"Conducted in 2009 by a group of five Masters in New Media (humanities) students from the University of Amsterdam under the supervision of Geert Lovink the research examines both the role and implementation of ICTs in Uganda, covering a wide range of subcultures and projects, including internet cafe
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usage, print media, NGOs and communities, software subcultures and civic new media. The book argues that now is the time to look beyond the technology layer and instead focus on the social implications and local consequences of digital media’s widespread use. By recognizing the impact that ICTs have on society and identifying what functions currently and what needs to be improved, we can more effectively understand and develop these technologies in the future." (Back cover)
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"The manual and the toolbox seek to address the following question: how to maximise the contribution of the IT industry in developing and emerging countries towards sustainable economic development and poverty reduction? In order to achieve this, the Manual analyses the obstacles impeding the compet
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itive development of this innovative industry in developing and emerging countries. They can be attributed to three major factors: Specific structural problems of developing countries such as lack of efficient support structures, deficiencies in managerial, financial and technological skills, negative brand and country of origin effects (image); Challenges related to internationalisation and export, such as lack of market intelligence and export capabilities as well as the absence of international linkage; Specifics of the IT industry including technical as well as quality standards, high competitive pressure and short innovation cycles. The manual and the toolbox introduce a methodology and a set of practical tools to address these obstacles and promote the IT industry in developing and emerging countries. Their purpose is to provide a practical guideline for designing and implementing projects for promoting the IT sector in developing and emerging countries; develop a specific methodology to enable effective and sustainable IT sector promotion based on the practical experience of German development cooperation; elaborate concrete procedures, processes and tools to promote the IT industry in developing and emerging countries; provide advice on actions and measures to improve the international competitiveness of IT sectors; provide best practices of IT sector promotion in developing and emerging countries." (Executive summary, page 6)
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"Mobile journalism means journalism using mobile phones. Mobile journalists, or mojos, extend the newsgathering options for a news organisation, especially for breaking news, says Stephen Quinn. By citing examples not only from Asia, but also the United States and Europe, he reports on the technique
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s of mojo reporting as well as the integration of mobile journalism in the newsroom structures. He also provides details about the six main software providers and recommends some software tools. Altogether, this is an easy-to-read introduction to an emerging field of online journalism." (CAMECO Update 2-2010)
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"ICTs and Development in India' is a unique attempt to study the nature and consequences of the growing presence of Information Technology in development projects in India." (Publisher description)
"This paper explores why measuring the impacts of information and communication technology (ICT) is important for development – and why it is statistically challenging. Measuring impacts in any field is difficult, but for ICT there are added complications because of its diversity and rapidly chang
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ing nature. A number of impact areas are identified in section 1, and their relationships explored, in the context of their place in the social, economic and environmental realms. The result is a complex web of relationships between individual impact areas, such as economic growth and poverty alleviation, and background factors, such as a country’s level of education and government regulation.
Existing measurement frameworks are described in section 1, and relevant statistical standards examined. The latter includes internationally agreed standards for the ICT sector, ICT products and ICT demand. The contribution of the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development and its member organizations to ICT measurement, and its goals for measuring ICT impacts are outlined. Methodologies used in the measurement of ICT are discussed and compared in section 2 of the paper, and empirical evidence reviewed, in section 3. Most research conducted has found positive effects of ICT in the impact areas investigated. However, research has tended to focus on positive, rather than negative impacts; therefore, the latter tend to be indicated by anecdotal evidence. There is relatively little evidence from developing countries and there are indications that findings in respect of developed countries may not apply to developing countries. In respect of both developed and developing countries, there are few studies that provide internationally comparable evidence. The difficulties of ICT impact measurement, major data gaps and the lack of clear statistical standards suggest several issues for consideration. These are presented in the final section of the paper." (Abstract)
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"La rápida difusión de la telefonía móvil en los países emergentes está cambiando las relaciones entre los actores económicos, los modos de relación interpersonal y la dinámica política de estas sociedades de forma acelerada y difícil de predecir. A lo largo de la historia, la tecnología
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ha infl uido de forma decisiva en los procesos de desarrollo económico y cambio social. Y aunque la telefonía móvil no es una excepción, su rápida difusión se convierte en un reto para comprender cuáles son sus efectos sobre los modos de organización social y política, así como sobre las culturas y los procesos de desarrollo económico. Este libro pretende contribuir a la comprensión de este fenómeno analizando el impacto de la telefonía móvil en el desarrollo social y económico de América Latina en la última década. En el estudio, en el que han colaborado reconocidos especialistas, se analizan los resultados obtenidos en una amplia investigación que abarca análisis regionales y casos de estudio en Argentina, Brasil, Chile y Perú." (Descripción de la casa editorial)
