The digital divide is a term referring to the separation between those who are technologically literate and those who aren’t, this is something this is affecting many people as technology penetrates more and more aspects of daily life. Singapore has the benefit of being a forward-thinking nation putting a lot of emphasis on technological development and education, but some groups such as the disabled still land on the unfortunate side of the divide.

Some of the things Singapore intends on doing to help bridge the gap is implementing technology that will help assist people by speaking in all four of the nations official languages (English, Malay, Tamil, and Chinese) allowing them to better use technology in a way they intuitively understand it. The government is also planning on have one-on-one assistance with anyone falling behind to help them get an adequate familiarization with things such as cashless payments and digital transactions. There are also plans in place to get more modern technology in the hands of residents who may have been left behind just due to lack of keeping up with the modern innovations going on around them at an increasingly rapid pace (Tham, 2018).

One thing to take into consideration when talking about the technological divide are people who find themselves on the less advanced side due to their own volition, whether it be a lack of interest in technology or an outright distrust. Some people wish to keep their technological use as well as the number of devices they own to a minimum as to avoid distractions in their daily lives while others simply don’t care to keep up with the advances of the modern world. There also includes a segment of this population that believes the advances made by this technology are helping promote laziness and other unsuitable behaviors (Ming, 2017).

 

References

Ming, T. E. (2017, November 08). The Big Read: Feeling lost in a digital world, some elderly shun technology. Retrieved November 3, 2018, from https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/big-read-feeling-lost-digital-world-some-elderly-shun-technology

Tham, I. (2018, June 03). Singapore launches Digital Readiness Blueprint to help every last man cross the digital divide. Retrieved November 3, 2018, from https://www.straitstimes.com/tech/digital-readiness-blueprint-launches-to-help-every-last-man-cross-the-digital-divide