According to an OECD study that analyzes the development of its member countries to deal with automation, it was found that 42% of Chileans lack the basic tools for the digital economy, which could put some jobs at risk in the future.
This lack of learning mainly affects the older population, which is why the report recommends that our country should focus on generating training policies.
Education also faces a vast challenge in combating obsolescence, because technology has never advanced so quickly, often rendering programs and machines obsolete in a matter of months. This is why it is essential to update the curriculum, in view of a future that is already here.
This is a serious problem faced by traditional retail trade, since while online sales have increased at a rate of 39.4% annually, sales in established stores have only increased by 2%. This change in consumer behavior is what must be considered, since the great challenge for Chile is to grow not only in digital literacy, but in the real economy, increasing efficiency in the use of resources and improving its productivity.
Another OECD figure reveals that our country is the member that invests the least in R&D with only 0.36%, a worrying figure if we consider that the average is 2.4% and the maximum contribution is 4.2% by Israel, a country that bet on being the technological center of the world.
In order to make progress on this issue, the Government and the private sector must agree on public policies and regulations for the digital market to offer greater security for jobs and trade carried out through digital platforms and technological resources. The idea is that ICTs can be used by all people, regardless of their age, social status or educational level, since if Chile wants to position itself as a developed country, it is necessary to invest in these solutions.
While the creation of the Ministry of Science and Technology is a step forward, it is essential that the fund be addressed as a priority public policy in which science, innovation, technology and research programs are designed and executed that do not only exist in the academic world, but that have a real impact on the economy.
