1. Presentation

This report presents the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) of Catalonia 2020, following the same structure of last year’s report for DESI Catalonia 2019.

Starting from the last DESI, results are presented in the order that the different levels follow, that is, first the dimensions are described and, in a second section, the sub-dimensions and indicators. The results, at the level of dimensions, are presented with graphs to compare the position of Catalonia to the set of states of the EU-28. For the levels of sub-dimensions and indicators, the results are shown in the form of tables with the aim of presenting the most detailed and synthesized information. The values taken as a reference for comparison in the tables are those of Spain, and those of the leading states and the EU-28 average. A new addition this year is the incorporation of the evolution of all indicators for the period 2019-2020.

DESI 2020 has the same 5 dimensions as the DESI 2019: Connectivity, Human Capital, Use of Internet Services, Integration of Digital Technology and Digital Public Services. There were also no changes in the weight of each of the dimensions in the DESI calculation: Connectivity counts 25%, Human Capital 25%, Use of Internet Services 15%, Integration of Digital Technology by 20%, and Digital Public Services by 15%.

With respect to subdimensions, most remain unchanged from the DESI 2019. In some cases, indicator names have been changed, redistributed or deleted, and one of them has also been newly incorporated, as is the case with the subdimensions of Connectivity. In the case of sub-dimension 3b (Online activities) of the dimension Use of Internet Services, two indicators have been removed. Finally, regarding the Digital Public Services dimension, two subdimensions have been eliminated with respect to 2019.

As a consequence of the changes made in some dimensions and subdimensions, the DESI goes from having 44 indicators to 37 in its current form and in some cases, there has been a redistribution in different subdimensions. Therefore, in order to be able to analyze the evolution 2019-2020, it has been necessary to recalculate the DESI 2019 index by applying methodological changes.

Finally, one must keep in mind that DESI 2020 is based on data from 2019 and which therefore does not yet reflect the impact of the new reality that has emerged as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

  1. See the appendix for detailed information on the structure of DESI 2020.

  2. The DESI 2020 was prepared with data for 2019, and therefore includes the United Kingdom.