ICT sector growth jumps to 17.5% in third quarter this year

• Pandemic-induced digital pivot set to help ICT  become dominant sector in overall economy  

The pandemic propelled the significance of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector in the last three months like no other, to emerge as the fastest growing sector in the economy as many traditional economic activities shifted online as lockdowns and other restrictions on in-person activity became the norm since last year. 

According to the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) data, the economic sub-sector identified as ‘information and communication’, recorded a growth of 17.5 percent in the third quarter ended in September from a year ago. 

‘Information and communication’ recorded the highest growth by any other economic sub-sector in the broader services sector in the third quarter, placing it as one of the fastest growing sectors during the last decade. 

While broader services sector activities were largely disrupted, certain sub-sectors such as financial and insurance, real estate, education and other professional services were delivered remotely using ICT services. 
A bank chief characterised the transformation which he saw taking place in the financial sector as one which captured at least five years of digital transformation into a single year due to the pandemic as nearly all transactions which weren’t possible remotely before the pandemic have now been made possible for businesses and the consumers from the comfort of their home or office.

For instance, the financial and insurance sub-sector grew by a robust 10.7 percent in the third quarter from a year ago, coming only second to the ICT sector growth. 

The two sectors accounted for 11.0 percent and 0.9 percent each to the total third quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but the ICT sector’s share could expand in the next couple of years as it has now become the glue, which ensures all other sectors’ functioning despite the interruptions that may come from the virus.