New York, 13 October 2016. “The least developed countries, where only 6.7% of households have internet access, are lagging far behind the developed countries, with 81.3% of households connected. In many countries, digital divides between urban and rural areas are significant; and only 29% of the world´s rural population has third generation network coverage compared to 89% of the urban population”, pointed out the delegate of Cuba to the Second Committee, Yilianne Sánchez Rodríguez, under Agenda item “Information and communications technologies for development”, while considering that it is of pressing importance to continue fighting to remove existing barriers for developing countries to access such technologies.
The Cuban delegate considered necessary a New World Order in Information and Communications; the fulfillment of the commitments agreed at the World Summit of the Information Society and their connection with the 2030 Development Agenda and a system providing for justice, equity and social inclusion in order to build an Information and Knowledge Society.
While reaffirming Cuba’s call for the end of the use of information and communications technologies, including social networks, in violation of international law and to the detriment of the wellbeing in any State, she commented that Cuba is working towards the computerization of society and the spread of Internet to all, with priority to education, health, science and culture and taken as a way to boost productivity and economic growth. Within this context, she noted that all this has been achieved with the hurdle posed by the economic, commercial and financial Embargo of the United States against Cuba for more than half a century. In figures she described that in the sector of communications and computing, including telecommunications, damages during the year 2015 amount to 59,208,700 dollars. (Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations)