KEY POINTS:
New Zealand has again placed 22nd in a global survey that ranks countries on their ability to benefit from new information and communications technology.
The World Economic Forum's annual information technology report compiles information from 127 countries and aims to assess the impact of IT and telecoms on their development and competitiveness.
Switzerland-based WEF considered the business and regulatory environments in the countries it covered, the readiness of individuals, businesses and government to exploit opportunities and actual usage of the latest IT and communications technology (ICT).
New Zealand's 22nd placing is no change from last year's survey, although the ranking fell from 21st in the 2005/06 report.
One area where the Kiwi ICT environment fell down badly was in the category ranking quality of ISP competition - with a ranking of 106.
New Zealand came second to the Netherlands in terms of internet saturation, with 6.32 internet users per 100 inhabitants.
A category that counts the number of procedures needed to start a business saw New Zealand tied with Canada and Australia in first place.
But overall, Denmark topped the list for the second year in a row. Australia came in at 14th place, improving on last year's 15th.
Seven of the top 10 in the WEF's so-called networked readiness index were European. The United States was ranked fourth and Singapore fifth, with South Korea leaping to number nine from 19 last year, displacing Britain.
"The successful experience of the Nordic countries, Singapore, the United States or Korea shows that a coherent government vision on the importance of ICT, coupled with an early focus on education and innovation, are key not only for spurring networked readiness, but also to lay the foundations for sustainable growth," said Irene Mia, a senior WEF economist and co-editor of the report.
The WEF said it used public data in compiling its report as well as conducting its own survey of executive opinion on institutional and business environment issues, in conjunction with leading research institutes and business organisations.
This year's survey was sponsored by Cisco, the world's biggest maker of internet routers and switchers.
The full report is published on WEF's website.
- REUTERS/NZ HERALD STAFF
