NEW YORK, 24 January 2018?– The world’s poorest countries are on track to close the digital divide as they make significant progress in achieving universal and affordable access to the Internet by 2020. This is according to a new report launched today which details progress that least developed countries (LDCs) have made in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 9.c.
The first five years of the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action (IPoA) coincided with the last five years of the MDGs. The next five years will be the second half of the implementation of the IPoA and the first five years of the 2030 Agenda, which includes the SDGs. Thus, Part 1 of this report reviews the implementation of the IPoA so far while Part 2 discusses the synergies in the implementation of the IPoA and the 2030 Agenda in the coming five years.
The Istanbul Programme of Action aims at overcoming the structural challenges of the LDCs through building their human and productive capacities and enabling their graduation from the LDC category. The overarching objective of the Programme, which received a strong endorsement from the international community through the adoption in September 2015 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, is to support the sustainable development of LDCs.
