International benchmarking of the digital transformation : executive summary

This study supports the European Commission in reporting on the implementation of the Digital Decade policy programme (DDPP), by assessing the EU's digital performance in the international context. The study benchmarks the EU against seven non-EU countries identified as digitalisation global best performers (Australia, China, Israel, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States). Thematically, the study focuses on the four cardinal points of the DDPP: digital skills, digital infrastructure, digital transformation of businesses, and digital public services. It involves both a quantitative analysis (focusing on digitalisation outcomes) and qualitative assessment (with the emphasis on the digitalisation policy frameworks) of the EU's position in comparison to these selected benchmark countries. The study is exploratory in nature. In particular, comparable international statistical data is limited, while the scope of the study is further constrained by the limited primary (qualitative) data collection.