Kuwait’s enduring digital divide: socio-demographic characteristics relative to ICT access, skills, and outcomes

Kuwait has ambitious plans to shift away from its current dependence on hydrocarbon resources toward a more knowledge-based economy wherein information and communication technologies (ICTs) will play a critical role. As one of the world’s wealthiest and most digitally connected countries, it appears to have several advantages in leveraging technology to help achieve its national goals. However, significant questions remain as to how well its digital infrastructure translates into tangible outcomes for its highly diverse society. With an expatriate-majority population comprising of a high number of migrant workers, many of whom possess limited levels of education and ICT access, ensuring more equitable distribution of its digital resources is paramount to its plans for digital transformation. Using data from a national survey, this paper highlights the current state of digital inequalities in the country according to the domains of ICT access, skills, and achieved outcomes. Findings indicate while digital parity appears to exist between genders, significant gaps remain according to such factors as age, education, and nationality.