# Digital Divide **Domain:** Access / Infrastructure / Justice **Doc Type:** Canonical Concept Node **Maturity:** Developed **Related:** [[wiki/Continuity Access Inequality|Continuity Access Inequality]], [[wiki/Rights|Rights]], [[wiki/Data Infrastructure|Data Infrastructure]] --- ## Definition The **digital divide** is unequal access to the infrastructure, devices, affordability, skills, security and institutional support required for meaningful participation in digital systems. It is not exhausted by whether a network signal is technically available. The International Telecommunication Union frames universal and meaningful connectivity through six interdependent dimensions: quality, availability, affordability, devices, skills and security. Its 2025 estimates place almost three-quarters of the global population online while 2.2 billion people remain offline, with persistent differences by income, gender, age and urban or rural location. ## Continuity Relevance Digital continuity raises the stakes of the divide. Access may determine who can create an authoritative record, maintain credentials, receive notice, preserve state, migrate between custodians or contest an adverse decision. A nominal right to continuity is not usable where energy, bandwidth, identity documents, accessible interfaces, secure devices or qualified institutions are absent. ## Measurement Continuity-oriented assessment should measure: - reliable power and network quality, not coverage alone; - device and service affordability over the full obligation period; - accessible interfaces and local-language support; - digital and legal capability to exercise rights; - secure identity, recovery and redress channels; - dependence on a single foreign or commercial provider. ## Governance Principle Closing the divide does not mean compulsory enrollment in one identity or continuity platform. Inclusion requires meaningful non-digital routes, consent, interoperability and the ability to refuse or leave without losing ordinary civil status. ## Sources - [ITU — Measuring digital development: Facts and Figures 2025](https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/facts/default.aspx) - [ITU — Global Connectivity Report 2025](https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/global-connectivity-report-2025/) ## See Also [[wiki/Minimum Viable Continuity|Minimum Viable Continuity]] · [[wiki/Global South Continuity Access|Global South Continuity Access]] · [[wiki/Continuity Service Tiers|Continuity Service Tiers]]