I was starting to build a rather bleak picture of ICTs and development in Africa – there seemed to be a lot of policy making going on, and not enough projects with tangible results. Upon closer inspection, however, I have come to realise there are in fact numerous worthwhile projects of various shapes and forms all over Africa. One such program, the e-learning Africa news portal ‘Intel Teach Program’ , proved to be an excellent case study of ICTs development. This program promoted the effective use of technology in DZJ Mthebula High School in a semi-rural region of Limpopo province.
What struck me about this story were two key nuances: firstly that dumping technology in a community is useless unless the skills are taught for the consumption of and production using this technology. Secondly, this case study emphasised the importance of focusing on schools and introducing students to technology which can aid their learning experience, and teach them the skills they need to thrive in the knowledge economy/ information society.
Mthebula High School was donated computers by Telkom a few years ago, but none of the teachers were incorporating the technology into their instruction. School language teacher, Mercy Ntlemo, attributed this to most of the teachers lacking “the specific knowledge and training to integrate technology in any substantive way”. This meant the computers were gathering dust, barely used beyond basic information retrieval and simple word processing.
This example speaks to the larger debate within ICTs and development: development needs to happen on a multitude of different levels. It makes no sense to think you are aiding development by donating free technology like computers to those who lack the skills to utilise this technology effectively.
In this particular case, Ntlemo underwent the Intel Teach Program, a professional development program designed to help teachers integrate technology effectively in the classroom with the objective of helping students build 21st century skills. Ntlemo felt she really benefited from the training and following her success, many other teachers did the program, to help “conquer their technophobia”.
This training program exposed the teachers to new approaches for creating assessment tools and aligning lessons with educational learning goals and standards. Additionally, they discover new ways to incorporate the use of the Internet, Web page design, and student projects as vehicles for powerful learning.
As a result of the Intel Teach Program, Ntlemo says that technology is now an integral part of the curriculum at DZJ Mthebula High School, and project based learning is the norm. The training program revolutionised the way the teachers used the computers – a wonderful resource which until then were being completely underused. Ntlemo says the program “has revolutionised the way we teach.”
So what does a story such as this one teach us? It teaches us that we need to have a wholistic approach to development, and that development occurs within a particular context – such as lack of digital literacy. We need to understand the contexts of the communities needing developments in ICTs so that development does not become a worthless endeavour but rather a meaningful process of change.
To find out more on some of the interesting ICT development projects in Africa, visit the following links:
1. Un Economic Commissions for Africa
2. Acacia: Communities and the Information Society in Africa Program
3. APC Women’s networking support program
4. World Bank: Africa and the knowledge economy
Wednesday, 30 May 2007
Wednesday, 23 May 2007
World Information Society Day passed us by…
This week I visited UNESCO's Communication and Information homepage , only to discover that the 17 May was World Information Society Day - a fact which had completely passed the Rhodes new media class by. As young people studying new media and exploring this notion of the ‘Information Society’, it seemed embarrassing we didn’t even know the day existed. As far as I’m concerned this day actually went unnoticed in South Africa as a whole, a rather disturbing realisation considering the focus of WISD is supposedly those on the furthest end of the digital divide.
That said, what is WISD all about; does it have any real significance? The UNESCO site says the day is celebrated each year to remind the world of the “vision of the World Summit on the Information Society to build ‘a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented information society’ based on fundamental human rights”.
That’s fantastic… but how is this day reminding the world of this vision if we aren’t aware of the day and what it means? This worries me, considering the vision they speak of starts seeming more like hot air than actual policy-making and active development and change programmes.
Judging from the links in and around UNESCO’s information about WISD, I get the impression it was more resolutions and re-affirming of previous development plans in the global ICT realm than real action. For instance, the message from UN Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, urged “policy-makers and industry leaders to put their minds together, and to work cooperatively with children and youth to produce suitable technologies, applications and services to facilitate access to information and communications technologies”.
He noted that young people are the driving force behind innovation in the development and use of new technologies, but the digital chasm leaves many unable to capitalise fully on the benefits of globalization. He emphasised that “young people everywhere must have equal opportunities to rise out of poverty and illiteracy and to realize their full potential”.
I agree of course, but the question remains: what is really being done on a practical level? How are organisations like UNESCO, which should hold responsibility for helping to facilitate ICT development globally, actually aiding this development? I wonder how many youth in Africa were aware of this grand notion of a WISD? How many will be empowered to the extent that they can really be the “driving force behind innovation in the development and use of new technologies”? I don’t mean to be cynical, and I recognise the need for strategy and goal-making, but if this has no real impact then we’ve completely missed the point. I hope WISD resolves to be the global promise, with a global reach and real affects next year.
That said, what is WISD all about; does it have any real significance? The UNESCO site says the day is celebrated each year to remind the world of the “vision of the World Summit on the Information Society to build ‘a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented information society’ based on fundamental human rights”.
That’s fantastic… but how is this day reminding the world of this vision if we aren’t aware of the day and what it means? This worries me, considering the vision they speak of starts seeming more like hot air than actual policy-making and active development and change programmes.
Judging from the links in and around UNESCO’s information about WISD, I get the impression it was more resolutions and re-affirming of previous development plans in the global ICT realm than real action. For instance, the message from UN Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, urged “policy-makers and industry leaders to put their minds together, and to work cooperatively with children and youth to produce suitable technologies, applications and services to facilitate access to information and communications technologies”.
