ICT4D Plan US Workshop Sept 09

ICT for Development

Background

• Information Communication Technology:→ Technology used to inform and communicate

• Uses:– To gather, access and store information.– To communicate, disseminate and exchange.– To process, organise and consolidate information.

• Convergence:– ICTs have different functions

and applications– They can be used together to

broaden their scope and use.

What is ICT?

The many faces of connectivity in Africa

Elements of ICT 4 D workICT for Development is like a knot:

→ Is there a connection? → Can I use it? → Can I find anything useful?→ Can I make myself heard?→ What next? Can I make use of it?

You cannot loosen one strand without the others ...

Information and Communication needs

How do I & C support rights-based development work?

Information Know your rights and

entitlements Access services Improve your livelihoods Design appropriate

programmes Study and learn

Communication Convince others to join

you Influence decisions and

policies Share ideas and

experiences Learn from others Coordinate and organise

How can ICTs help to meet development goals?

ICT can support development work in 3 ways:

1.Directly – address the digital divide through improved connectivity, capacity, access

2.Strategically – apply ICTs to enhance the impact of development projects and programmes

3.Indirectly – improve the efficiency and effectiveness of development organisations

1: Direct ICT4D work

Direct work to address the (local, national, regional, global) digital divide such as:

• Access: Support telecentres for public access to internet, telephone, fax and other information services and training. Provide computers and internet connections for schools, CBOs and other public places/ groups.

• Policy: Ensuring that ICT policy is oriented to development needs. Protecting the right to information.

• Content: Ensuring that appropriate information is available in the right language, place, format etc.

• Capacity: Training and resource materials for ICT skills

2: Strategic use of ICT4D

Using ICT to enhance the impact of existing work, to:• Connect people: strengthen networks and partnerships, facilitate

forums and exchanges, improve relationships between stakeholders.

• Inform people: about their rights and entitlements and services, to support their livelihoods and education, share learning.

• Raise awareness: collect data on rights, promote local knowledge, share sustainable practices, provide advice and support.

• Build capacity: Develop and share content for training, advice and follow-up support. Networking participants and peers.

• Increase participation: Expand debates, facilitate dialogue, improve CBO effectiveness, increase transparency, mobilise lobbying.

2: Examples of strategic use of ICT4D• Market information:

• Preventative Healthcare:

• Citizens’ media:

• Emergencies:

• Others?:

2: Examples of strategic use of ICT4D• Market information: In Senegal, Manobi have developed a service to give

price data on different crops collected from different markets around the country. Farmers receive the information on the crop they are interested in on their mobile phone allowing them to make decisions about where to sell, who to sell to, or even when to harvest.

• Health prevention: In Mali Pésinet agents use mobiles to collect data on the weight gain of young children from low-income families, and send it to a database which can alert the paediatrician to cases of concern. The doctor can examine the risk curves and send SMS to the community agent who can inform the family and advise them to take the child for examination.

• Citizens’ media: Voices of Africa train people to report on local events and news from their mobiles and upload them onto the internet. It is hoped that the stories and images will trigger reactions from users and provide an alternative view of African current affairs, and strengthen democracy and governance.

• Social support: In South Africa, Cell-life use instant messaging to enable a peer support and counselling group for positive living, and send HIV positive subscribers SMS reminders to take their drugs, or attend appointments.

• Climate change adaptation: In Senegal ENDA use mobile phones to facilitate discussions with poor farmers around adaptation to climate change.

Examples from the Mobiles for Development guide.

3: ICT for Development organisationsIncrease the efficiency and effectiveness of

organisational processes:• Well informed: Bringing diverse perspectives and knowledge into

planning, implementing and monitoring projects and programmes.

• In touch: Facilitate communication and sharing of learning amongst staff, and with partners, donors and supporters.

• Accountable: Support timely gathering of data and reporting to staff and stakeholders, including sponsors. Facilitate feedback.

• Up to date: Build skills and capacity of staff, develop and share new methods, tools and resources, access the latest news and resources.

• In time: Increase the efficiency and timeliness of emergency responses and other logistical operations.

Unpacking I-C-T

Technology supports the flow of information and communication

A solution looking for a problem?

Unpacking I-C-TTo create a strong, useful and sustainable ICT4D

initiative you need to consider both:

Information and Communication

identify the needs you want to meet

Understand the realities of the context

Technology

Know what is possible and available

Be inspired!

Using Mobiles EffectivelyThree stage process:

Stage 1: need/potential for mobile technologies Identify where information and communication play a role in

existing and planned work and the process you wish to support Establish the directions of, and precedents for the information

flows you wish to facilitate

Eg:, Country Offices may want to look at their existing programs and analyze them, map them, to see where new and appropriate technology could play a role.

Using Mobiles EffectivelyThree stage process:

Stage 2: Socio-technical context Identify social issues which may have an impact on

communication effectiveness Analyze barriers and opportunities for control, use and impact

of mobile technologies in the context

Using Mobiles EffectivelyFor example (stage 2)

How do people currently get information? How is it different for women, men, children, adults, etc. What sources do they trust? Who does the information you are collecting belong to in the end? Etc.

What are the most commonly used comms technologies in the area? Are people using mobile phones? How? Who controls access in the village or household? What are the barriers to mobile phone access? (language? Literacy? Pricing? Control?) Is text or voice more popular? Who are the intermediaries?

Each context varies – what is the pricing structure? Policy and regulations? Network used? What mobile applications do stakeholders commonly use now? Who supplies the mobiles?

Using Mobiles EffectivelyThree stage process:

Stage 3: choose the technology and content Based on the prior analysis, identify the technical components

which fit your aims, context and budget Ensure relevant content and capacity exists to create the

desired impact

We all have our ways to communicate!

Communication contextMany different ways to get information and

communicate with others. How many different ways

can you think of? Does it always involve technology?

How do we choose? Accessibility Reliability Affordability Appropriateness Any others?The choice will be person and

context specific Matrix by participants in an ActionAid ICT project in Uganda

Things to remember

Information and communications comes first, and technology comes later

Programs will have different IC components that work together – both non-tech and tech – depending on your prior analyses

Technology is not a silver bullet – it’s still complicated and brings its own challenges like anything in development

“It’s all about understanding the agents of change and that’s anthropology, not technology” (Mark Davies)