‘Digital services trade widens gap between developed, developing economies’

Representatives of governments, industries, academia, civil society and the technical community at the World Telecommunication /ICT Policy Forum 2026 (WTPF-26) have adopted a set of opinions on critical issues shaping the digital future across the globe.

This was adopted at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) organised three-day Forum in Nassau, The Bahamas.

ITU, the UN agency for digital technologies, described the gathering, which concluded at the weekend, as an opportunity for a global policy dialogue addressing the digital divide, sustainability, resilience, space connectivity and innovation.

The non-binding opinions come two months before ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference 2026 (PP-26), helping to build consensus approaches on major global information and communication technology (ICT).

ITU Secretary-General, Doreen Bogdan-Martin, said: “We came to Nassau determined to move from vision to action to accelerate an inclusive, sustainable, resilient and innovative digital future.

Bahamas Minister of Innovation and National Development, Sebastian Bastian, said small island developing states must not simply be affected by global digital policy, but be at the table helping to shape it.

Chair of WTPF and the Bahamas Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA), Randol Dorsett, said: “The issues before us are shaping the future of societies and economies around the world.

Meanwhile, services are playing an increasingly important role in global production and trade, but least developed countries (LDCs) risk being left further behind as the world economy becomes more digitally driven, the United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has warned.

According to UNCTAD, services accounted for 71 per cent of global intermediate inputs in 2022, highlighting their growing importance to manufacturing, agriculture and participation in global value chains.

The share was higher in developed economies at 78 per cent, compared with 61 per cent in developing economies.

Services also accounted for 33 per cent of intermediate inputs in industrial goods exports from developed economies, against 27 per cent in developing economies and just 13 per cent in LDCs.

World services exports grew by an average 6.7 per cent annually over the past decade and increased by 8.3 per cent in 2025. Digitally deliverable services grew at an average annual rate of 7.1 per cent and now account for 56 per cent of global services exports.

However, LDCs have not kept pace with the expansion.