Internet For All (Policy and Research Vol.2 Issue 8)

What benefits will accrue to the country, if the government provides access to high-speed internet to our entire population? Here are some illustrations. A person suspected of having contracted Covid-19 residing in a remote village travels 600 kilometres to a city to get tested. The lab tells him to come the next day to collect the report. The person has two options, both of them costly — to stay overnight in a hotel or go back home and come again the next day to collect the report. If he had internet access in his village, the lab would share the report over WhatsApp — imagine the time and money saved at the national level and the alternative uses of such saving. Putting time and money saved to other uses means more income for the individual and a higher GDP for the country.