Photo: eGuide Travel · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 17 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Papua New Guinea: Digital & Technology
How ready is a country to use, make and trade technology?
Papua New Guinea is placed 142nd of 198 countries on digital & technology in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics. Readings behind it: GovTech Maturity Index 0.548 (2025); Government AI Readiness Index 27.98 (2025).
Share
Digital & Technology
142nd
of 198 countries placed
Placed from 4 of 4 key statistics
- 0.548GovTech Maturity Index, 2025GTMI score (0–1)
- 27.98Government AI Readiness Index, 2025AI readiness score (0–100)
- -1.529Government Cyber Security Capacity, 2025Original latent estimate (≈ −3.6 to +3.7); higher = more capacity
- 18.27Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports, 2024Digitally-deliverable services exports (% of services exports)
01The evidence
The 4 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Papua New Guinea on digital & technology — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
0.548
GTMI score (0–1)
Higher is better
Papua New Guinea: 0.548. Across the 196 countries in this edition, values run from 0.01 (North Korea) to 0.997 (South Korea); the world median is 0.63.
- World median
- 0.63
- Best in Melanesia
- 0.563 Fiji
- Land neighbours
- Indonesia 0.84
27.98
AI readiness score (0–100)
Higher is better
Ranked 135th of 195 by Oxford Insights
Papua New Guinea: 27.98. Across the 195 countries in this edition, values run from 12.12 (Guinea-Bissau) to 88.36 (United States); the world median is 40.19.
- World median
- 40.19
- Best in Melanesia
- 37.26 Fiji
- Land neighbours
- Indonesia 59.87
Key 3 of 4
Government Cyber Security Capacity
V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0
-1.529
Original latent estimate (≈ −3.6 to +3.7); higher = more capacity
Higher is better
Papua New Guinea: -1.529. Across the 176 countries in this edition, values run from -2.66 (Liberia) to 3.715 (Estonia); the world median is 0.196.
- World median
- 0.196
- Best in Melanesia
- -0.141 Vanuatu
- Land neighbours
- Indonesia 1.905
Key 4 of 4
Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports
UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 3.0 IGO
18.27
Digitally-deliverable services exports (% of services exports)
Higher is better
Papua New Guinea: 18.27. Across the 170 countries in this edition, values run from 0.377 (Gambia) to 87.15 (Ireland); the world median is 25.42.
- World median
- 25.42
- Best in Melanesia
- 18.27 Papua New Guinea
- Land neighbours
- Indonesia 41.97
02Over time
Which way Papua New Guinea is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
Government AI Readiness Index
AI readiness score (0–100) · higher is better
Papua New GuineaWorld median
Papua New Guinea fell from 34.75 in 2021 to 27.98 in 2025; the world median went from 44.05 to 40.19.
Every year’s figures
Year Papua New Guinea World median 2025 28 40.2 2024 37 43.3 2023 30 41.4 2022 31 40.3 2021 35 44.1 2020 — 39.6 Government Cyber Security Capacity
Original latent estimate (≈ −3.6 to +3.7); higher = more capacity · higher is better
Papua New GuineaWorld median
Papua New Guinea rose from -2.409 in 2000 to -1.529 in 2025; the world median went from -0.514 to 0.196.
Every year’s figures
Year Papua New Guinea World median 2025 -1.53 0.20 2024 -1.53 0.11 2023 -1.53 0.14 2022 -1.53 0.16 2021 -1.53 0.12 2020 -1.53 0.12 2019 -1.53 0.10 2018 -1.68 -0.05 2017 -1.71 -0.08 2016 -1.71 -0.10 2015 -1.71 -0.17 2014 -1.71 -0.21 2013 -1.71 -0.21 2012 -1.71 -0.25 2011 -1.91 -0.32 2010 -1.91 -0.31 2009 -2.41 -0.50 2008 -2.41 -0.51 2007 -2.41 -0.51 2006 -2.41 -0.55 2005 -2.41 -0.55 2004 -2.41 -0.55 2003 -2.41 -0.55 2002 -2.41 -0.51 2001 -2.41 -0.51 2000 -2.41 -0.51 Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports
Digitally-deliverable services exports (% of services exports) · higher is better
Papua New GuineaWorld median
Papua New Guinea rose from 11.62 in 2010 to 18.27 in 2024; the world median went from 19.88 to 25.42.
Every year’s figures
Year Papua New Guinea World median 2024 18.3 25.42 2023 16.9 26.03 2022 19.2 26.04 2021 18.2 29.80 2020 30.0 29.47 2019 34.5 18.36 2018 23.0 20.09 2017 16.4 18.32 2016 12.2 18.15 2015 16.8 19.57 2014 24.7 21.00 2013 19.1 20.50 2012 17.8 19.56 2011 26.0 19.21 2010 11.6 19.88
03In context
Papua New Guinea beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 198 countries on digital & technology, never a place within the region.
