More than half the global population will have access to the Internet by 2017, driven by the rapid adoption of mobile broadband.

According to a report published over the weekend by the United Nations Broadband Commission, there were 2.3 billion people online at the end of 2013 and the figure is expected to rise to 2.9 billion by the end of the year.

The growth is being driven by mobile broadband uptake, which the UN expects to surge from 2.3 billion people by the end of 2014 to 7.6 billion within the next five years.

77 countries have already seen uptake exceed 50% of the population. The top 10 consists entirely of European countries, with Iceland leading the way at 96.5%. The lowest-ranked countries are still generally found in sub-Saharan Africa, with Eritrea propping up the rest of the world at 0.9%.

"Broadband uptake is accelerating, but it is unacceptable that 90% of people in the world's 48 least developed countries remain totally unconnected," said ITU secretary general Hamadoun Touré, who also serves as co-vice chairman of the Broadband Commission alongside UNESCO director general Irina Bokova.

"With broadband Internet now universally recognised as a vital tool for social and economic development, we need to make [connectivity] a key development priority, particularly in the world's poorest nations," said Touré.

According to the Broadband Commission, the number of countries that have developed a national broadband plan has grown from 102 in 2010 – when the Commission began its work – to 140 today.

However, "there are still too many people who remain unconnected," said Bokova.

"As we focus on infrastructure and access, we must also promote the right skills and diversity of content, to allow women and men to participate in building and participating in knowledge societies," she said.