Inaugural Singapore Digital Society Report by IMDA Finds Good Progress in Forging an Inclusive Digital Society

1. The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) has launched the first-ever Singapore Digital Society Report¹ (the “Report”), which aims to comprehensively assess the state of digital society in Singapore and track progress over time. This is important given the pervasiveness of digitalisation, and the extent to which it has transformed, and will continue to transform the way we live, work and interact with one another.

2. The Report seeks to understand, measure and track the impact of digital transformation in society across three dimensions²:

• Digital access – Access to the Internet and digital devices, i.e., smartphones or computers;
• Digital skills – Essential digital skills required for daily life; and
• Attitudes and perceptions towards digital technologies – citizens’ willingness and enthusiasm to embrace and use digital technologies.

3. The inaugural 2023 Report found that over the past few years, Singapore has made good progress as a digital society as follows:

• Digital access: Singapore has achieved high levels of connectivity and access to digital devices, with almost all (99%) of resident households having Internet access. IMDA will in particular, continue to provide subsidised digital access to lower-income households via DigitalAccess@Home, which complements MOE’s provisions to support students’ home-based learning. Lower-income seniors are also supported through IMDA’s Mobile Access for Seniors scheme³.
• Essential digital skills for daily living⁴: There are now higher levels of adoption of digital skills across the population, with seniors showing significant improvement (see paragraph 3 in Annex for more details). These findings reinforce the importance of IMDA’s efforts in upskilling seniors in their digital literacy, such as the Seniors Go Digital programme⁵ and the SG Digital Office’s (SDO) Digital Ambassadors.
• Attitudes and perceptions towards digital technologies: More than 8 in 10 Singaporeans agree that digital technologies have made their lives easier, and almost 2 in 3 Singaporeans are keen to try out new digital technologies. However, Singaporeans are wary about the risks that come with digitalisation, such as the proliferation of misinformation and online scams, with just about 1 in 2 Singaporeans expressing willingness to accept the risks associated with technology use.

4. The Report recommends a whole-of-nation approach to build skills, confidence and generate excitement on the benefits of digital technology. Areas for more improvement and opportunities for partnerships across the Private, People and Public (3P) sectors include:

• Helping parents better support their children in navigating the online world in a safe, discerning and responsible manner;
• Building trust and confidence in the safety and security of digital platforms; and
• Generating excitement towards new digital technologies and their potential.

5. The ongoing Digital for Life (DfL) Festival 2023 is one such platform to galvanise the community to help citizens of all ages and walks of life to embrace digital learning as a lifelong pursuit. Since the launch of the DfL movement in 2021, over 140 partners from the 3P sectors have collaborated on projects and initiatives to collectively help over 270,000 beneficiaries.

Resources:

Annex - Media Release Singapore Digital Society Report (107.79KB)