Papua New Guinea and the countries it borders
Standing among all 198; the key columns are the publishers’ own values.
| Country | Standing | GovTech Maturity IndexGTMI score (0–1) | Government AI Readiness IndexAI readiness score (0–100) | Government Cyber Security CapacityOriginal latent estimate (≈ −3.6 to +3.7); higher = more capacity | Digitally-Deliverable Services ExportsDigitally-deliverable services exports (% of services exports) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Indonesia | 33rd | 0.84 | 59.87 | 1.905 | 41.97 |
| Papua New Guinea | 142nd | 0.548 | 27.98 | -1.529 | 18.27 |
“—”: no published reading in that edition. What a standing is
Across Melanesia
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 198.
Vanuatu=133rd
Fiji137th- Papua New Guinea142nd
Solomon Islands=185th
New Caledonianot placed
Placed either side on digital & technology
The countries immediately above and below Papua New Guinea in the topic’s list.
Trinidad and Tobago139th
Bolivia140th
Iraq141st- Papua New Guinea142nd
Mali=143rd
Paraguay=143rd
Dominica145th
04Context, no vote
Where Papua New Guinea is ahead of the world, and behind
12 more statistics filed under digital & technology, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median4
Statistics on which Papua New Guinea does better than the middle country measured.
Government Dissemination of False Information (Domestic)V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 2025 · world median -0.1141.896-0.114▲ Improved since 2015
Papua New Guinea: 1.896 · world median -0.114 · Original latent estimate (≈ −3.6 to +3.2); higher = less disinformation. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from -3.392 to 2.93; higher is better.
Position 19th of 176 · derived.
Firms with Their Own WebsiteWorld Bank Group · 2026 · world median 62.3986.9462.39No earlier reading
Papua New Guinea: 86.94 · world median 62.39 · Firms with their own website (%). World Bank Group, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 1.824 to 97.88; higher is better.
Position 31st of 181 · derived.
Government Social Media CensorshipV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 2025 · world median 0.5051.3930.505▲ Improved since 2015
Papua New Guinea: 1.393 · world median 0.505 · Original latent estimate (≈ −4.5 to +2.4); higher = less censorship. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from -3.721 to 2.295; higher is better.
Position 51st of 176 · derived.
Share of Firms' Payments Made ElectronicallyWorld Bank Group · 2026 · world median 64.2280.0564.22No earlier reading
Papua New Guinea: 80.05 · world median 64.22 · Payments made electronically in a typical month, excluding payroll and payments to government (%). World Bank Group, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 2.172 to 99.91; higher is better.
Behind the world median5
Statistics on which Papua New Guinea does worse than the middle country measured.
Government Internet ShutdownsV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 2025 · world median 1.0230.3031.023▼ Worsened since 2015
Papua New Guinea: 0.303 · world median 1.023 · Original latent estimate (≈ −4 to +2); higher = fewer shutdowns. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from -3.547 to 2.081; higher is better.
Position 111th of 176 · derived.
Firms Experiencing Internet DisruptionsWorld Bank Group · 2026 · world median 32.3550.6932.35No earlier reading
Papua New Guinea: 50.69 · world median 32.35 · Firms that experienced internet outages or slow-downs (%). World Bank Group, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 0.735 to 82.39; lower is better.
Position 33rd of 163 · derived, 1st = worst.
Frontier Technology Readiness IndexUNCTAD · 2023 · world median 0.4850.2190.485▼ Worsened since 2013
Papua New Guinea: 0.219 · world median 0.485 · Frontier Technology Readiness Index (0–1). UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 1; higher is better.
Position 142nd of 170 · derived.
AI User Share of the Working-Age PopulationMicrosoft AI Economy Institute · 2026 · world median 15.457.615.45▼ Worsened since 2025
Papua New Guinea: 7.6 · world median 15.45 · Generative-AI users (% of population aged 15–64). Microsoft AI Economy Institute, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 6.1 to 73.3; higher is better.
ICT Services ExportsUNCTAD · 2024 · world median 7.4740.2157.474▼ Worsened since 2014
Papua New Guinea: 0.215 · world median 7.474 · ICT services exports (% of services exports). UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 56.25; higher is better.
Position 116th of 118 · derived.
No better end3
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
GitHub DevelopersGitHub · 2026 · world median 84,67016,63184,670Moved since 2020
Papua New Guinea: 16,631 · world median 84,670 · Developer accounts located in the economy (as of quarter end). GitHub, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 110 to 32,410,529.
GitHub RepositoriesGitHub · 2026 · world median 141,45411,940141,454Moved since 2020
Papua New Guinea: 11,940 · world median 141,454 · Public repositories located in the economy (as of quarter end). GitHub, 2026 edition, data for 2026.
Published values in that edition run from 142 to 77,284,974.
GitHub Git PushesGitHub · 2025 · world median 148,7146,138148,714Moved since 2023
Papua New Guinea: 6,138 · world median 148,714 · Git pushes during the quarter. GitHub, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 1,967 to 40,768,192.
