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One of the central research objectives of theCenter for International Development (CID) at Harvard University is to develop a better understanding of technology’s pivotal role in economic development. In recent years, due to the dynamic evolution of information and communica-tion technologies (ICTs) and the increasing importance of ICT diffusion in the process of economic growth, we recognized the need for a broad and systematic comparison of the ICT devel-opment of countries around the globe. To that end, this chapter presents the Networked Readiness Index (NRI), a major inter-national assessment of countries ’ capacity to exploit the oppor-tunities offered by ICTs, and the first global framework to map out factors that contribute to this capacity. Our short-term aim is for the information presented in the NRI to enhance business leaders ’ and public policymakers ’ understanding of the factor