Abstract
Globally, governments, including South Africa, have relied heavily on digital communication technologies for swift communication with their citizens, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The need for effective government communication strategies becomes paramount during health crises, even though the digital divide questions whether all citizens, especially those based in rural areas of developing countries, have access to digital communication platforms. Theoretically, the Stakeholder Theory, Theory of Planned Behaviour and Technology-Acceptance Model underpinned this study. A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect the data from 405 youths in QwaQwa, aged 18 to 35 years. The results show that while government information on COVID-19 was educational and simple to understand for many participants, the digital divide limited access to the COVID-19 government digital engagement.
The results indicated that more than 50% of the participants experienced unreliable internet connection and lacked digital skills; as they could not use government websites during COVID-19. In addition, the study found that government digital engagement influences behavioural intentions among the youth in QwaQwa. This study highlights the gaps in digital communication methods of the government, thereby encouraging the use of more effective communication strategies for use during health crises.
Keywords:
COVID-19, digital engagement, digital divide, health communication, behavioural intentions.