carried out a series of studies on the
contribution of ICTs to economic growth in the
Latin American countries, an issue that has
been widely studied and debated in the North
American and European economies, but barely
begun in Latin America and the Caribbean.

• One of the studies, using a growth-based
accounting methodology, identified the
contributions of ICT capital, on the order of
10%-24%, to the rate of growth in GDP.
Although, from 1990 to 2004, in Argentina,
Brazil, Chile and Costa Rica, between 10% and
13% of the growth came from ICT capital, the
corresponding figure for Uruguay was 24%.

• In the mid-1990s, studies showed that ICTs were
impacting the productivity of businesses and of the
overall economy. These results led to guidelines for
the formulation of public policy on economic
development, based on the importance that ICT
production and/or use have in growth.

• Other studies conducted by ECLAC on the
2000 round census, along with recent household
surveys, have shown that the sharpest social
gap in ICT access and use correlates with
income level, a person’s skills level, and
whether one lives in a rural or urban setting,
while gender is a less significant factor.

• Evidence in the United States and Europe
showed various results in regard to the degree
of importance of ICT investment. ECLAC
studies presented promising results for Latin
America. Despite the fact that investment in
software and computer and communications
equipment has been substantially lower than in

Challenge: Continue to conduct economic and
social impact studies to guide public policies on
growth.

CHART 92
COMPOSITION OF THE RATE OF GROWTH IN GDP, 1990 – 2004
6

Percentage points

5
4
3
2
1
0
-1

Argentina

Brazil

Chile

-2
ICT capital

Non-ICT capital

Hours of work

Costa Rica

Uruguay

Total factor productivity (TFP)

Source: ECLAC, “ICT Investment in Latin America: Does it Matter for Economic Growth?” De Vries, Mulder, Dal Borgo and Hofman, March 2007.

Note:
1

The Partnership brings together 10 institutions that are working collectively to improve measurement of ICT access
and use: UNCTAD, ITU, UNESCO, OECD, Eurostat, 4 United Nations regional commissions, and the World
Bank. See: http://measuring-ict.unctad.org.

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VII. Enabling environment

The enabling environment goal studied is:
• Goal 27: Monitoring execution of WSIS and eLAC2007

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Goal 27: Monitoring execution of WSIS and eLAC2007
Regional integration and cooperation for advancing the information society
• Goal 27 established the creation of a regional
mechanism for monitoring issues related to the
World Summit on the Information Society
(WSIS) and execution of eLAC 2007, taking
advantage of existing regional cooperation
structures and organizations.

each country. To this end, the National Focal
Point transmits the names of its representatives
in the various WGs to the Regional Monitoring
Mechanism. The WGs coordinate actions
online at www.eLAC2007.info, a site that has
been in operation since April 2006, and their
work is sustained by contributions from
international and regional organizations
dedicated to supporting eLAC2007. The
countries requested that ECLAC act as a
technical secretariat, coordinating tasks and
exchanging information among the different
entities.

• In response, a Regional Monitoring Mechanism
was created, made up of Ecuador, El Salvador,
Brazil, and Trinidad and Tobago. Each country
in the region designated a National Focal Point,
which organizes national participation in the
different
working
groups
(WGs),
in
coordination with the regional mechanism. The
WGs correspond to those established under
different eLAC goals, although they can be
created at the request of the countries if there is
common interest in a particular issue. The WGs
are open to participation by the public and
private sectors, as well as the civil society in

Challenge: Explore the possibility of creating a
more formal, stable structure based on the
experience gained, so as to provide monitoring of
this increasingly important issue for the region,
taking advantage of existing regional structures
and organizations.

CHART 93

Institutional architecture eLAC2007
INSTITUTIONAL ARCHITECTURE ELAC2007
Regional Follow-up Mechanism According to Goal 27 eLAC2007
Brazil - Ecuador - El Salvador - Trinidad and Tobago

Technical
Secretariat
(ECLAC)

Information
facilitator

Coordinate
information

Promote
country
interests

National Focal Points
One representative for every country (generally Foreign Ministry)
Up to 3 national
representatives for
each WG
from public, private and
civil sectors

Working groups eLAC2007
Goal5 – Goal7 – Goal8 – Goal10 – Goal13 – Goal14 – Goal15 – Goal23 – Goal25
Coordinated by country

http://www.eLAC2007.info

Collaborations for working groups contents
ECLAC-OAS-ILO-Cinterfor-Regulatel-WHO-Bireme-ICA-IDRC-IADB-Ahciet-Alfa-Redi-CLARA-CARICOM-Others-etc-etc
Input may be direct or indirect, through existing or new initiatives, with explicit or implicit reference to eLAC2007

Source: Authors compilation.

