Catalonia, among the five most digitally advanced territories in Europe

Catalonia consolidates its position in the Top 5 of Europe's most digitally developed countries and is 12 points above the Union average, behind Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands. Spain is twelfth.

This is the second time that the DESI Index has been calculated for Catalonia, as the European Commission normally only analyzes the digital progress of the twenty-seven member countries. Even so, the Department of Digital Policies of the Generalitat de Catalunya (TIC) continues to bet on applying European parameters to the territory to continue advancing in terms of digitalization.

The study was prepared by the Technological Circle of Catalonia (CTecno) and the Digital Economy Lab of Orkestra-Basque Institute of Competitiveness of the University of Deusto. This Thursday, the Secretary of Digital Policies of the TIC, David Ferrer, presented the results, together with the manager of CTecno, Xavier Sellarès, and the coordinator of Orkestra, Agustín Zubillaga.

The DESI Catalonia 2020 has analyzed the degree of development of the community across five dimensions: 1) connectivity, 2) human capital, 3) use of Internet services, 4) integration of digital technology, and 5) digital public services. In all of them, Catalonia is above the European average.

1. In connectivity, Catalunya is a leader for the second consecutive year, 15 points above the rest of European countries, mainly thanks to the implementation and coverage of fixed broadband. Spain as a whole is in sixth position.
2. In human capital, the community is fourth, a pioneer in ICT graduates and with a significant improvement in the number of women specialists in the sector, going from 1.58% to 1.81%. Even so, Catalunya's degree of specialization in information and communication technologies is below the European average. An aspect to which "attention must be paid," according to Agustín Zubillaga, since "this is where the digital services of the future are." Spain is seventeenth in this area.
3. In the use of Internet services, Catalunya occupies the eighth position and moves up one step compared to last year. Spain is in twelfth.
4. In the fourth dimension, on the integration of digital technology, Catalunya loses one position and is now eleventh in the ranking. This is the only area of decrease with respect to the results of the 2019 study. In this regard, the Secretary of Digital Policies highlighted that it is "a point to improve, especially regarding the digitalization of small and medium-sized enterprises," which make up a large part of the country's economic fabric. Spain is fourteenth.
5. And, finally, in digital public services, Catalunya gains two positions and is in seventh position. The overall of Spain, on this occasion, surpasses the Catalan territory, and is second.

In connectivity, Catalunya is a leader for the second consecutive year, 15 points above the rest of European countries

The data was collected throughout 2019, that is,reveal the state of digitalization before the pandemic. A pesar de ello, viendo los resultados, Ferrer considera que Catalunya estaba "bien preparada digitalmente para afrontar la Covid-19". Y los resultados del año que viene, variarán respecto "al aumento del comercio digital o el uso de Internet", en opinión de Zubillaga.

The DESI Catalonia 2020 allows us to get an idea of the digitalization capacity of Catalan society and economy, which is based on three main dimensions: connectivity infrastructures (which allow us to speak of a digital society and economy), human capital (we have people prepared to face the challenges of digitalization), and digital public services (which receive a good grade from the study). On the other hand, the main areas for improvement are the entry of ICT specialists into the labor market and the digitalization of SMEs.

The digitalization capacity of Catalan society and economy is based on three dimensions: connectivity, human capital, and digital public services

With all this, for Zubillaga, the DESI should give us confidence to "face the challenges of the digital transition, such as the funds Next Generation, theDigital Europe 2021-2027, and economic recovery." For Ferrer, the future involves "continuing to bet on digital policies in all areas that the DESI index allows us to compare."