Challenges

and
Partnerships
A contribution of the United Nations Information and Communication
Technologies Task Force to the World Summit on the Information Society

Opening up
ICT to the world
 Contents

“Information technology... is a 5 Foreword

Mr José Maria Figueres-Olsen, Chairman,
powerful force that can and must be
UN ICT Task Force
harnessed to our global mission of peace
and development. This is a matter of 7 Welcome message
Mr Yoshio Utsumi, Secretary General, International
both ethics and economics; over the Telecommunication Union
long term, the new economy can only be
productive and sustainable if it spreads 9 Publisher’s welcome

worldwide and responds to the needs
and demands of all people. I urge
everyone in a position to make a
difference to add his or her energies
10 Digital diaspora networks and the series on
Policy Awareness and Training in Information
Technology (PATIT)
United Nations Information and Communication
Technologies Task Force

to this effort.” 12 Global digital divide initiative

Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations World Economic Forum

14 Digital opportunities for all

Digital Opportunity Task Force

16 The dialogue of civilisations

UN ICT Task Force Regional Network for Europe and
Central Asia

18 eEurope: An information society for all

European Commission

20 Creating digital opportunity for developing

countries
Markle Foundation

24 Global focus on youth and education

Nokia
Welcome to Challenges and Partnerships, a contribution of the United
Nations Information and Communication Technology Task Force to the World 26 ICT – Transforming the world by transforming
universities
Summit on the Information Society.
Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency

28 Closing the digital divide through education

and training
STMicroelectronics

29 The Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge IT Skills Centre

Talal Abu-Ghazaleh International
Contents
31 The World Bank Group: Fostering digital
opportunities
World Bank Group
32 Metapolicy for ICTs: The Digital Nations
Consortium
United Nations Information & Communication
Technology Task Force, Working Group 1
34 National & regional e-development strategies:
A blueprint for action
United Nations Information & Communication
Technology Task Force, Working Group 2
36 A road to universal broadband connectivity
United Nations Information & Communication
Technology Task Force, Working Group 5
38 Technology solutions advance
entrepreneurship in developing countries
United Nations Information & Communication
Technology Task Force, Working Group 6
41 ICT Policy Development and Implementation
seminar for Afghanistan
The Asia-Pacific Information Development Programme
42 APC: Internet and ICTs for social justice and
development
Association for Progressive Communications
44 Bridging the digital divide through the Cisco
Networking Academy Program
Cisco Systems Inc.
46 AME and the Cl@se initiative
Fundación Cisneros
48 Promoting ICT for development alongside
gender equality issues
WSIS-Gender Caucus
50 German initiatives
Federal Foreign Office, Government of Germany
52 e-Inclusion: Dikahotole Digital Village,
South Africa – rising out of a cycle of poverty
Hewlett-Packard
53-55 The First Latin American and Caribbean
Video Art Competition and Exhibition
DIGITALYART, an exhibition on technology in art
The Cultural Center of the Inter American
Development Bank
56-60 The Inter-American Development Bank
steps in to support ICT applications for small
businesses
The ALDEA Program: Digital strategies for the
Latin America and Caribbean Governments
Italian Trust Fund for Information and
Communication Technology for Development
Inter-American Development Bank Information and
Communication Technology for Development Division
61 The vital role of e-government and
e-governance
Ministry for Innovation and Technologies,
Government of Italy
62 Challenges and partnerships
International Telecommunication Union
64 Media Lab Asia:
Innovating for the next Five Billion
MIT and the World Bank Group
66 UNCTAD and e-commerce strategies for
development
United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development
68 The Information Society in Europe and
North America:
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
71 UNITeS: In partnership with universities
United Nations Information Technology Service
73 UNESCO’s international initiative for
community multimedia centres
UNESCO
75 UNFIP: Facilitating the Millennium
Development Goals
UNFIP
Foreword
Mr José Maria Figueres-Olsen
Chairman, UN ICT Task Force
D
espite real progress on some
fronts, there remain dramatic
disparities in levels of human
development: the digital divide is
threatening to exacerbate the existing
social and economic inequalities between
countries and communities.
The principal objective of the Summit
should be identification of strategies and
actions that would mainstream ICT into
the work aimed at achieving the
Millennium Development Goals, which provide the wider social,
economic and political context.
One third of the world’s population has never made a telephone
call. Seventy percent of the world’s poorest live in rural and remote
areas, where access to information and communications technologies,
even to a telephone, is often scarce. Most of the information
exchanged over global networks such as the internet is in English, the
language of less than 10 percent of the world’s population.
In response to these growing concerns, in March 2001, the
United Nations Economic and Social Council requested the Secretary
General to establish an Information and Communication Technologies
(ICT) Task Force. The Council recognised the tremendous potential of
the digital revolution for economic growth, poverty eradication and
sustainable development. Countries in which most people do not
have access to the new technologies cannot play a full part in the
new global economy at a time when knowledge acquisition and
information are becoming pre-requisites for human development and
progress. And the longer they remain outside the global economy,
the harder and costlier it will be to catch up. The digital divide must
then be bridged before it is too late.
In order to spread information and communications technologies
and their benefits to the developing world, intensified cooperation
and strong commitment among the private and non-profit sectors
will be required.
The private sector – through innovation, risk taking and
investment – can help develop a country’s ICT infrastructure. The
private sector can contribute to achieving development goals with
investments that can produce a positive impact on social and
economic development outcomes. Companies can do well by doing
good. They can help devise ICT solutions
that are built to last. Secondly, they can
participate in public-private initiatives that
are driven by user demands, identified
and realised through direct participation
and ownership. Thirdly, such initiatives
should be sensitive to local conditions
and limitations. And finally, initiatives
should be explicit about their
development goals and how they will
directly impact the target population.
All these aspects suggest that ICT interventions focusing on
development goals must address a variety of interrelated
dimensions to secure an enduring impact. The potential impact of
ICT interventions would be far greater if they are conceived in
conjunction with private sector economies. There is no doubt that
the private sector could be a great asset to ICT initiatives in
developing countries.
Governments, on the other hand, can play a role in providing a
favourable policy and pro-competitive environments to ensure
market fairness and flexibility as well as exercising leadership
through strategic investments in ICT applications and content.
If public-private partnerships are built on complementarities
between the profit motive of the private sector and human
development goals, we can achieve sustainable results and the
harmonious development of a global networked society.
The United Nations ICT Task Force is helping to build
partnerships in key areas such as low-cost connectivity access,
human resources development and capacity building, and business
enterprise and entrepreneurship. It also provides a platform to
analyse how programmes for promoting education, combating
diseases, promoting gender equality and the empowerment of
women, and those targeting youth, the disabled and people living in
poverty in general can be leveraged and enhanced with ICT.
Our objective is to work towards an ambitious but achievable
agenda, in which progress would offer all human beings a chance of
achieving lifelong prosperity. We have begun to transform our
societies and together we can and must find our way towards a
universal and inclusive information society in which wealth creation
and social well being go hand-in-hand. ■
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 5
Welcome message

