Abstract
This study fills demand for data on access and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in the Brazilian legal Amazon, a region of localities with identical economic, political, and social problems. We use the 2010 Brazilian Demographic Census to compile data on urban and rural households (i) with computers and Internet access, (ii) with mobile phones, and (iii) with fixed phones. To compare the concentration of access to ICT in the municipalities of the Brazilian Amazon with other regions of Brazil, we use a concentration index to quantify the concentration of households in the following classes: with computers and Internet access, with mobile phones, with fixed phones, and no access. These data are analyzed along with municipal indicators on income, education, electricity, and population size. The results show that for urban households, the average concentration in the municipalities of the Amazon for computers and Internet access and for fixed phones is lower than in other regions of the country; meanwhile, that for no access and mobile phones is higher than in any other region. For rural households, the average concentration in the municipalities of the Amazon for computers and Internet access, mobile phones, and fixed phones is lower than in any other region of the country; meanwhile, that for no access is higher than in any other region. In addition, the study shows that education and income are determinants of inequality in accessing ICT in Brazilian municipalities and that the existence of electricity in rural households is directly associated with the ownership of ICT resources.
Highlights
Access to information is a fundamental right in democratic societies
We adopted the following guidelines proposed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) [17]: (i) information and communications technologies (ICT) infrastructure can be measured by Internet bandwidth per user, mobile and fixed telephone subscriptions, number of computers, and computers with Internet access within households; (ii) Skills can be measured by adult literacy rates, secondary gross enrolment ratios, and tertiary gross enrolment ratios; (iii) ICT use can be measured by percentage of individuals using the Internet, fixed-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, and wireless-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants
Our results showed high agglomerations of rural households without computers with Internet access, without mobile phones, or without fixed phones in the Amazon region compared to other regions of the country
Summary
Access to information is a fundamental right in democratic societies. Access to information and communications technologies (ICT) is essential for economic development [3,4], social equality [5,6], PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0152655. The result is that these communities are sidelined from the benefits of economic globalization and do not belong to the global information society. This is the situation for many slave-descendant (quilombola) and indigenous communities that live in riverside and isolated rural areas of the Brazilian Legal Amazon
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
