Appendix I: ICT Use in New Zealand
Telephones
1. While not strictly ICT in the same way that computers and the Internet are (being analogue rather than digital technology), currently most people who access the Internet at home (the most common place for access) do so through a landline telephone connection.
2. While the 1996 Census data on telephones shows telephone penetration rates are 96 percent overall (97 percent in the 1998 HES), telephones are not constant across income levels, ethnicities and locations. Only 86 percent of Maori aged over 15 normally resided in private dwellings with a telephone, as did only 85 percent of Pacific Island peoples.
3. As the graph below shows, between 16-19 percent of Maori in Northland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Manawatu regions did not have access to a telephone, (Statistics New Zealand): rising to between 65%-75% for Maori with incomes under $15,000 (as per second graph). However, competition in provision of telephone services since the mid 1990s has made it easier for those on lower incomes to maintain a telephone compared to the difficulties people had in the earlier part of the decade when the economy was in recession and competition was limited. In addition Statistics New Zealand report that lower income people are using cell phones for incoming calls, but resorting to landlines for outgoing calls.
Maori and Non-Maori Lack of Access to Telephones by Region
Maori and Non-Maori Lack of Access to Telephones by Income
Television
4. In contrast to the differences that emerge around telephone penetration, television penetration is fairly constant between income groups and ethnicities being highest for Pacific Island peoples at 97.2 percent and on average 96 percent.42 This may be because television is considered "better value for money" for income-constrained households: telephone use being less frequent and easier to obtain elsewhere when needed.43
5. It may also reflect the fact that Maori and Pacific Island peoples value face to face communication more than voice-only communication. Some within these groups may also value technology more for its entertainment value than for other purposes, being sceptical about how computers and the Internet are going to add value to their lives for the economic sacrifices they would have to make to obtain them.44
Computers
6. Nearly 30 percent of New Zealand households had computers as at the 1998 HES survey. However, there was a marked difference between households along ethnicity and income lines. Only 23 percent of Maori households and 17 percent of Pacific Island peoples households had computers. While 57 percent of households with incomes over $71,600 had computers, this dropped to just over 50 percent for households with incomes from $31,400 to $48,999, and 16.6 percent for households with incomes below $20,000. It should be noted that almost 50 percent of Maori are in households in the bottom two income quintiles compared with only 37 percent of Europeans (1996 census).
7. A 1998 survey by Lincoln University revealed that nearly 43 percent of farmers have computers, compared to 6 percent in 1986 and 24.4 percent in 1993. However under 30 percent of them had an Internet connection. While a further 40 percent indicated that they would connect in the next two years, this may not be possible because of inadequacies in technical infrastructure.
8. Farmers with computers tended to have larger farms, are younger, and more involved in off-farm businesses. They also had managers with higher levels of formal education. The main reasons for not owning a computer included "no use to me", "too expensive", "not economic" and "couldn't learn how to use". These reasons are likely to be similar to those held by other groups. New Zealand has a large proportion of its exports still based in the primary sector. As we seek to improve the productivity of our agricultural sector and increase the skill base of all age groups (farmers' children included), the existence and potential perpetuation of these attitudes is a cause for concern.
Internet
9. A December 1998 study on Internet and Computer usage in New Zealand found that around 30 percent of people had accessed the Internet in the month preceding the study.45 However, informed sources estimate that overall around 55 percent of New Zealanders now access the Internet.
10. The study showed that overall variation in the likelihood of having accessed the Internet in the past four weeks was best explained by age, household income and work status.46 Users were generally younger, in higher income brackets and in work. Just over 15% of people earning under $30,000 had ever accessed the Internet compared to over 30% of those earning between $30,000 and $60,000. This compares with nearly 40 percent of those earning between $40,000-$80,000, and nearly 60 percent for those earning over $80,000.
11. Males were more likely than females to have ever accessed the Internet. While home was the most common place for accessing the Internet, females were more likely than males to gain access through school/tech/university while males are more likely than females to gain access at work. 47
12. The sample size was insufficient to factor in ethnicity. However an AGB McNair survey (undated but likely to be 1998 also) found that 81 percent of Internet users were European, 6 percent Maori (cf. 15% of pop), 3 percent Pacific Island peoples (cf. 6% of pop) and 10 percent other ethnicities (cf. 5% of pop). The same survey found the largest occupational group of users is students, followed by trade/technical professionals and managers.
13. An Australian Bureau of Statistics survey found that over half of all Internet households were "coupled with children" and only 13 percent were "single parent".
14. The same survey found that nearly 55 percent of full time employed people accessed the Internet, 46 percent part time employed, 41 percent of unemployed adults and 17 percent of adults not in labour force.
New Zealand Connectivity and Community Access
15. New Zealand has a high level of connectivity to the Internet ranking fifth in the top ten OECD countries by hosts per 1000 people.48 By February 2000 there were 48,230 registered domain names in the .nz domain. If we assume one domain name per organisation, this gives the approximate number of organisations connected to the Internet. Commercial domain name registration is growing at an increasing rate.
