Nearly 57% of world's urban population has no broadband connection

Nearly 57 per cent of the global urban population remains unconnected to broadband internet – and 37 per cent of this lives in some of the world's wealthiest cities, a study said on Monday.

Released on the occasion of World Wi-Fi Day, the study by the Wireless Broadband Alliance conducted by Maravedis Rethink Research, a wireless infrastructure analyst firm, aims to identify the percentage unconnected citizens living in urban areas in both developed and emerging economies.

"There is a clear divide between the digital haves and the digital have-nots. And while this divide generally mirrors socioeconomic trends around the world, there are surprisingly high levels of urban unconnected citizens in major cities," said Shrikant Shenwai, chief executive, Wireless Broadband Alliance, in a statement.

As much as 68 per cent of people in Asia Pacific have no broadband connection while 55 per cent of people in Latin America are without broadband, the report stated.

Europe has the lowest percentage of urban unconnected at 17 per cent while the Middle East and Africa has the highest proportion of urban unconnected citizens at 82 per cent.

London is the most connected major global city (only eight per cent not connected), while Lagos is the least connected city (88.3 per cent).

The lack of urban connectivity can be attributed to a number technological and political challenges, from low levels of income to high cost of fixed and mobile services.