Which Countries Were Ready for Remote Work?

As the world battles the spread of the epidemic, socially distant modes of working have become the norm. Countries have taken different methods to deal with the situation. 

• India had declared 'total shutdown' early.
• Singapore has been more measured in declaring face-to-face working and has recently declared a total shutdown.
• Some countries like Brazil have dismissed the need for measures.
• Many countries like Germany, Denmark have planned a cautious reopening.
• In the US the states have been asked to decide on the measures t be taken.

Different countries have launched a sweeping series of experiments, testing not only to flatten the curve of the epidemic's spread but also to examine how the economy can survive purely online. This will be the state of affairs for quite some time even as countries cautiously lift the lockdown gradually.

Only a part of the economy can move online and it is largely dependent on multiple digital services - telecom, video conferencing, eCommerce, online payments, and digital media. These services must be capable of handling sudden surges in transactions.

This entire superstructure is dependent on the internet infrastructure which should be capable of managing spikes in digital traffic especially simultaneous use of high-bandwidth applications. This requires that the policymakers and the telecom organizations must understand where services are falling short and invest to make near term improvements and plan investments for the long term.

At Tuft's University, research was conducted and 42 countries that have a significant impact on the world economy and who have implemented "social distancing" methods were analyzed on three parameters.

• Robustness of the platform.
• Availability and resilience of payment platform
• The resilience of internet infrastructure.

This may not give a complete picture but we can draw useful conclusions.

Some of the advanced economies have robust digital platforms making them better prepared for the pivot to online work. They also have a stronger digital payment platform. However, there are wide variations in the infrastructure setup. They could experience jittery connections and slowdowns due to this. Readiness is not matched by social distancing mandates. Many countries have followed measured social distancing rollouts.

India implemented total social distancing measures early despite being least prepared across the three indices. This is apparent in the IT industry, where almost one-third of its employees are still going onsite to maintain essential functions for companies worldwide as it has been outsourced to them. 

The US seems to cope well with robust digital platforms and digital payment infrastructure. Internet traffic has been fluctuating in different cities and in particular in rural places where the infrastructure is weaker. Much of the EU countries have vulnerable internet infrastructure and the robustness is suspect. Speed is much lower.

Some Asian countries have been innovative. In South Korea its digital payments, digital platforms are robust and its internet resilience is among the best in the world. It has pioneered a location tracking app that keeps people away from infected areas. Singapore has also deployed such risk-level determination and contact tracing technologies. China, which is not as robust and resilient as other countries, became a hotspot for use of a cluster of digital technologies, including AI, location tracking, facial recognition, drones, etc. to contain the spread and enforce social distancing. Health code apps are used to issue color-coded QR codes that indicate the risk level.

Though the developing countries are ill-prepared and most vulnerable, many have taken positions at odds with their internet resilience. Brazil and Mexico have brushed aside the need for social distancing.

This crisis spotlights the gaps in overall internet access. Recognizing these gaps should help in developing the next generation of infrastructure. An essential part of this design should be the digital infrastructure, platforms, and payments. The world is becoming more and more interconnected and it is all the more essential to pay particular attention to the infrastructure.

Which Countries Were (And Weren’t) Ready for Remote Work?

by Bhaskar Chakravorti and Ravi Shankar Chaturvedi

HBR April 29, 2020