Stories about The Future of ICT for Development
East Timor: Connecting Civil Society
Providing internet access to civil society has been a key priority of the few information and communication technology (ICT) initiatives that exist in East Timor so far.
ICT4D: Past mistakes, future wisdom
What makes an ICT4D project fizzle out? What are the common mistakes that donors, planners and implementers make when trying to run an ICT4D project? Practitioners discuss in a public Twitter chat.
ICT4D for Women: Opportunities and Risks
Mobile phones present opportunities for development as well as risks for further abuse and marginalization of women. Gender awareness is crucial when it comes to using ICT for development.
M-banking: Going where no bank has gone before
Millions and millions of low-income, unbanked people stand to benefit (and maybe prosper?) from the development of mobile financial services in the next years, but there are several technological, logistical, and security challenges that must be addressed first.
India's tryst with e-health: A healthier future for its rural millions?
About 700km away from Bangalore, across a couple of remote villages in the Bidar district, a quiet revolution has been going on. No, not a political one, but a remarkable pilot project in telemedicine.
Can ICTs aid small-scale farmers?
The world's small-scale farmers grow a large amount of food and provide many important jobs in rural areas. However, they do their work at great economic and environmental risk. How can ICTs make the jobs and lives easier for the world's farmers?
Impact of ICT on Indigenous Cultures: Rejuvenation or Colonization?
Can ICT truly preserve and protect distinct identities and culture? The cultural debate surrounding deployment of ICT in the field of indigenous/ knowledge and culture simply refuses to die down.
Uganda & Kenya: In Search of e-Governance
Good governance has been linked to gains in economic and human development. Governments have begun using technologies to offer more citizen services, expand transparency and make information more accessible. We look at how Kenya and Uganda use ICTs to create better governance.
The future of ICT4D: How soon is now?
In the final of three posts on the future of ICTs for development, we examine a few projects that could change the way people leverage technology in rural areas.
Disaster Management and the role of ICTs
In a first post of the series, we explore the role of ICTs in Disaster Management and the paradigm shift in Disaster Management strategies that came about post the aftermath of the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004.
ICT4D: When mobile phones link with computers
In the second of three posts, we ask: How are new technologies changing the field of ICT4D? Will linking computers to portable phones benefit human development in the developing world?
What future for ICT4D?
We know the capacity of mobile phones to affect human development. But that is last year's news. Some thinkers argue that we are on the verge of another round of technological changes that will force ICTs to evolve. What will ICTs for development look like in the next few years?
ICTs and the spread of indigenous knowledge
Practitioners of indigenous knowledge increasingly use the media to exchange ideas and publicize traditional learning to the larger world. What happens when such local practices go global?
India: ICT for senior citizens-Where are we today?
October 1, was the UN-designated International Day of Older persons. For us in India, this seems like a perfect time to stop and take stock of the role played by ICTs in the lives of our senior citizens.
People with disabilities and the promise of ICTs
More than 600 million people in the world live with disabilities. Oftentimes, poverty and disabilities go hand-in-hand. Can the promise of ICTs help disabled people better integrate socially and economically?
Brazil: Socio-digital Inclusion through the Lan House Revolution
The poorest and most excluded population of Brazil have increasingly more access to the Internet through Local Area Networks. But, has the digital inclusion promoted by lan houses across the country affected human development in Brazil?
Harvard Forum – Faith and focus
Ethan's final live-blog post from the Harvard Forum about internet and communications technology ICT for development with concluding thoughts from several participants.
Harvard Forum – What do we need to know?
Today's conversation starts with discussions of “knowledge gaps”, open questions we need to answer through research so we can understand what's succeeding and failing in our field.
Harvard Forum: ICT4D and, and, and
Ethan brings the live-blog from day one to a close after questions and lively discussion with conclusion from Mike Best who suggests there's no way to summarize these discussions… with anything but an observation that the field is filled with “ands”.
Harvard Forum: Are we satisfied with what we've got?
The live-blogging continues, as Michael Spence helps identify questions that are top research priorities for the ICT for development field with input from Yochai Benkler, Rohan Samarajiva, Hernan Galperin, Alison Gillwald, and Bill Melody.
Harvard Forum: the complex world of ICT and gender
The live-blog continues with panel presentations on ICT for development by Clotilde Fonseca, Sabri Saidam, Ineke Buskens, Nancy Spence, and Ethan Zuckerman.
