Ed Royce: “Today, more than 60 percent of the world's population lacks access to broadband, lacks access to the Internet. That…”

“Today, more than 60 percent of the world's population lacks access to broadband, lacks access to the Internet. That means 3 billion people have been left out of the biggest technological revolution of our time. Three billion people are being denied the benefits of the free flow of information and game-changing innovations in health, education, and commerce; and 3 billion consumers remain out of the reach of American goods and services. Women and girls are disproportionately affected by this digital gap, despite serving as the principal consumers, caregivers, educators, peacemakers, and income earners across the developing world. Bringing women online is going to deepen the benefit of existing investments in governance and global health, and it is going to accelerate economic growth. So this bill closes that digital gap. It promotes efforts by developing countries to accelerate Internet deployment through the standardization of cost-effective, build-once policies. It partners with the private sector, and it creates a favorable investment climate. At the same time, it reduces duplication of effort among U.S. Government agencies by demanding improved interagency coordination and collaboration with the private sector. And it calls on the State Department to consolidate the responsibilities held by three separate coordinators for cyber policy, technology, and information under a single Assistant Secretary for Cyberspace.…”