imageThere are more than 9 billion devices across the globe now linked to the internet. However, more than half of the population still remains without internet connections, as per the World Bank.

According to Voice of America, Despite technological advances, there are still certain parts in the world which remain unconnected, said Hilton Romanski, senior vice president and chief strategy officer of US based Cisco.

"Obviously, we look at Africa, we look at Southeast Asia — there are large swaths … of the population that are not connected," he said.

The report further adds that internet plays an important role in improving the lives of many people, according to government officials and tech experts.

"We have got huge fights in terms of corruption, transparency, [and] openness, and technology is really the vehicle we're using to ensure that whatever transactions are taking place, you can see them. They're digital," said Joe Mucheru, Kenyan Cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology.

Denis O'Brien, chairman of the mobile phone company Digicel, was of the view that building infrastructure in developing regions is a challenge, "Everybody's built the easy bit. In other words, they've done the towns and the cities, but going into rural communities — they haven't done it because the business case is very thin."

Copyright Business Recorder, 2016

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