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Goal 27: Monitoring execution of WSIS and eLAC2007
Greater regional coordination and cooperation based on ICTs
• Pursuant to the eLAC2007 goals, WGs were
formed, in order to deepen understanding in
critical areas, creating and consolidating
regional initiatives and projects on issues such
as work, alternative technologies, software,
research and education networks, creative and
content industries, electronic government,
financing and legislative frameworks. In
addition, WGs on Internet governance and
regional infrastructure was created, based on an
agreement among the countries.
• Each WG has coordinated activities on a virtual
collaborative venue, (www.eLAC2007.info), in
order to organize events and preparation of
documents related to the activities for each of
the goals.
• At the same time, eLAC2007, as a platform for
coordinating activities in the region, is not
limited to a series of specific activities. There
are numerous initiatives on the part of various

members of international agencies, civil society
and the private sector. The Regional Inventory
of ICT Projects for Latin America and the
Caribbean (Inventario de Proyectos en TIC para
América Latina y el Caribe, or PROTIC)
reflects the large number of ICT projects for
development in the region, although it is not a
complete and exhaustive database.
• There are more than 1,500 ongoing projects
related to technologies with application in
various fields and sectors in the region, most of
which are focused on enhancing capacities and
knowledge, and increasing digital access and
inclusion.
Challenge: Continue coordinating a large number
of activities in the region related to using ICTs for
development, within a framework of regional
cooperation.

CHART 94
DISTRIBUTION OF 1,543 PROJECTS UNDER PROTIC, BY ELAC20067 SUBJECT AREAS, AUGUST 2007
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Creation of
capacities and
knowledge

Digital access and
inclusion

Transparency and
efficiency

Source: OSILAC, with information from PROTIC (official website at www.protic.org).
Note: Takes into account 1,543 projects, which fall into more than one category.

139

Empowering
environment

Policy instruments

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Goal 27: Monitoring execution of WSIS and eLAC2007

TABLE 33
eLAC2007 WORKING GROUPS
Working groups

Coordinating
country

Number of members in the
WG (by nationality)

Goal 1:
Regional
infrastructure
Goal 5: Work

Uruguay

Goal 7: Alternative
technologies

Colombia

Goal 8: Software

Brazil

Goal 10: Research
and education
networks
Goal 13: Creative
and content
industries

Uruguay

Goal 14: Internet
governance

Argentina

Goal 15: Electronic
government

Nicaragua

ARG (1), BRB (1), BRA (1),
COL (1), CHL (3), ECU (3),
SLV (1), NIC (1), PER (2),
DOM (2), URY (1)

Goal 23: Financing

Argentina

ARG (1), BOL (1), COL (2),
ECU (3), SLV (1), NIC (3),
PAN (1), PRY (1), PER (3),
DOM (3), URY (1)

Goal 25: Legislative
framework

Peru

ARG (1), COL (2), CHL (1),
ECU (3), SLV (1) , MEX (1),
PER (2), DOM (3)

Argentina

Argentina

Output
Article on current status and remaining challenges

ARG (1), BOL (1), COL (1),
ECU (3), SLV (1), NIC (1),
DOM (2), URY (1)
ARG (1), BRB (1), BRA (3),
BOL (1), COL (3), CHL (1),
ECU (3), MEX (1), PER (2),
DOM (1)
ARG (1), BRA (2), COL (2),
CHL (1), ECU (3), MEX (1),
PER (3), DOM (2)

BRA (2), SLV (1), ECU (3),
MEX (2), NIC (1), PER (2),
URY (1)
ARG (3), BOL (1), BRA (2),
COL (2), CHL (2), ECU (3),
MEX (2), NIC (1), PER (2),
DOM (1), URY (1)
ARG (3), BRA (3), ECU (3),
PER (1), DOM (2)

Source: ECLAC.

140

Study: Report on regulatory legislation regarding
telework in LAC..”
Event: Andean Forum on Terrestrial Digital
Television,  April 23 and 24, 2007, Lima, Peru.
Event: Alternative Technologies Forum,  August
16 and 17, 2007, Bogotá, Colombia.
Event: Seminar of the eLAC2007 Working Group
on Software,  February 13 and 14, 2007, Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil.
Study: Concepts, International Trends and
Economic Aspects of Software. 
Study: RedCLARA and Latin American Research
and Education Networks..
Study:  Proyecto para un Observatorio
Latinoamericano de Ind. de Contenidos.
Report: Forum on Internet Governance,”
November 2007, Rio de Janeiro.
2 videoconferences: Challenges and Progress in
Electronic Government,” March 14 and April 4,
2006.
3 workshops on interoperability Colombia, Costa
Rica and Chile.
White Paper on Interoperability for LAC.
Survey: On financing needs for ICTs in the
region.” 358 participants.
Study: Alternatives for ICT financing.
Event: Sixth Latin American Congress on
Informatics Law.”
Studies: Comparative Report on Relevant
Documents in Regulation of the Information Society
in Latin American and the Caribbean,” and
“Regulatory Proposals on Privacy and Protection of
Computer Data. and Computer Crime Carried out
by Electronic Means.”

