India ranks 40 in WEF Global IT survey

CYBERMEDIA NEWS

India is ranked 40 on the Global Information Technology
report 2005-06's Networked Readiness Index. The report, which covered 115
countries, assesses the impact of information and communication technology (ICT)
on the development process and the competitiveness of nations.

The United States topped the rankings for the third time in
five years, maintaining its position as a leader in the area of innovation.
Singapore was ranked second in the survey.

Networked readiness index (NRI) is the degree of preparedness
of a nation to participate in and benefit from ICT developments. Some of the key
ICT indicators include numbers of telephone mainlines, personal computers, and
Internet users.

The report notes "recent strong shifts" in the
global ICT landscape. Countries such as India have transformed their economies,
thanks to the

ICT revolution. Ireland and Israel have emerged as centers of software
development.

Asian Tigers like Taiwan, India and Korea improved their
ratings this year. Taiwan made it to the top ten countries ranking number seven.
Its meteoric rise is attributed to intelligent public policies and
public-private synergies in the ICT sector. India broadly maintains its position
with respect to last year (at number 40) while China dropped nine positions to
50.

The highest ranking Latin American countries were Chile (29) Brazil (52) and
Mexico (55). Compared with last year's generalized decreasing trend, the
region displayed a more varied performance this year. El Salvador (up 11) and
Argentina (up 5). This encouraging development is unfortunately accompanied by a
further slide of countries such as Brazil (down 6), Costa Rica (down 8) and
Guatemala (down 10).