On 18th May the European Commission published the results of the 2018 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). The Baltic Sea region is the leading area in digitalisation as Denmark, Sweden and Finland form the top three followed by Estonia on the 9th place.

DESI aims to monitor the performance of Member States in digital connectivity, digital skills online activity, the digitisation of businesses and digital public services. It also helps EU countries to discuss their economic and budget plans and oversee progress at specific times throughout the year.

Increasing number of the Europeans use the internet to communicate. The highest increase in the use of internet services is related to telephone and video calls. Almost half of Europeans use the internet to make calls and it is almost a 20% increase compared to last year.

By the Digital Economy and Society Index, the EU is getting more digital, but progress remains unequal between different Member States even though EU has tried especially to improve digital growth. Europe’s development is insufficient and it has a major challenge to catch up the global leader. This calls for new investments in digital economy and society and a quick realization of the Digital Single Market.

Read the whole article at the Commission's website.