Digital Quality of Life Index

The Digital Quality of Life Index measures the quality of digital well-being of over 100 countries, covering 90% of the world population. There has been an explosion of digital growth aided by smartphones, user-generated content on digital platforms, and the COVID-19 pandemic. This growth made the Digital Quality of Life Index an important metric for countries to track.

Digital Quality of Life Index Significance

The Digital Quality of Life Index shows the digital maturity of a country. Governments can use it for policymaking around reducing digital inequality. Companies can use it to understand purchase decisions and digital choices to sell their products to the right audience.

The data insights are most useful for understanding how accessible the Internet is for a country's population. The digital inequality created by accessibility and accountability problems can significantly impact people's quality of life.

How is the Digital Quality of Life Index Calculated?

The Digital Quality of Life Index is calculated across five different areas that determine digital maturity.

Affordability -

The more affordable an Internet connection is for the citizens of a country, the better their quality of life. Affordability is measured by the amount of time a citizen has to do work to pay for an Internet connection.

Quality of Internet Connection -

A fast and reliable Internet connection contributes to digital well-being. This is one of the variables that go into calculating the index.

Availability and Quality of Electronic Infrastructure -

Easy availability of high-quality electronic infrastructure results in a higher rank in the Digital Quality of Life Index.

Digital Governance -

This pillar measures to what extent the government of a country uses digital infrastructure to govern the country.

Digital Security -

This aspect measures how safe or unsafe the citizen's data is on the Internet for a country.

Rankings of Top Countries in The Digital Quality of Life Index -

Denmark, South Korea, and Finland took the top three spots on the Digital Quality of Life Index of 2021. This taught the world that higher GDP does not guarantee a higher quality of digital well-being. We are yet to see a correlation between rich countries investing in digital infrastructure proportionately.

Digital Quality of Life Index and India's Performance

Although India has fallen to 59th rank in the Digital Quality of Life Index, it is doing better than its neighbours. It is ranked 17th in Asia and is now ranked #1 in South Asia.

The two areas where India is showing impressive progress are e-governance and e-security. The efforts of the Indian government to digitize citizens' data have significantly improved the digital quality of life. In e-security, India is performing better than China.

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Digital Quality of Life Index - Global Insights

These rankings have surfaced two interesting insights: affordability and Europe's lead in digital quality of life. Broadband is becoming less affordable globally, and the phone Internet is getting more affordable. Europe seems to be leading the pack with seven entries out of the top ten countries in the index.

FAQs on Digital Quality of Life Index

Q1: What are the five pillars used to calculate the Digital Quality of Life Index?

The Five Pillars of the Digital Quality of Life Index are affordability of the Internet, quality of the Internet connection, infrastructure, e-governance, and e-security.

Q2: How many editions of the Digital Quality of Life Index are published until 2022?

Three editions of the Digital Quality of Life Index have been published.

Q3: Which country ranked #1 twice in the Digital Quality of Life Index?

Denmark ranked #1 twice in the Digital Quality of Life Index.

Q4: What is the rank of India in the Digital Quality of Life Index?

India occupies the 59th Digital Quality of Life Index rank.

Q5: What per cent of the world population did the 2021 edition of the Digital Quality of Life Index cover?

The 2021 edition covered 90% of the world's population in the Digital Quality of Life Index.