 | Issue: | Global-ICT 2005 |
| Article no.: | 3 | |
| Topic: | WSIS – ICT development perspectives | |
| Author: | Dayanidhi Maran | |
| Title: | Minister for Communications and Information Technology | |
| Organisation: | India | |
| PDF size: | 248KB |
About author
Dayanidhi Maran is India’s Minister for Communications and Information Technology. Mr Maran was elected to the 14th Lok Sabha, the Indian Parliament’s House of the People. As the representative from Central Madras, he is continuing the legacy of his late father, Murasoli Maran, who served in the Union Cabinet in various capacities, including as Minister for Commerce and Industry. Mr Maran has been deeply involved and associated with the print media for well over a decade. He is a voracious reader and takes keen interest in areas of current affairs, political science, social science, commerce, finance, global trade and information technology. Dayanidhi Maran received his initial education in Tamil Nadu and graduated in Economics from Loyola College in Chennai. Mr Maran has attended many educational programmes and courses including the Owner/President Management Programme (OPM), at Harvard Business School, in the United States.
Article abstract
The sharing of knowledge, enhanced by removing all barriers to access through the judicious use of the Internet, can drive development. ICT is a powerful enabler of development. ICT-enabled global flows of information, products, people, capital and ideas, offer great potential for radical improvements in human development, but, unless available to all, they can worsen and entrench existing poverty. Consequently, the WSIS decisions about the use of ICT will determine if the road brings wider development or greater inequality.
Full Article
It is trite to say that ‘we are living with change’ or that ‘we are living in a changing society’. However, it needs to be recognized that the relationships between government, politics and citizens are changing. There are numerous ways, some obvious and some subtle, in which the utilization of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is affecting these relationships. In this sense, one may speak of ‘e-transformation’ in government, politics and society. The WSIS Declaration of Principles speaks of Information Society and the role of ICT. About the Internet in particular, it states that, ‘the Internet has evolved into a global facility available to the public and its governance should constitute a core issue of the Information Society agenda’ (paragraph 48). The Summit is an important step in the right direction to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). We are also of the view that sharing of global knowledge for development can be enhanced by removing all barriers to access with the judicious use of Internet. The influence of ICT as a powerful enabler for the rapid and fuller achievement of the Millennium Goals is well known. However, the issues involved in its being so, in being an enabler, are often underplayed. Hence, in the following few pages I intend to give a broad and conceptual framework of the role of ICT, from a developmental perspective, highlighting some of the key areas where ICT has the possibility of making largest impact and where the lack of ICT would cause maximum harm to those excluded. Age of Information We often hear that we are entering an ‘Information Age’. The availability of advanced telecommunications services is becoming a key factor affecting where one chooses to live or establish a business. Information dominates processes as well as products. The new economics of information is transforming the strategies we adopt. Unprecedented global flows in information, products, people, capital and ideas, all enabled by ICT, offer great potential for radical improvements in human development, but unless available to all, they may also serve to worsen and entrench the spiral of poverty which already exists in many communities and countries. This is why decisions about the use of ICT will be critical in determining which road we go down, to wider development or greater inequality. That is why WSIS is so relevant today. Divided world We live in a divided world, between rich and poor, healthy and sick, literate and ignorant, democratic and authoritarian and between empowered and deprived. We have made rapid advances in our technological capabilities in the past centuries, and we have enacted policies for enhancing human development. Unfortunately, with all our efforts, we have not wiped out these glaring disparities. Digital divide Historically, a lack of access to ICT was defined as a ‘digital divide’, a separation of society, based upon who has or not effective access to digital technology, into the information rich and poor. Current research indicates that the ‘digital divide’ is best understood as part of a socio-economic context, and is related to the issue of social exclusion. As such, solutions need to go beyond technology. A more comprehensive understanding of the digital divide, as a phenomenon based upon different degrees of access to information technology, rather than a simple division between information ‘haves and have-nots,’ is needed to successfully address the problem of digital exclusion. Digital inclusion Furthering digital inclusion will require a more detailed understanding of the relationships between information, people and technology. The barriers to digital inclusion cover the social, economic, technical and cultural issues that influence so many groups in society today. Digital inclusion, therefore, recognizes that a combination of elements may limit participation in the information economy. Digital inclusion is not about computers, the Internet or even technology. It is about using technology as a channel to improve skills, to enhance quality of life, to drive education, and to promote the economic well being of all elements of society. Network creation ICT can be a powerful enabler of Development Goals because of its uniquely universal applicability. Communications networks dramatically improve communication and the exchange of information thereby strengthening and creating economic, social and virtual communities and groups. ICT networks can be far more powerful than traditional electronic networks. According to Metcalf’s Law the ‘value’, the ‘power’, of a network increases by the square of the number of nodes, such as computers, on the network. Correspondingly, according to Reed’s Law, the utility of large networks, particularly social networks, can scale exponentially with the size of the network. Hence, the benefit or costs of digital inclusion or exclusion also swing exponentially in accordance with the degree of inclusion – the number of participants. Given the need for development in many parts of the world, despite the advances brought by ICT in today’s information age, the enduring need for digital inclusion is especially poignant. A moment’s reflection will show that the very advantages of ICT contain the seeds of a far more invidious digital exclusion than previously imagined. This is true because, although ICT are capable of creating a level playing field, there is no inherent guarantee that they will do so in the absence of strong, coordinated policies adhered to by all of the stakeholders. In order for ICT to foster the attainment of Development Goals, they must be employed effectively and relevantly, addressing felt needs, finding solutions and facilitating empowerment of the socially excluded. This is where the importance of WSIS becomes apparent. In India, we have taken various measures to enable ICT to percolate through to the masses and become relevant to their needs. These measures advance the use of ICT in such diverse sectors as health, education, governance, transparency, multilingualism, competition and commerce, and the building of social capital. We have also put in place an appropriate regulatory regime, like the Information Technology Act, to be a true enabler of development. For want of space, I shall not delve into this any further except to affirm that we in India are of the firm belief that strong cooperation within, and among, regions is an essential component of knowledge sharing. The very nature of ICT means that the entire world community must cooperate and put in place a framework where ICT can be relevant to the bottom of the pyramid of the human race, which is populated by five billion people. This is where initiatives like WSIS are most important. We for our part, assure our fullest cooperation in the regional and international integration of a knowledge sharing apparatus that will build a development oriented global information society.
