(Focus on Boao) How can the digital economy benefit everyone?
China News Agency, Boao, April 22 (Reporter Song Yusheng) At a sub-forum of the 2022 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, Huang Yiping, deputy dean of the National Development Research Institute of Peking University, threw the following question: "The digital economy, how can Everyone benefits?" became a hot topic of discussion in this sub-forum.
Everyone has different feelings about the digital economy.
"Digitalization helps us overcome the bottleneck of distance and scale, and it can also reduce the cost of SME trade." In the view of New Zealand's Minister of Trade and Export Growth, Damien O'Connor, the digital economy has brought new opportunities to New Zealand.
He said that in New Zealand, traditional exporters have widely used e-commerce platforms in their business.
"It makes trade easier and everyone benefits from it."
But on the other hand, former US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez believes that how to survive in the complex new economic environment may be a challenge for some people.
He mentioned that the development of the digital economy and the changes it brings will limit some jobs and employment opportunities.
Some fear that machines or artificial intelligence could cause them to lose their jobs.
It is undeniable that the epidemic has accelerated digital life, but it has also led to the emergence of a "digital divide".
"Since the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the trend of digitalization has accelerated." Kazuhiko Oguchi, secretary general of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, said bluntly that due to measures such as social isolation, people have to use digital methods to solve problems, which also makes the "digital divide" problem manifest.
He emphasized that while digitization has accelerated, less educated and lower-income groups have been left behind.
In addition, there are also urban-rural gaps in the digital economy.
Alessandro Colombeschi Teixeira, former chief economic adviser to the President of Brazil, used online education as an example: During the epidemic, in Latin America and Africa, some children were unable to go to school for nearly three years because they did not have access to remote Learning platforms, "it's like a nightmare for their generation".
The "digital divide" occurs not only within countries, but also between countries.
Kazuhiko Oguchi said that this is related to the economic development of different countries, and countries with a lower degree of digitalization face greater difficulties in developing their economies.
"So our urgent task is to bridge the digital divide," he said.
How to bridge the digital divide?
It is true that digital technology has a strong inclusive feature in many occasions, but in the process of the rapid development of the digital economy, some people have been forgotten, and their lives have become even more inconvenient.
To this end, the National Human Rights Action Plan (2021-2025) formulated by the Chinese government clearly states that we should adhere to the basic principles of smart advancement and make full use of digital technology to expand the space for free and comprehensive development of all people.
The action plan proposes to bridge the urban-rural digital divide.
Coordinate and promote the construction of smart cities and digital villages, promote the integrated development of urban and rural informatization, and improve the digital literacy and skills of the entire population.
Effectively prevent the digital divide in online education.
Provide the necessary information technology equipment for students with difficult family life to ensure equal access to high-quality online education for all students.
At the Boao Forum, Jiang Xiaojuan, member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, vice chairman of the Social Construction Committee of the National People's Congress, and Chinese Association of Administrative Management, pointed out that in order to bridge the digital divide, the government should enable as many people as possible in infrastructure construction. touch the net".
She also emphasized that the government should present both online and offline services in many public services.
"For the elderly and other groups with weak online ability, they may indeed not have the ability to obtain information through the Internet. For such groups, we should provide homogeneous and equivalent offline public services." (End)