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"The study found evidence that mobiles are being used in ways which contribute to productivity enhancement. However, to leverage the full potential of information dissemination enabled by mobile telephony will require significant improvements in supporting infrastructure and capacity building amongs
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t farmers to enable them to use the information they access effectively. As mobile penetration continues to increase among farming communities and information services continue to adapt and proliferate, the scope exists for a much greater rural productivity impact in the future." (Abstract)
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"This report gives an overview of the current state of mobile phone use and services in East Africa. It outlines major trends and main obstacles for increased use as well as key opportunities and potential for upscaling mobile applications. The report draws on secondary data and statistics, as well
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as field work carried out in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda during 2008 and 2009. The publication identifies a broad range of mobile applications relevant for reaching the poor and contributing to social and economic development – from simple agricultural, market or health information services to advanced financial transaction services or mobile use for election monitoring and governance issues. A commented linklist of existing initiatives in the four countries adds to the usefulness of this well documented study." (CAMECO Update 1-2011)
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"The year 2010 marks the midpoint between the Tunis phase of WSIS (2005) and the deadline for achieving the WSIS targets (2015), in line with the target date of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). This World Telecommunication/ICT Development Report presents a mid-term review of the progress mad
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e towards achieving the ten WSIS targets. The overall objective of the report is to provide policy-makers with a comprehensive assessment of the WSIS targets to date and, based on the findings, make suggestions on the types of policy measures required to meet them. The report also highlights the need for formal monitoring of progress towards achieving the WSIS targets. Currently, there are no agreed indicators for the targets which countries could use for monitoring purposes." (Executive summary, page xxi)
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"Examines the actors, structures and themes that shaped the WSIS with a particular focus on the role played by civil society. The book investigates how civil society self-organization has continued post-WSIS through the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and other policymaking venues, and reflects on w
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hat the WSIS experience reveals about the challenges and opportunities embedded in the notion of multi-stakeholder governance and its implications for understanding global communication." (Publisher description)
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"A decade ago, mobile phone usage in Afghanistan was almost nonexistent; now there are 13 million subscriptions for a total of 29 million citizens, and the annual growth rate of subscription is estimated at 53 percent. A number of factors have fueled this dramatic increase, including the sheer popul
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ar demand for communication, an absence of viable landline substitutes, government deregulation, and a competitive market that flourishes despite the conflict. Each of the major telecommunications companies in Afghanistan identifies the same five challenges to future expansion: poverty, high illiteracy rates, corruption, an untrained workforce, and lack of security. Despite these challenges, Afghanistan has proved an exceptional case study in the use of mobile phones for social change in support of peacebuilding, as it has been the focus of numerous pilot application programs conducted by the government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the private sector. Mobile money transfer (MMT) applications have proved to be powerful mechanisms for helping to reduce corruption, foster security sector reform, and promote economic development. Yet neither the international community nor the Afghan government has shown the will or the capacity to move MMT programs forward at a pace commensurate with their demonstrated potential. At least two other high-value mobile applications were cited during the June summit as having improved conditions for stability and reconstruction in early deployments: (1) the provision of market information through mobile phones, especially in the agricultural sector, and (2) the use of mobile phones to strengthen local governance and civil society. Both applications have sufficient promise to warrant large-scale rollouts and merit careful consideration by international donors, whose support is vital during the transition to sustainability." (Summary)
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"The report draws on the experiences of projects using mobile phone-based information and communication technologies (ICT) applications in a number of situations, including mobile monitoring and evaluation, m-banking, community development, literacy, anti-corruption, agricultural extension and agric
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ultural value chain information and access." (Introduction)
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"The Gender, Agriculture and Rural Development in the Information Society (GenARDIS) small grants fund was initiated in 2002 to support work on gender-related issues in information and communications technologies for the African, Caribbean and Pacific regions. GenARDIS recognises the constraints and
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challenges encountered by rural women, and has disbursed small grants to diverse and innovative projects in order to counter these barriers, to document the process and results, and to contribute to more gender-aware ICT policy advocacy. GenARDIS has supported projects which are as diverse as the countries where they are located. Over the years, GenARDIS has learned from and documented projects such as women’s community radio drama groups, pest control through information access, and using technology to promote women’s inheritance and land rights. Grantees have supported deaf women in Ethiopia to generate their own income through digital photography, and enabled rural mothers to earn additional income for their families because they can market to buyers from outside their community. In some areas, women small farmers are no longer being taken advantage of by the middleman as they now get a fair price for their crops by sending a simple SMS." (Pages 5-6)
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