QCOSTARICA – Cellular Internet in Costa Rica is the third cheapest in the world, only behind Malaysia and Colombia, according to the most recent edition of the index prepared by the Association for Affordable Internet (A4AI) 2021.
The Affordability Drivers Index (ADI) tracks policy progress in six thematic groups: regulatory environment, broadband strategy, public and universal access, infrastructure and sharing, spectrum management, and gender.
In the context of Internet affordability, that is, whether it is accessible or cheap, a value that the Alliance calculates is the cost of 1 Gigabit (GB) of mobile data.
The threshold “1 by 2” was set, defined by the UN Broadband Commission, which determines that 1 GB of mobile data should not cost more than 2% of the average monthly income of a country. These groups are based on the average score of 15 policy indicators collected thematically every two years in a comprehensive policy survey commissioned by A4AI.
The Association highlighted the importance of promoting public policies that increase the accessibility of Internet services, especially the Universal Access and Services Funds, which require reinvention to face the challenges of the next decade.
Top Ten, 2021 Affordability Drivers Index
The Association believes that these institutions are well positioned in several low- and middle-income countries to host a mission for universal access to affordable and meaningful Internet connectivity.
However, he warned that “a radical change in resource endowment, mandates, collaboration and cooperation is required to make this dream come true.”
The 2021 edition of the Affordability Report, along with all supporting data and an interactive data explorer is available at a4ai.org/affordability-report