Digital Skills in the Global South: Gaps, Needs, and Progress

Abstract

The arrival of AI-powered chatbots has made many people think once again about the skills needed for the "digital future of work." Any efforts to improve digital skills are addressing a moving target, which implies that teaching the appropriate skills is not a trivial matter. What is certain, though, is that there is a very considerable digital skills gap between richer and poorer countries. The demand for digital skills is very heterogeneous, ranging from basic digital literacy that enables individuals to effectively use simple digital tools to the advanced digital skills necessary to participate in the "global division of digital labour." The limited data available suggest that levels of digital literacy are relatively low in countries of the Global South. Low-income countries exhibit extremely low levels of digital literacy, while the gaps between middle-income and high-income countries are also very considerable. The evidence on the use of digital technologies in schools suggests that most middle-income countries lag far behind high-income countries, particularly in schools with students with low socio-economic status. This may cause digital skills gaps to persist or even grow. Digital skills training programmes are proliferating, without having proven their effectiveness in terms of enhancing digital skills. Some evidence indicates that job referrals or training in the use of professional online platforms may be as important as digital training in improving employment prospects. Our assessment of digital skills in the Global South calls for policy action to address the yawning digital skills gap between high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries. This is a precondition for equitably harnessing the potential gains of digitalisation. Such policies will need to rest on a considerably expanded knowledge base regarding "digital skills," how to acquire them, and their labour market relevance.