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Annexes

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TABLE A-1
HOUSEHOLD ICT ACCESS INDICATORS, FROM THE OSILAC INFORMATION SYSTEM
Percentage of
households with:

Electricity

Radio

Television

Landline
telephone

Cellular
mobile
phone

PC

Internet
access

Bolivia

2005

68.3

67.1

63.2

18.8

39.2

12.1

2005

97.1

88.0

91.3

48.1

59.2

18.5

2006

100.0

38.0

88.3

17.3

1.1

2.1

2005

99.1

86.3

92.8

65.6

49.8

27.0

10.2

Ecuador

2006

95.6

72.8

87.1

35.5

63.8

17.9

2005

40.6

34.8

7.4

2006

Mexico

2006

Panama

2006

Paraguay

2005

Peru

2006

Dominican Rep.

2005

Uruguay
Venezuela

41.2

86.9

13.1

2.2

Honduras

58.8

2.5

El Salvador

20.1

0.2

Costa Rica

79.7

13.6

Cuba

Broadband
Internet

3.5

Brazil

Lowbandwi
dth
Internet

70.4

65.4

64.4

30.4

41.4

7.6

1.6

88.3

93.2

48.3

47.0

20.5

10.1

80.4

82.7

40.1

64.2

15.6

8.1

80.8

79.1

18.6

49.0

8.7

2.2

77.0

83.7

69.0

27.9

28.1

10.1

4.7

94.5

61.6

75.8

25.8

44.3

8.7

3.1

2006

94.4

90.7

69.9

48.9

24.3

13.7

2005

82.8

91.5

34.5

25.7

10.3

2.5

88.1

Source: OSILAC Information System (official website at http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo/OSILAC). OSILAC calculations based on data from
national household surveys. Most recent year available.

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TABLE A-2
INDICATORS OF ICT USE BY INDIVIDUALS, FROM THE OSILAC INFORMATION SYSTEM
ICT use by individuals
Use per 100 inhabitants

Brazil

Costa
Rica
2005

2005
≥ 10
years

≥ 5 years

Using Internet

21.0

20.3

Using mobile telephones

54.3

Internet users according to
place of use
1. Home

50.0

2. Work

39.7

3. Educational
establishment
4. Home of other person

Age of target population
Percentage of individuals
Using computers

Cuba

Honduras

Mexico

Panama

Paraguay

2006

2006
≥ 15
years

2006

2006
≥ 15
years

2005
≥ 10
years

22.4

7.9

5;  65
56.5

≥ 6 years
30.4

Uruguay
2006
≥ 6 years

28.2

38.6

16.4

29.4

24.2

15.0

0.57

21.8

15.5

6.7

10.2

34

5.7

19.1

20.3

40.6

13.2

19.8

11.4

24

5.0

31.4

31.6

25.9

25.7

6.5

67.8

6.5

16

1.9

20.3

33.9

14.0

0.0

2.4

0.0

2

0.8

4.2

27.8

11.0

5. Community access point

10.0

0.2

3.5

0.2

1

7.9

2.5

6. Commercial access point

21.9

29.5

2.3

81.2

42

8.9

38.4

41.4

51.6

7. Other

31.1

0.5

0.0

0.6

0

0.0

0.7

1.6

8.4

62.4

Internet users according to
activity carried out
Information search
o On goods and services

65.0
24.5

64.0

Interaction with
governmental organisations
Entertainment

57.0

75.4

8

30.9

10

o From government
organisations
o Other
Purchases, contracting,
orders
Electronic banking
transactions
Formal education / Training

43.9

30.4

o Health-related

Communication

19.9

Dom.
Rep.
2005
≥ 12
years

21.4

1.8

6

15.6

41

68.6

70.0

9.8

33.8

55

2.3

49.4

58.4

80.1

13.7

8.0

10.0

1.7

7

0.1

2.6

8.1

4.2

19.1

19.0

13.0

3.8

2

71.7

35

27.4

39.4
45.0

o Video game
use/downloading
o Downloading of
films/music/videos
o Reading and download of
magazines/books/newspaper
s
o Other entertainment
activities
Frequency of accessing
Internet
At least once a day

47.3

At least once a month

11.7

Less than once a month

3.1

5
18.3

46.9

At least once a week

3.1

30.1
0.9
0.2

70.2
11.0

11.9

12.1
41.8

10
5
3

19.0
3.9

38.6

4

34.1

20

18.3

37.0

11.8

68

26.4

48.1

21.6

10

18.0

11.9

46.4

2

36.3

2.8

Source: OSILAC Information System (official website at http://www.cepal.org/SocInfo/OSILAC). OSILAC calculations based on data from
national household surveys. Most recent year available.

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