<P> The global digital divide is often characterised as corresponding to the north--south divide; however, Internet use, and especially broadband access, is now soaring in Asia compared with other continents . This phenomenon is partially explained by the ability of many countries in Asia to leapfrog older Internet technology and infrastructure, coupled with booming economies which allow vastly more people to get online . </P> <P> The major reason for the current division is historically due to colonialism through which then European powers exploited or destroyed local economies, at the same time they tried to destabilise the regions in global South to ensure lack of development . It is notable that in pre colonial times, the divide was reverse, with Asian and African countries much richer than the European countries . </P> <P> Uneven immigration patterns lead to inequality: in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries immigration was very common into areas previously less populated (North America, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Australia, New Zealand) from already technologically advanced areas (Germany, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Portugal). This facilitated an uneven diffusion of technological practices since only areas with high immigration levels benefited . Immigration patterns in the twenty - first century continue to feed this uneven distribution of technological innovation . People are eager to leave countries in the South to improve the quality of their lives by sharing in the perceived prosperity of the North . "South and Central Americans want to live and work in North America . Africans and Southwest Asians want to live and work in Europe . Southeast Asians want to live and work in North America and Europe". </P> <P> Some economists have argued that international free trade and unhindered capital flows across countries could lead to a contraction in the North--South divide . In this case more equal trade and flow of capital would allow the possibility for developing countries to further develop economically . </P>

What divides africa between the northern and southern hemispheres