RuraliTIC took place in Aurillac (Cantal) from 27 to 29 August, giving Orange the opportunity to highlight its commitment to digital inclusion, thanks to its local representatives. During the event, they presented the concrete solutions put in place to fight against digital inequalities, such as free digital workshops for all and improving connectivity across the region.
30% of French people still live in an analog world
One of the main reasons why 30% of the French population is still far from adopting digital technology is the lack of skills in mastering new digital tools. Another contributing factor is living in poorly connected areas.
With this in mind, several of our representatives spoke at round tables on rural digital inclusion, including Olivier Fritz, Director of Digital Development for French Territories, Jean-Germain Breton, President of Orange Concessions, and Olivier Dondain, Regional Director of Orange in Auvergne.
Our speakers presented the actions put in place to improve connectivity in rural areas, highlighting the free and open digital workshops that help fight against inequalities in terms of access to technical equipment and skills. These workshops offer a complete digital training course for young people as well as older or other isolated populations within a single hub.
In France in 2023, Orange workshops helped 223,720 people learn how to use digital technology and the Group aims to educate 2.5 million between 2021 and 2025.
Fiber as the foundation of digital equality
Today in France, 15% of the population (INSEE study June 2023) is “digitally illiterate”, due to a lack of connectivity, equipment, or skills. To make digital technology accessible to all, we’re deploying high-speed connectivity as the foundation of digital equality, actively rolling out fiber throughout the country, along with 4G and 5G, to provide everyone in all parts of the country with a very high-speed access solution. We’ve also begun the major project of gradually decommissioning the copper network by 2030, as part of ongoing and regular discussions with local authorities.