The European Commission on March 9 set out its new roadmap on digitalisation, focusing on better IT skills, faster Internet, and essential public services being available online.

As part of its new strategy, the commission said it wants all populated areas to be covered by 5G - the “fifth generation” technology for wireless connections.

Currently, the coverage percentage stands at only 14%, European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton said during a presentation of the goals.

The roll-out of 5G across the bloc has been controversial. Telecommunications towers have been put on fire in several countries over unsubstantiated health-risk allegations.

There are also privacy concerns, with Chinese tech giant Huawei wanting to establish the infrastructure for 5G networks in Europe - which some claim could lead to private information being passed on to the Chinese government.

For European Commission Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, brushing up the European Union’s digital standing was important to ensure the bloc’s competitiveness in the world - but one should be mindful of the purpose it served, she said.

“Digitalisation is not an end in itself,” Vestager said during a press conference on Tuesday, warning that the process had to be inclusive.

To further digitalisation in the bloc, the commission said it wants 80% of all adults to have basic IT skills by 2030. In 2019, the number of people with basic digital skills stood at only 56%.

To facilitate the bloc’s transition into the digital world, the commission said an ambitious 100% of key public services - such as health records and tax filing - should be accessible online.

 - AFP