India lifted 800 million out of poverty 'simply by smartphones': UN
Man uses Google search on his smartphone.
India has lifted 800 million out of poverty in the last five to six years, simply by the use of smartphones, the United NationsGeneral Assembly (UNGA) President Dennis Francis said on Thursday (Aug 1).
Francis highlighted that people in the rural stretches of India who did not have any access to banking or paymentwere now able to pay bills and receive payments for orders just by using a smartphone.
"Providing the basis to rapid development, such as through digitalisation. Take, for example, the case of India...India has been able to lift 800 million people out of poverty over the last 5-6 years simply by the use of smartphones," said Francis.
He pointed to the rapid and high internet penetration in India with even the remotest regions having decent reception signals. He added that other Global South countries needed to embrace digitalisation, akin to India.
"Rural farmers in India who never had a relationship with the banking system, are now able to transact all their businesses on their smartphone. They pay their bills and receive payments for orders. There is a high level of internet penetration in India as almost everyone has a cellphone," he said.
"But that is not the case in many parts of the Global South. So, there has to be equity demands. There has to be some effort and initiatives to address this inequality as an initial step in negotiating the global framework for digitalisation."
Digital payments rise in India
The digital payments system in India has seen a boom under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India campaign, launched after he first came to power in 2014. Post demonetisation in 2016, the rise of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI)has massively contributed to digital payments.
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI),the governing body of UPI on Thursday stated that the platform reported a 45 per cent year-on-year growth in transaction volume to reach 14.44 billion in July. The value of transactions also saw a 35 per cent year-on-year increase, totalling Rs 20.64 trillion.
While countries across the globe struggle to put up infrastructure for decent internet, India has leapfrogged most with the widespread adoption of 5G at affordable price points. According to reports, India's share of 5G phones grew by 66 per cent year-on-year while the average selling price of 5G hardware continues to drop -- leading to a surge in demand.
(With inputs from agencies)