Utilising information and communication technologies for development: The social dimensions

Abstract

The literature on information and communication technologies (ICTs) is filled with rising optimism about the contribution of these technologies to economic and social development and their potential to transform developing countries into “modern” and knowledge‐based societies. However, as yet very little is known about the veracity of these claims, much less about the long‐term impact that ICTs may have on a country's social and cultural systems.

While not refuting the developmental impact of ICTs, this paper argues that it is unlikely that quantum leap reversals of marginalization and poverty will result from technology transfer to the developing world. If nothing else, past experience shows that the notion of leapfrogging stages of development as a result of application of new technologies is dangerously naive and unrealistic. The paper cautions that developing country governments and international agencies should undertake a more rigorous analysis of the social and cultural dimensions of ICTs in order to be able to design appropriate policies and programmes which will enable countries to harness ICTs for development in their own context. It concludes that the best long‐term development investment that can be made using ICTs is to apply them to the training and education of the new generation, rather than to transform these technologies into short‐term ends in themselves. To achieve this, it is necessary to move towards strategic and better integrated national information, communication, and education policies.

Notes

The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).