A digital divide is a major deficit in the ability for some members of a society to have access to the internet. This can be an issue for countries like Morocco who are trying to provide improved internet availability to its people. While internet is available to a majority of people in city centers, rural locations are still without access. This digital divide poses a number of problems for this country. There exists some restrictions on telecommunication services and limited service providers to choose from. This acts as a block for Moroccan internet users because the lack of competition can become costly. The cost associated with internet services also prevents those who are more economically disadvantaged from accessing the same types of services.
Video Digital divide in Morocco
Limitations to Internet Access
Education
Many scholarships are available to both men and women looking to further their professionalism in the information technology field. More scholarships are readily available for women to further their careers and expand their education in information technology, in addition to helping diminish the gendered digital divide.
Gender
Women do not have the same sort of opportunities to technology professions and internet usage. The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) has been developed to increase the opportunities for women to find work that men are currently inhibiting. A project called "Achieving E-Quality in the IT Sector in Morocco" has been set up for women to be presented with, increasing their professionalism. Ten universities currently participate in this project in an active effort to close the gender gap within the digital divide. Morocco is making slow but forward steps toward closing the digital divide between genders.
Age
There is a discernible age gap between individuals who are active on social media and the internet and those who are not. Those ages 14-25 tend to be more up to date on the different social trends and grasp the ability to use them much faster than the older generations. A large attribution to this is the lack of literacy in many adults. In 2010, 56% of Morocco's population was illiterate. While children able to go to school are learning to read, write and use various forms of technology; many of their parents do not have access to these same resources and may not have had access while they were growing up. The largest city of Morocco, Casablanca, has a population of 3,544,498 as of 2016. Around 57.6% of the people throughout Morocco had access to the internet in 2016 while the rural population was 39.32%. With a little over half of the population having access to internet many adults that lack literacy skills are currently living in rural areas with minimal access and usage of the internet, yet for their children they have the opportunity to occasionally access the internet through schooling.
Maps Digital divide in Morocco
Participants in Digital Access
Government involvement
The government of Morocco has become increasingly involved in closing the digital divide being experienced by the country. Morocco lags behind in the digital world and steps are actively being taken to fix this. One plan that has been put in place is called "Maroc Numeric 2013". This plan was initiated in 2013 in an attempt to get Morocco more involved in the digital world as well as provide some protections for internet users. This plan has the potential to boost the nation's economy by creating jobs. The plans passed in government legislation also work to reduce some of the costs associated with internet connection and usage by ensuring that internet services can operate on a free market with little to no control unlike the newspapers and television stations of the region. Despite efforts by the Moroccan government there is still some gap in digital connection among its people. The wealthier population still has higher internet access than those that are poorer. There has been some improvement with the help of free market competition to make access to the internet more readily available to all people.
Social Involvement
In 2011, Morocco was fifth in the world among top Twitter users. The majority of these users being younger people in their early twenties. As these users aged, they continued to use Twitter but as of 2014, Morocco was no longer a top user. Despite this decline in usage, social media has continued to be relevant in Morocco since its initial launch.
Closing the Divide
Solutions
One solution that could help close the digital divide in Morocco would be for the government to remove some of the harsher penalties currently in place for those who are thought to be purposely defaming officials or spreading false information. These laws hinders the free speech of journalists so removing the penalties would resolve the fear that some people may have when sharing information online. Another potential solution could be increasing and improving the lines of communication between the Moroccan government and it's people who have expressed much interest in being involved with legal legislation and having more access to knowledge online. A final solution might be updating the original plan, "Digital Morocco 2013" that was put in place in an attempt to bridge the digital divide. While the plan has led to some improvement, connectivity and usage of the internet is still limited to the more educated and urban regions of the Moroccan kingdom.
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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