Position Paper #2- Digital Acess in Mymar

  Looking at digital access in other countries is often enlightening. For us it's hard to imagine not being connected to some form of internet and all times via a smartphone or other device. The reality of it is that in some places such as Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) have never even used the internet. As strange as that seems, what is even stranger is that some parts of the country have had internet access since 2000. But until 2011 that access was heavily protected by the government who felt it was their place to use software to censor the content their citizens had access to.

 Myanmar Internet Access Slider 2000-2011

  The slider above shows the percentage of internet users in Myanmar over 11 years. Notice that it barely increases to 1% of the population. But jump to 2015 post censorship ban and a few international telecommunication companies later and 12.6% of the country had access to a reliable albeit slow (to us) 3G internet connection. This was actually much faster than their previous connections which allowed them to stretch their digital legs and explore a new less censored internet. In 2013 more telecommunication laws were established to protect the people's freedom so by this point they were allowed to access troves more information. By 2017 their was an estimated 25.1% of people in the country using some form of internet, much of this increase can be attributed to the use of smartphones.

Internet History In Myanmar


  Arguably the most popular use for the internet in Myanmar is Facebook. With 20 Million users in a population of 54 million, needless to say it's popular. This number has jumped up by leaps and bounds over the past few years but hasn't come without a few hiccups. For example, Facebook perpetuated a riot in 2014. For brevity sake i'll sum up the story, a man was accused of rape and because of someone with a large Facebook following and religious differences a riot was incited. The accusation was originally on a blog but blew up when it made it's way onto Facebook. This story shows that no matter where it is some angry misguided person will try to use the internet as their own hate-speech platform.  The full story is below:

Facebook Riot Myanmar

  Myanmar is obviously subject to the same growing pains numerous other countries have experienced when modernizing their digital access. None the less it has led to new economic growth due to better communication and new markets. The cellphone and internet service market is growing every day. It's just a matter of time before internet access is spread from corner to corner across the entire country. I like to be optimistic and think that with less censorship and restrictions that it will promote knowledge and growth among the population.

The Myanmar Times