ASIA
26 March 2014
Asia and the information revolution
The global information revolution is having profound effects on Asia's economies, societies and politics.
The global information revolution is having profound effects on economies, societies and politics in Asia.
This should not be a surprise. After all, improved access to information is of fundamental importance to development, as it can facilitate the necessary improvement in an economy's knowledge base, as well as more transparent and accountable governance. And information and communications technologies (ICT), which are the major vehicle for better access to information, connect countries together and enhance integration into the global economy.
But why have so many once-poor Asian countries been able to take advantage, more than other developing countries? The main answers are history, timing and China.
The impact of the information revolution has been greater in Asia than elsewhere because the region has always been both an important producer and user of information technology products. Indeed, Asia has always been fertile ground for information-based activities. China invented paper making and printing centuries ago, and propagated to its neighbours a Confucian culture which values education. And the contemporary information revolution arrived at the same time as China’s economy was opening up again, and as Asia more widely was experiencing the most dramatic period of economic development that humankind has known.
Rapid progress in information technology, and investments in the necessary infrastructure have been key drivers of the information revolution in Asia, which in turn has underpinned rising levels of prosperity and education across the region, though especially in East Asia.
Asian economies like Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand are now all important producers of hardware–even if many of the major innovations like the Internet, Google, Facebook and Twitter originated in the US. Korea's Samsung is now a global leader in many product areas, including the smart phone. And the China-based factories of Chinese Taipei's Foxconn assembles products for many international firms.
Korea is the world's most advanced player in information and communications technologies, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a UN body, surpassing many other economies like the US, Japan or Germany which have much higher GDPs per capita than Korea. However, Korea has been a leader in terms of diffusion and uptake for many years. The country has made the sector an engine of its economic growth and implemented policies allowing it to become a high-tech powerhouse.
A number of other Asian economies were ranked by the ITU to be in the world's top 20 for "ICT Development Index", notably Japan (8th), Hong Kong-China (11th) and Singapore (12th). Other Asian countries stretch way back in the overall list of 155 countries, with Malaysia ranking 58th, China 78th, Philippines 94th, Indonesia 95th, and India 119th.
A new digital divide is opening up in the region between high-income countries with high-speed/capacity/quality access, and low-income countries with lower speed/capacity/quality access.
Rising levels of education are in part due to better access to information, while at the same time enhancing the ability to absorb and use information. Many Asian economies are also global leaders in education. The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranks Shanghai-China, Korea, Hong Kong-China, Singapore and Japan in its top ten. China is also becoming an important research centre (see Databank). However, both Thailand and Indonesia are much lower down the list, reflecting Asia's "education divide".
The ICT revolution has facilitated the development of East Asia's manufacturing production networks, or value-chains, that have enabled many economies to jump on a fast track to development.
A classic example of these production networks is Apple's i-Phone. Its branding, design and marketing are undertaken in the US. Most of its high-tech components are produced in Germany, Japan, Korea and Chinese Taipei. And finally, the lower value added assembly stage is conducted in China.
ICT also enables "electronically deliverable services" to be produced at a distance. Many advanced countries have off-shored many back office services, as well as creative processes, such as 3D animation, video game development, and music and sound engineering, to less advanced economies, including India and the Philippines with their strong English language and IT capabilities.
A key factor in the Asian story is youth. Asia's "tech-savvy" young generation is vastly more informed, connected and empowered than its parents (and its leaders), thanks to the combination of technology and improved education. Both China and the Philippines have made the headlines for their active use of social media, and according to one survey the Philippines had the highest rate of social networking in Asia in 2010.
The information revolution has helped change the relationships between citizens and government authorities too. As democracy has taken hold in some countries, and civil society has asserted itself, a good number of emerging Asian economy governments now have laws enabling the public to request and receive government-held information, such as Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand. This improvement in access to information, though still developing, is putting pressure on governments to be more transparent, accountable and responsive to citizens.
For China and other countries with one-party dominant states, the Internet, overseas travel, and more open economies and societies have also improved public access to information. Surveys such as that by Freedom House may well judge Internet and press in China not to be free. Yet, China is estimated to have around 500 million Internet users–that’s more than the US and Europe combined–and its blogosphere is very active with China's own version of Twitter, "Weibo".
The Communist Party of China follows public opinion very closely, especially as expressed on social media. Public anger about corruption is a primary example, as witness the recent demise of once-political frontrunner, Bo Xilai. The outgoing president, Hu Jintao, remarked that combating corruption and promoting political integrity are of great concern to the people which, if not handled well, could even cause the collapse of the party and the fall of the state. China is well aware that social media has played a role in mobilising political movements like the Arab Spring and the second People Power Movement in the Philippines.
In short, Asia has been immeasurably transformed by the information revolution, and this has had spin-offs for the wider world economy. However, there is no room to be complacent. The challenges of education and overcoming digital divides remain, and reforms are still needed in several countries to boost efficiency and access to services, particularly telecommunications and electricity.
Asia has been the success story of the past 50 years, as a wave of knowledge, innovation and progress as swept through the continent, starting with Japan in the 1960s and 70s, and now China beating a new path forward. In fact, future headlines will surely record that this was Asia’s century.
