Bridging the global digital divide

With 2.6 billion people worldwide still lacking Internet access, the need for innovative and scalable solutions has never been greater.

In response, the Internet Society (ISOC), a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting an open, secure and accessible internet for all, has launched a ground-breaking Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative in partnership with Meta — aiming to expand affordable and sustainable Internet infrastructure in underserved communities. In this exclusive interview, Michuki Mwangi, distinguished technologist for internet growth at the Internet Society, discusses the initiative’s goals, its unique approach to co-funding, and how it plans to tackle the persistent challenges of global digital inclusion.

The Internet Society recently launched a connectivity co-funding initiative with Meta. Could you tell us a little bit about this initiative?

The ISOC’s Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative represents our efforts to expand affordable, reliable, and sustainable Internet access globally. We’ve committed a $30 million investment through 2030, and Meta joined as our first co-funding partner. Our goal is to bring Internet access to the 2.6 billion people worldwide without it — particularly those in marginalised and underserved communities.

Specifically, the Co-Funding Connectivity Initiative aims to accelerate community-centred Internet infrastructure development in these underserved regions, address market gaps, and provide training to build technical capacity. By leveraging co-funding, we aim to mobilise additional investment and resources from a diverse range of stakeholders to scale connectivity and ensure its sustainability.

How does this new initiative differ from previous connectivity efforts by the Internet Society and Meta? What new strategies are being implemented?

Since 2018, Meta and the Internet Society have had a successful partnership, working to develop Internet Exchange Points (IXP) infrastructure, train technical communities, and measure Internet resilience in countries around the world. Our Co-Funding Initiative is an extension of our partnership, as it’s focused on scaling up efforts to achieve resilient Internet infrastructure, foster local expertise and support innovative models and solutions that extend sustainable access and strengthen the local digital ecosystem.

Why is co-funding such an important approach, and what kind of partners are you hoping to attract beyond Meta?

Mainly, co-funding allows for a greater impact by pooling resources from multiple stakeholders and ensuring projects have the financial and technical backing necessary for long-term success. In addition to Meta, we’re looking for organisations to join the co-funding and help us create a strong ecosystem of funding and support. Some organisations have been supporting similar initiatives but face significant challenges in realising meaningful impact. This is partly due to the sheer scale of the need or having a limited scope due to a lack of resources. For others with a shared interest, setting up the mechanism to effectively support such efforts is an enormous task that would pull them away from their core business. Co-funding allows for a greater impact by pooling resources from multiple stakeholders to provide the necessary funding support to efforts focused on providing affordable and reliable access to bridge the digital divide. Most importantly, delivering impact requires an organisation with global expertise and reach and the capacity to undertake such a task. Our track record in global Internet development for the last 32 years places us in a unique position to collaborate with others to effectively and impactfully address this challenge.

What criteria will be used to determine which communities or regions receive funding and infrastructure support?

Our 2030 strategy is looking to address global inequality in Internet access. Available data shows that people in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Islands and Developing States (SIDS) have the most expensive and unreliable Internet access. These are the places that have the greatest need but receive the least attention to bridge the digital divide. In addition to bringing affordable access to these places, data shows that women, Indigenous communities and refugees are the most marginalised and disadvantaged groups when it comes to Internet access. We aim to prioritise empowering these places and groups to build community-centred connectivity solutions that bring affordable and reliable access.

What specific types of infrastructure investments will the fund prioritise, and how will these investments ensure long-term sustainability?

It focuses on community-centred infrastructure development, including last-mile community-owned access networks that connect communities typically bypassed by commercial Internet service providers. It also focuses on the development of sustainable Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) that are a critical foundation for the development of a vibrant local digital ecosystem due to their ability to enable faster, affordable and resilient local Internet access.

How does this initiative address concerns about digital inclusion, particularly for marginalised communities that may face additional barriers to connectivity?

Bridging the digital divide is at the core of our work. The Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative aims to close this gap and support marginalised communities by scaling technical capacity-building programs that empower marginalised groups to build and improve last-mile community-centred solutions — connecting people, businesses, schools, and health facilities in underserved areas. In doing so, we promote locally owned, scalable and sustainable networks that create new opportunities and self-reliance.

What role do local governments and policymakers play in the success of this initiative, and how are you working to engage them?

They are key enablers of connectivity expansion. Their role includes creating supportive regulatory environments that facilitate infrastructure deployment, including access to key resources such as wireless spectrum. We actively engage with governments through advocacy, policy research, and technical assistance to help shape frameworks that support sustainable local Internet growth. The Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative would also strongly benefit from local complementary efforts to bridge the digital divide. We are engaging policymakers to explore the potential of utilising Universal Service Funds (USF), which have a similar objective, in support of community-centred connectivity solutions.

Some critics argue that partnerships with large tech companies like Meta raise concerns about corporate influence over the Internet. How does the Internet Society ensure that this initiative aligns with an open and neutral Internet?

The Internet Society is committed to an open, globally connected, secure, and trustworthy Internet. Our work promotes an enabling environment for increased diversity and resilience of the global Internet ecosystem. By design, the Internet is decentralised and operates on the principles of openness and interoperability, making it possible for everyone to innovate and use the Internet as a force for good without limitations. That is why we track the health, availability and evolution of the Internet through our Pulse platform and provide actionable insights on emerging issues that can fragment or negatively impact the Internet. Meta is a key supporter of our Internet measurements work and we are thrilled that they are continuing to support it through this renewed partnership.

With 2.6 billion people still lacking Internet access, what are the biggest challenges to connectivity, and how does this initiative tackle them differently than past efforts?

Our experience in supporting global communities to provide affordable and resilient access has enabled us to understand that traditional connectivity models cannot bridge the digital divide. Most of the unconnected live in remote, rural and low-income communities worldwide. Usually, they cannot connect to the Internet due to issues relating to availability of access, affordability of the Internet and the inability to meaningfully use it as a beneficial resource. The Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative, which is part of our 2030 strategy, comes with a refinement of our methodology and a renewed commitment to scale our efforts by activating our global reach through our expert staff. We have staff located in over 50 countries, strong partnerships, 110 Internet Society chapters across six continents, and over 130,000 individual members who support our mission of bringing the Internet to everyone, everywhere.

How does this initiative contribute to broader global Internet resilience, particularly in the face of growing cybersecurity threats and geopolitical tensions?

Resilient Internet infrastructure is more important than ever. Recently, we observed situations where multiple submarine cables were cut, severely impacting an entire region’s Internet access. Our report on the West Africa cable outages observed that in addition to infrastructure resiliency, there is a need for a strong community that can respond collaboratively to overcome such incidents quickly. This initiative will support the deployment of Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) that are key to improving local resilience and also train and impart collaboration values to technical communities to enable them to respond to outages and defend the Internet against threats effectively.

Looking ahead to 2030, what does success look like for the Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative? What measurable impacts do you hope to achieve?

Looking ahead to 2030, the Internet Society’s strategy fully embodies our mission to reinforce the Internet as a resource to enrich people’s lives and a force for good in society. The Connectivity Co-Funding Initiative plays a huge role in achieving this, and we hope to engage with additional partners who support the vision of a more equitable, connected world. Some of the key impacts we are hoping to achieve by 2030 is seeing more community-led infrastructure initiatives, such as IXPs and Community networks, providing affordable and resilient access to more people around the world. We also aim to more closely observe the impact Internet access has on people who are meaningfully connected — given the right knowledge and resources — and the effect this has in strengthening the digital ecosystem.

Photo by Kyle Petzer on Unsplash

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Tags: digital divide, inclusive, internet, Internet Society, meta