16. While overshadowed by the numbers of commercial domains, growth in the registration of non-commercial domains has increased by 76 percent in the twelve months to February 2000.
17. Organisations with Internet registered domain names do not necessarily have Web sites on the Internet.49 It is estimated that as at February 2000 there were 25,342 Web sites in New Zealand of which 87 percent have been set up by commercial organisations. Overall there has been an increase of 75 percent in Web sites over the year from February 1999. Some commercial web sites are registering as dot com, such as 7am.com, the international news service run from the Kaipara Harbour.
Maori
18. Of approximately 45 Iwi, only six have sites. However, many Maori organisations are likely to be under dot co or dot ac rather than dot iwi and there are an increasing number of Maori sites. While it is not possible to say exactly what use Maori are making of the Internet, anecdotal evidence provided to officials suggests that more Maori are seeing the economic and social advances that the Internet enables them to make and taking steps to increase their understanding of and expertise in ICT. This may not automatically translate into wider access for all Maori.
19. Te Kohanga Reo has completed a project to electronically link their centres through the Internet. While Te Kohanga Reo is an early childhood education provider they have a vision of themselves as a force for Maori development. Therefore, if funding permitted, they would view positively the opportunity to provide community access for Maori to utilise ICT.
Pacific Island Peoples
20. There is no data on Pacific peoples use of ICT, especially the Internet. However, at a meeting with officials to discuss the knowledge economy, Pacific Island people community representatives made the point that their families in the Pacific are more connected than families in cities like Auckland because of international agencies' willingness to fund ICT development in the Pacific. They see the Internet and computers as offering significant opportunities for their people to improve their education and employment options and to keep in touch with family more cost-effectively.
Schools
21. Increasingly schools are investing in ICT, including access to the Internet, which creates the possibility of schools providing access to the wider population. Data in the just released "ICT in Schools" survey is likely to show almost universal school access to the Internet and an increasing number of schools with ICT strategies and plans due to the funding made available to schools last year and conditional on the development of plans. 50
22. However, it should be noted that this does not mean that all computers in classrooms are connected to the Internet. Only 16 percent of schools have their own domain names. At this stage it is not possible to identify how low decile schools rate in terms of ICT relative to higher decile schools, and the degree to which schools provide access to the wider community.
Libraries
23. A 1999 study by the National Library revealed that nearly 90 percent of public libraries were connected to the Internet at October 1998 and providing some form of public access.51 Almost all libraries surveyed indicated plans to expand so now this may be close to 100 percent. Motivation for encouraging public access is coming both from librarians and from the public. Key drivers for librarians are trying to improve equity of access and requests from library users.
24. Anecdotal information from the above survey indicated that a wide range of people used the Internet ranging from those trying it out before making a home purchase decision, students, people who could not afford their own connectivity, to tourists e-mailing home. Most common uses were surfing for information, medical research, technical information from specific sites, and international news.
25. Barriers to libraries' increasing access include limited:
- Financial resources and staff availability
- Commitment or support from local authorities
- Training for staff on using the Internet
- Physical space
- Funds to cover the cost of telecommunications.
26. Operational problems that constrain expansion of access centred on resources. Libraries indicated that they had difficulties in obtaining the resources to provide hardware and software, find time to train library staff and provide user support. The report indicated that these problems seem likely to continue and constrain libraries' ability to expand public access to the Internet: notwithstanding their view of its importance as a way accessing information.
Community Organisations
27. While no comprehensive data is available it appears that many community organisations see the benefits both to them organisationally and to the communities they serve, of being "wired". However it seems that many are struggling to improve their ICT connectivity, for reasons of cost and lack of skill/technical support. It is likely that the resource constraints experienced by libraries are similar to those experienced by community organisations attempting to provide public access - limited financial resources to support training staff, providing hardware and software, and coaching new users.
28. As part of their community online strategy the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) are sponsoring a Flaxroots Technology conference in April this year for which there is a lot of interest from community groups. This conference is likely to increase communities' interest in connectivity.52
29. Community groups' use of the Internet still appears limited. In the central North Island a DIA field worker reports that of 370 community sector applicant groups to COGS committees covering Hauraki, Western Waikato, Hamilton City and South Waikato, only 84 organisations have e-mail. In his view the digital divide encompasses individuals, groups and communities across rural and urban locations, Maori and Pacific Island peoples. Out of the 141 grant applications received by the Waitakere COGS Committee, only 45 of the groups had an e-mail address and approximately half of these were the e-mail addresses of individuals in the groups, rather than a "dot org" address.
30. To illustrate the limited ability of not-for-profit organisations to exploit the value of the Internet, the National Collective of Women's Refuges has only six out of fifty refuges connected by e-mail.
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