Hungary 22nd in the EU’s digital literacy index

According to the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2022, which measures the digital development of the European Union’s member states, Hungary is ranked 22nd among the 27 member states, one place ahead of Slovakia, the Association for the Digital Economy (IVSZ) told MTI on Wednesday.

The statement stressed that Hungary continues to perform relatively well in digital infrastructure, while there is a huge gap in the digital skills of citizens and the digital readiness of businesses.

According to EU indicators, Hungary is well placed in terms of fixed broadband internet access, with a much higher share of access to speeds of at least 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) than the EU average.

There has also been a significant improvement in the take-up of digital public services during the pandemic, with 81 percent of Hungarian internet users using online public services, a 17 percentage point improvement compared to the previous year and 16 percentage points better than the EU average.

There is still a huge gap in the digitization of businesses. The majority of Hungarian businesses are not exploiting the opportunities offered by digital technologies, with only 34 percent of SMEs having at least a basic level of digital intensity, significantly below the EU average of 55 percent, according to DESI 2022 figures.

In the DESI index, Hungary drops one place to 23rd in the ranking of human capital, an indicator reflecting the digital competencies of the population and the availability of digitally skilled workers and IT professionals. 

Some 49 percent of the Hungarian population aged 16 to 74 have basic digital skills, compared with 54 percent on average in the EU, IVSZ stated.