Executive Director
Asian Century Institute
www.asiancenturyinstitute.com
This should not be a surprise. After all, improved access to information is of fundamental importance to development, as it can facilitate the necessary improvement in an economy's knowledge base, as well as more transparent and accountable governance. And information and communications technologies (ICT), which are the major vehicle for better access to information, connect countries together and enhance integration into the global economy.
But why have so many once-poor Asian countries been able to take advantage, more than other developing countries? The main answers are history, timing and China.
The impact of the information revolution has been greater in Asia than elsewhere because the region has always been both an important producer and user of information technology products. Indeed, Asia has always been fertile ground for information-based activities. China invented paper making and printing centuries ago, and propagated to its neighbours a Confucian culture which values education. And the contemporary information revolution arrived at the same time as China’s economy was opening up again, and as Asia more widely was experiencing the most dramatic period of economic development that humankind has known.
Rapid progress in information technology, and investments in the necessary infrastructure have been key drivers of the information revolution in Asia, which in turn has underpinned rising levels of prosperity and education across the region, though especially in East Asia.
Asian economies like Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand are now all important producers of hardware–even if many of the major innovations like the Internet, Google, Facebook and Twitter originated in the US. Korea's Samsung is now a global leader in many product areas, including the smart phone. And the China-based factories of Chinese Taipei's Foxconn assembles products for many international firms.
Korea is the world's most advanced player in information and communications technologies, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a UN body, surpassing many other economies like the US, Japan or Germany which have much higher GDPs per capita than Korea. However, Korea has been a leader in terms of diffusion and uptake for many years. The country has made the sector an engine of its economic growth and implemented policies allowing it to become a high-tech powerhouse.
A number of other Asian economies were ranked by the ITU to be in the world's top 20 for "ICT Development Index", notably Japan (8th), Hong Kong-China (11th) and Singapore (12th). Other Asian countries stretch way back in the overall list of 155 countries, with Malaysia ranking 58th, China 78th, Philippines 94th, Indonesia 95th, and India 119th.
A new digital divide is opening up in the region between high-income countries with high-speed/capacity/quality access, and low-income countries with lower speed/capacity/quality access.
Rising levels of education are in part due to better access to information, while at the same time enhancing the ability to absorb and use information. Many Asian economies are also global leaders in education. The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranks Shanghai-China, Korea, Hong Kong-China, Singapore and Japan in its top ten. China is also becoming an important research centre (see Databank). However, both Thailand and Indonesia are much lower down the list, reflecting Asia's "education divide".
The ICT revolution has facilitated the development of East Asia's manufacturing production networks, or value-chains, that have enabled many economies to jump on a fast track to development.
A classic example of these production networks is Apple's i-Phone. Its branding, design and marketing are undertaken in the US. Most of its high-tech components are produced in Germany, Japan, Korea and Chinese Taipei. And finally, the lower value added assembly stage is conducted in China.
ICT also enables "electronically deliverable services" to be produced at a distance. Many advanced countries have off-shored many back office services, as well as creative processes, such as 3D animation, video game development, and music and sound engineering, to less advanced economies, including India and the Philippines with their strong English language and IT capabilities.
A key factor in the Asian story is youth. Asia's "tech-savvy" young generation is vastly more informed, connected and empowered than its parents (and its leaders), thanks to the combination of technology and improved education. Both China and the Philippines have made the headlines for their active use of social media, and according to one survey the Philippines had the highest rate of social networking in Asia in 2010.
The information revolution has helped change the relationships between citizens and government authorities too. As democracy has taken hold in some countries, and civil society has asserted itself, a good number of emerging Asian economy governments now have laws enabling the public to request and receive government-held information, such as Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand. This improvement in access to information, though still developing, is putting pressure on governments to be more transparent, accountable and responsive to citizens.
For China and other countries with one-party dominant states, the Internet, overseas travel, and more open economies and societies have also improved public access to information. Surveys such as that by Freedom House may well judge Internet and press in China not to be free. Yet, China is estimated to have around 500 million Internet users–that’s more than the US and Europe combined–and its blogosphere is very active with China's own version of Twitter, "Weibo".
The Communist Party of China follows public opinion very closely, especially as expressed on social media. Public anger about corruption is a primary example, as witness the recent demise of once-political frontrunner, Bo Xilai. The outgoing president, Hu Jintao, remarked that combating corruption and promoting political integrity are of great concern to the people which, if not handled well, could even cause the collapse of the party and the fall of the state. China is well aware that social media has played a role in mobilising political movements like the Arab Spring and the second People Power Movement in the Philippines.
In short, Asia has been immeasurably transformed by the information revolution, and this has had spin-offs for the wider world economy. However, there is no room to be complacent. The challenges of education and overcoming digital divides remain, and reforms are still needed in several countries to boost efficiency and access to services, particularly telecommunications and electricity.
Asia has been the success story of the past 50 years, as a wave of knowledge, innovation and progress as swept through the continent, starting with Japan in the 1960s and 70s, and now China beating a new path forward. In fact, future headlines will surely record that this was Asia’s century.
Author
John WestExecutive Director
Asian Century Institute
www.asiancenturyinstitute.com