He noted that young people are the driving force behind innovation in the development and use of new technologies, but the digital chasm leaves many unable to capitalise fully on the benefits of globalization. He emphasised that “young people everywhere must have equal opportunities to rise out of poverty and illiteracy and to realize their full potential”.
I agree of course, but the question remains: what is really being done on a practical level? How are organisations like UNESCO, which should hold responsibility for helping to facilitate ICT development globally, actually aiding this development? I wonder how many youth in Africa were aware of this grand notion of a WISD? How many will be empowered to the extent that they can really be the “driving force behind innovation in the development and use of new technologies”? I don’t mean to be cynical, and I recognise the need for strategy and goal-making, but if this has no real impact then we’ve completely missed the point. I hope WISD resolves to be the global promise, with a global reach and real affects next year.
Thursday, 17 May 2007
ICTs, Development and the New Economy: an introduction
In the following weeks I will be blogging on the topic of ‘ICTs, development and the new economy,’ a topic of great significance in a continent largely lagging behind in the digital age. We seem to be facing the unfortunate reality that the telecommunication revolution is increasing the divide between the wealthy and the poor, “creating two distinct classes of information haves and information have-nots” (Sonaike, 2004:41). This is disturbing considering the potential digital developments have to facilitate and encourage development – a potential governments, NGOs and Intergovernmental organisations should be harnessing. The digital revolution can be used to the benefit of those needing access to better information and can provide those who traditionally have been voiceless, to have their voices heard – if only we focus on making this a priority.
We need to understand that a so-called ‘information society’ cannot be measured according to the extent of internet access available in a country, but rather how and to what effect people are able to use these technologies. In Africa, although research shows all 54 countries on the continent have Internet access at least in their capital cities, “the global impact of their connectivity is negligible” (Sonaike, 2004:41). It is clear that, “having access to the Internet and being active participants in the digital revolution are two different things” (Sonaike, 2004:42), if you consider that computers in Africa are mostly used for secretarial work, and the Internet is mostly used for personal email transactions. This is in sharp contrast to ‘Northern’ countries like England and America, who are driving the digital revolution, shaping and determining information on the web, which is disseminated globally and impacts on people around the world.
My following blogs will address this notion of the ‘digital divide’; which refers to disparities in access to, and usage of, the telephone, computers and Internet within and between countries. We need to keep in mind that this divide is experienced on a variety of social levels – from income, education, age, gender, race, occupation, geographic location, language group and many other ‘divides’. Aside from the clear differences between third and first world countries, there are clear inequalities within African countries, with those currently benefiting from the Internet being an affluent “minority, urban-based elite” (Sonaike, 2004:42).
I will be addressing some of the reasons for Africa’s current lagging position in the global technology context – such as the lack of:
- Appropriate telecommunication infrastructure on the continent (and high cost of computer hardware, low bandwidth, restriction of Internet use to major cities)
- Material access i.e. possession of computers, network connections, etc
- Digital experience
- Skills access
Perhaps most importantly I want to address ideas as to how the new medium of technology can be utilised to the benefit of existing development priorities in Africa. Ideas as to how technology like the Internet can be “a partner, rather than a cog, in Africa’s development effort” (Sonaike, 2004: 43) are essential if we take development seriously – and we should. The implication of neglecting such efforts is an increasing world of inequalities, one where Africa at large will continue to suffer.
Works Cited
Sonaike, S. 2004. “The Internet and the Dilemma of Africa’s Development”. International Communication Gazette; 66; 41.
We need to understand that a so-called ‘information society’ cannot be measured according to the extent of internet access available in a country, but rather how and to what effect people are able to use these technologies. In Africa, although research shows all 54 countries on the continent have Internet access at least in their capital cities, “the global impact of their connectivity is negligible” (Sonaike, 2004:41). It is clear that, “having access to the Internet and being active participants in the digital revolution are two different things” (Sonaike, 2004:42), if you consider that computers in Africa are mostly used for secretarial work, and the Internet is mostly used for personal email transactions. This is in sharp contrast to ‘Northern’ countries like England and America, who are driving the digital revolution, shaping and determining information on the web, which is disseminated globally and impacts on people around the world.
My following blogs will address this notion of the ‘digital divide’; which refers to disparities in access to, and usage of, the telephone, computers and Internet within and between countries. We need to keep in mind that this divide is experienced on a variety of social levels – from income, education, age, gender, race, occupation, geographic location, language group and many other ‘divides’. Aside from the clear differences between third and first world countries, there are clear inequalities within African countries, with those currently benefiting from the Internet being an affluent “minority, urban-based elite” (Sonaike, 2004:42).
I will be addressing some of the reasons for Africa’s current lagging position in the global technology context – such as the lack of:
- Appropriate telecommunication infrastructure on the continent (and high cost of computer hardware, low bandwidth, restriction of Internet use to major cities)
- Material access i.e. possession of computers, network connections, etc
- Digital experience
- Skills access
Perhaps most importantly I want to address ideas as to how the new medium of technology can be utilised to the benefit of existing development priorities in Africa. Ideas as to how technology like the Internet can be “a partner, rather than a cog, in Africa’s development effort” (Sonaike, 2004: 43) are essential if we take development seriously – and we should. The implication of neglecting such efforts is an increasing world of inequalities, one where Africa at large will continue to suffer.
Works Cited
Sonaike, S. 2004. “The Internet and the Dilemma of Africa’s Development”. International Communication Gazette; 66; 41.
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