Nepal’s Ranking in ICT Development Index 2015 has been progressive but rather sluggish as we have observed so far. This, however, is also supported by International Telecommunication Union (ITU)’s recent publication of 2015 Global ICT Development Index (IDI) dated November 30th, 2015. The report analyses ICT developments over the past five years. Out of 167 countries indexed for ICT Development Index, Nepal ranks 136th with overall score (IDI 2015 value) of 2.59 on a scale of 10. Previously, Nepal ranked 140th during 2010’s index.
Like IDI 2010 rank, Republic of Korea has ranked 1 this 2015 ICT Development Index as well. On access sub-index of IDI 2015, Luxembourg ranks first (9.49 of 10 sub-index value) while Nepal ranks 138 with 2.92 scale. On use sub-index ranking, Nepal is on 132nd position with mere 1.14 score.
There are almost 7 billion mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide, as per ITU’s 2014 ICT facts and figures. The developing countries are home to more than three quarters of all mobile-cellular subscriptions. Nepal has already crossed 100% cellular subscriptions.
On the Internet side, almost 3 billion people ie 40% of the world’s population are using the Internet. This in Nepal is currently almost 47%. Hence, in both cellular subscriptions and Internet usage Nepal is above the global average.
On the fixed-broadband services, namely price and bandwidth, just like other Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Nepal is also ranked at the bottom (130th) of the fixed-broadband basket. The stats report Nepal’s average broadband bandwidth is 0.5 Mbps limited by 7 GB volume.
Nepal’s IDI rankings in Asia and the Pacific for 2015 is ranked 26 among the 32 participatory countries of the region. The ICT Development Index (IDI) indicators defined by ITU are as following:
ICT access
1. Fixed-telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
2. Mobile-cellular telephone subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
3. International Internet bandwidth (bit/s) per internet user
4. Percentage of households with a computer
5. Percentage of households with Internet access
ICT use
6. Percentage of Individuals using the Internet
7. Fixed-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
8. Active mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
ICT skills
9. Adult literacy rate
10. Secondary gross enrollment ratio
11. Tertiary gross enrollment ratio
The Internet of Things – data for development – is expected to have a significant impact on nearly every industry of our society. However IoT worlid underpinned by ICT infrastructure, which is needed to gather, transmit and disseminate data as well as facilitate the efficient delivery of services, such as health and education, for society at large.
IoT has the potential to become a major driver of development. IDI 2015 do not carry significant figures of IoT as indicator of data for development – this includes IoT data for Nepal as well. Below is the table reflecting, ICT status of Nepal based on different indicators and from different sources for different years (table is auto-updated.)
Nepal's ICT & Telco Ranking
| ICT Indicator | Nepal's Rank | Info Year | Stat Source | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Internet hosts | 100 | 2012 | The World Factbook | |
| Number of Internet users | 80 | 2014 | The World Factbook | |
| ICT Development Index | 136 out of 167 | 2015 | ITU | Read: Nepal's sluggish performance in Global ICT Development Index |