USA world’s most network ready country, with Canada (11th) and Brazil (44th) taking second and third spot across the Americas
The United States has retained its leading position in the 2023 Network Readiness Index (NRI), published today – Canada (11th) and Brazil (44th) are the next top performers from the Americas, with Peru (73rd) seen as a rising star, moving up by five positions. Venezuela (93rd), included in the rankings for the first time since 2020, also saw improved performance.
Overall, the Americas are recognized for their varied and comprehensive digital strategies, pointing to a region embracing a digital evolution. With 21 economies in total from across the two continents featuring in this year’s index, only the U.S made the top ten, despite the region generally displaying a diverse spectrum of digital competencies.
The Network Readiness Index, published by Portulans Institute and Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, provides a robust framework for assessing the impact of Information Communication & Technology (ICT) on society and the development of nations. It evaluates 134 economies based on 58 indicators across four dimensions of digital readiness – technology, people, governance, and impact – providing meaningful insight for business leaders and policymakers.
While the data demonstrates a strong positive link between income and digital success, a closer look at the group leaders in each income bracket reveals standout countries within their peer group, highlighting the rising stars in network readiness Peru and Venezuela. This positive correlation reveals the importance of ongoing investments in digital infrastructure and policies for nations aiming to enhance their digital capabilities and drive economic growth in the digital era. The United States, Singapore (2nd), and Finland (3rd) all exemplify this pattern.
Soumitra Dutta, co-editor of the NRI and Peters Moores Dean at Saïd Business School, said:
‘The United States, Canada, and Brazil headline the Americas’ network readiness. The United States emerges as the global leader for the second consecutive year, while Canada’s technological and governance strengths remain notable. The region showcases eight economies performing above their expected levels of development, with Brazil particularly surpassing expectations in three dimensions, indicating a dedication to impactful digital growth.’
The United States stands as the top-ranking economy in the Technology pillar, solidifying its position with impressive performance in sub-pillars like high-quality digital Content (2nd) and stable investments in Future Technologies (1st). Other notable rankings for the Americas region were awarded to Brazil (44), Uruguay (45) and Chile (48) who all featured in the top 50 economies. Costa Rica (57), Argentina (61), Mexico (62), Colombia (65), Jamaica (72), Peru (73), Dominican Republic (84), Ecuador (85), Panama (86), Paraguay (89), Venezuela (93), Bolivia (97), El Salvador (100) were listed in the top 100, whilst Guatemala (105), Honduras (107) and Nicaragua (115) made up the nations from the Americas who featured in NRI 2023.
Globally, as in 2022, Singapore retains its second-place position just behind the United States. Finland surged by four places to secure #3 from #7 last year. The Netherlands and Sweden have ranked fourth and fifth, respectively.
Switzerland ranked sixth (down from fifth in NRI 2022) in this year’s NRI, Republic of Korea achieved seventh place (up from #9), Denmark placed #8 (down from #6), Germany dropped to ninth place, (down one), and the U.K. ranked 10th.
Among the top 25 countries, 16 are from Europe, five are from Eastern and Southeastern Asia (including Singapore, the Republic of Korea, China, Hong Kong, and Japan), two come from Oceania (Australia and New Zealand), and two are from North America (Canada and the United States).
Reflecting on this year’s NRI, Bruno Lanvin, co-editor of NRI, said:
‘You cannot improve what you cannot measure. But can you improve anything that remains imperfectly defined? As our digital world continues to evolve and shape before us, policy makers, investors, analysts, academics and ordinary citizens are often expected to make fast decisions and articulate sound assessments about rapidly changing trends and practices. The need for fact-based and quantifiable descriptions of our network societies has never been so urgent. This is an area in which, for several decades, NRI has been trying to inform the choices to be made by business, government and civil society.’
The regional leaders for NRI 2023 include Kenya (70th), United Arab Emirates (30th), Singapore (2nd), the Russian Federation (38th), Finland 3rd), and the United States (1st). Overall, these regional trends in the NRI 2023 highlight the varying levels of progress and challenges faced by economies across the different parts of the world as their journey towards digital readiness and network capabilities continues.
Featured Photo by Cristina Glebova on Unsplash.