No current reading for Papua New Guinea
Anthropic AI Usage Index, Digital Services Trade Restrictiveness Index, ICT Goods Exports (last 2023), Internet Use Among Adults, Made or Received a Digital Payment, Mobile Phone Ownership, Primary Schools with Internet for Teaching, Share of Graduates from ICT Programmes and Smartphone Ownership. Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
“Position · derived” is this site’s ordering of the published values, 1st = best unless the row says otherwise; the publisher ranks no country on it. Rank, position and standing
05Country Index 2026
Digital & Technology among Papua New Guinea’s 15 topics
Digital & Technology is Papua New Guinea’s 7th best-placed topic of 15. Strongest first, each marker at its share of that topic’s field.
- Environment & Sustainability14th of 1863/4 keys
- Mobility & Trade67th of 1773/4 keys
- Peace & Security81st of 1774/4 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties112th of 1984/4 keys
- Energyjoint 95th of 1652/3 keys
- Food & Agriculture117th of 1843/4 keys
- Digital & Technology142nd of 1984/4 keys
- Governance & Institutions142nd of 1944/4 keys
- Gender & Equality139th of 1833/4 keys
- Work & Labour150th of 1824/4 keys
- Economy & Innovation147th of 1763/4 keys
- Development & Human Capital164th of 1963/3 keys
- Health & Wellbeing171st of 2002/4 keys
- Education & Knowledge172nd of 1984/4 keys
- Risk & Resiliencejoint 190th of 1933/4 keys
No standing on Poverty & Inequality: too few of those topics’ key statistics are published for this country.
06The top of the list
Who leads on digital & technology
The three countries placed highest of 198, and the leaders Papua New Guinea can most readily be measured against.
=1
EstoniaNorthern Europe
Joint 1st of 198 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Andrus Uuetalu derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0 ee, greyscale
=1
South KoreaEastern Asia
Joint 1st of 198 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Unknown author · CC BY-SA 2.0, greyscale
3
SingaporeSouth-eastern Asia
3rd of 198 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Khairul Nizam . · CC BY 2.0, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Oceania
Australia30th4/4 keysHighest in Melanesia
Vanuatu=133rd4/4 keysThis page
Papua New Guinea142nd4/4 keys
Positions out of 198 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Questions
Papua New Guinea on digital & technology: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Papua New Guinea rank on digital & technology?
Papua New Guinea is placed 142nd of 198 countries on Digital & Technology in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics (GovTech Maturity Index, Government AI Readiness Index, Government Cyber Security Capacity and Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest GovTech Maturity Index figure for Papua New Guinea?
0.548 in 2025 (gTMI score (0–1)), according to World Bank Group. The world median in the same edition was 0.63.
What is the latest Government AI Readiness Index figure for Papua New Guinea?
27.98 in 2025 (aI readiness score (0–100)), according to Oxford Insights. The world median in the same edition was 40.19.
How does Papua New Guinea compare with Indonesia on digital & technology?
Indonesia is placed 33rd of 198, and Papua New Guinea 142nd. GovTech Maturity Index: Indonesia 0.84, Papua New Guinea 0.548; Government AI Readiness Index: Indonesia 59.87, Papua New Guinea 27.98; Government Cyber Security Capacity: Indonesia 1.905, Papua New Guinea -1.529; Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports: Indonesia 41.97, Papua New Guinea 18.27.
How have Papua New Guinea’s digital & technology figures changed?
Government AI Readiness Index fell from 34.75 in 2021 to 27.98 in 2025; Government Cyber Security Capacity rose from -2.409 in 2000 to -1.529 in 2025; Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports rose from 11.62 in 2010 to 18.27 in 2024.
Which digital & technology statistics are missing for Papua New Guinea?
No current reading is published for Papua New Guinea on Anthropic AI Usage Index, Digital Services Trade Restrictiveness Index, ICT Goods Exports, Internet Use Among Adults, Made or Received a Digital Payment, Mobile Phone Ownership, Primary Schools with Internet for Teaching, Share of Graduates from ICT Programmes and Smartphone Ownership. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
08Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Broadband and mobile subscriptions, connection speeds and the cost of getting online are absent, for the licence reason above; internet use and phone ownership, from the World Bank’s own household survey, and firms’ websites and internet disruptions, from its Enterprise Surveys, are published here as context. The ICT share of goods exports votes under Mobility & Trade. Digital public services and data-protection law are not held yet. Research and development spending is filed under Education & Knowledge, and what an economy knows how to make is under Economy & Innovation.
How the Digital & Technology standing is decided
A standing is this site’s ordering, named with its edition — never a publisher’s rank. 4 key statistics vote, one vote each; every country’s published value becomes a place within that key’s own field, the places are averaged, and the average is never published. A country needs 2 of the 4 keys to be placed.
The digital & technology method, step by stepHow every standing on this site is built
The key statistics and their licences
- GovTech Maturity Index — World Bank Group, CC BY 4.0
- Government AI Readiness Index — Oxford Insights, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Government Cyber Security Capacity — V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Digitally-Deliverable Services Exports — UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), CC BY 3.0 IGO
The other 12 statistics on this page come from 5 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Papua New Guinea’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Papua New Guinea (banner) — eGuide Travel, CC BY 2.0
- Estonia — Andrus Uuetalu derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0 ee
- South Korea — Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Singapore — Khairul Nizam ., CC BY 2.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Papua New Guinea: Digital & Technology — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/papua-new-guinea/digital