As Digital Bangladesh continues to be a common goal for the country to work towards, many shifts have been witnessed in almost all areas of operation over the last two years.
More and more people were compelled to take the digital route in order to carry on with their educational, professional, and banking needs during the pandemic. However, it is alarming that, despite being so heavily reliant on internet services, Bangladesh has been lagging behind on this front.
According to a study by Cable.co.uk, Bangladesh scored a mere 3.74 Mbps (megabits per second) in mean download speed, ranking 195th in the world.
To say this is discouraging is underselling the issue.
These figures indicate how far behind Bangladesh really is in terms of internet speed, and especially at a time when we are working collectively and diligently towards making our mark in a heavily digitized world, this is far from acceptable.
The authorities need to take this as a reminder that building a digital Bangladesh entails enabling the appropriate facilities for the country to go digital; and that, without a doubt, includes faster and more reliable internet.
Not only do we need to improve our internet speed for uninterrupted operations, it is also vital that the authorities facilitate internet facilities in rural areas, which remain severely deprived of the privileges of an otherwise “digital” Bangladesh.
If we are to work with global superpowers and eventually make our name as a developed nation, there's no other way but to fully adopt digital practices -- starting with making sure our internet is up to speed.
