Rethinking positive and negative impacts of ‘ICT for development’ through the holistic lens of the sustainable development goals

ABSTRACT

The field of information and communication technologies for development (ICT4D) is driven by the conviction that ICTs can be used to improve peoples’ lives. Yet, it often faces criticism related to the negative effects that are associated with ICTs. Instead of viewing these as arguments against ICT4D, this article presents an integrated approach to incorporating them in our conceptualization of ICT4D impact. For this purpose, we envision a framework that is grounded in the interrelated set of Sustainable Development Goals, which make the complex interdependencies between different development goals explicit. By mapping the potentially harmful impact of ICTs within this network of goals, this framework provides a point of reference for holistically conceptualizing ICTs’ negative impact through the lens of policy coherence. Based on this framework, this article discusses, how to conceptualize ICT4D impact, taking into account the multidimensional implications for the environmental, economic and social dimensions of sustainable development.

KEYWORDS:

• ICT4D
• impact
• sustainable development goals
• policy coherence

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributor

Franz-Ferdinand Rothe is a PhD researcher and a teaching assistant at Vrije Universiteit Brussel. He holds an MSc degree in communication studies and has worked in the international development sector for several years. His research focuses on policy coherence in the field of ICT for development, digital inequalities and the Sustainable Development Goals

Notes

1 Some literature interprets the political realm of governance as a fourth pillar of sustainable development (Sachs, 2015). In this article, we will structure our argument along the three core pillars of the SDGs (and their intersections with the political realm).

2 The dimension of intersecting value chains is not limited to technology. Similarly, if a project encompasses, for example, the construction of a telecentre, we find intersecting value-chains which, contain elements such as labor or land use, with a development impact of their own.