Mr Yoshio Utsumi
Secretary General, International Telecommunication Union

“ While the basic needs of humankind have

long been food, clothing and shelter, the time

”
has come to add ‘information’ to that list

I
nformation has the power to dispel ignorance and to empower
those who are oppressed. It has the power to bind the global
community and to spread the common ideals of peace and
tolerance, growth and development. While the basic needs of
humankind have long been food, clothing and shelter, the time has
come to add ‘information’ to that list.
We stand on the brink of a new era in which we must make
fundamental choices about what life in the information society will
be like. We may not be entirely able to predict how it will manifest
itself, but we must embrace it if we wish to ensure the basic
principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
and embraced by the Millennium Development Goals, are fulfilled.
Today, activities based around the creation, processing and
dissemination of information account for more than 80 percent of
employment in the developed world, while 1.5 million villages
worldwide remain unconnected to this information society. The
World Summit on the Information Society represents a unique
opportunity to help our political leaders, on either side of this digital
divide, to develop a common vision of how to turn the challenges
created by the Information Society into opportunities.
Now more than ever we must seek new and innovative ways of
mobilising and coordinating our efforts in this area, by seeking a
global perspective that ensures we maximise our collective
strengths, resources and skills. This publication provides an
excellent overview of the work that is being done to bridge the
digital divide and the hope that information and communication
technology can bring to people of the world.
It has been said that the best way to predict the future is to
invent it. Together, through the World Summit on the Information
Society, we can invent a future where the tools of communication
make the world a more equitable, peaceful and sustainable place for
all, not just for a privileged few. ■

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 7
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Welcome message
Mr Spencer Green
Chairman, GDS Publishing Ltd
G
DS has been publishing journals for the
information and communication technologies
(ICTs) sector for many years, and still the
phenomenal speed of evolution and development
amazes me. New products, new services and new
ways of conducting business are created everyday
through an increasing convergence between
telecommunications, broadcasting multimedia and
traditional IT, then disseminated and implemented at
incredible speed using the same channels.
Meanwhile, modern business’ hunger for
information, ‘lean’ operations and connectivity – given
a solid platform by ICTs – is opening new markets to
competition, foreign investment and participation, and
is driving commercial and professional opportunities
in these markets.
We are living through a paradigm shift every bit as
far reaching as that of a century ago, when the world
pitched from an agrarian to an industrial base. Now
the industrial society that marked the 20th century is
giving way to the information society of the 21st
century, and the changes are coming thick and fast:
how people live, how they learn and work, and how
governments interact with civil society. Information
has become the most powerful tool for economic and
social development.
To benefit the world community fully, this new
dynamic needs global attention. We need to close the
gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ of access to
the global information and communication network: to
bridge the ‘digital divide’. And, as Kofi Annan,
Editor Adam Burns adam@gdspublishing.com Assistant editors Jonathon Edgley Kellie Peakman Alice Sharp Designers Andrew Hobson James
West Production manager Dylan Law dylan@gdspublishing.com Managing director Chris White christian@gdsinternational.com Chairman Spencer Green
Contact GDS: T +44 2920 383333 www.gdsinternational.com GDS Publishing Ltd, Tower House, Fairfax Street, Bristol BS1 3BN, UK
Secretary-General of the United Nations has said:
“Governments themselves are acknowledging that
they cannot successfully pursue development on their
own. Thus there is unprecedented scope for public-
private partnerships that match real investment
opportunities with the real needs of the poor...”
The digital divide has the potential to give rise to
a new form of illiteracy by promoting information and
knowledge poverty and limiting the opportunities for
economic growth and wealth distribution. Mr Annan:
“If all countries are to benefit, we need more and
better strategic public-private partnerships. That is
one of the primary functions of the United Nations
Information and Communication Technologies Task
Force, which brings together CEOs, government
officials, nongovernmental organisations, technical
experts and other information industry leaders.”
ICTs can create economic and social networks,
allowing diverse groups around the world to access
and exchange information and knowledge crucial for
their socio-economic development. The benefits to
business are obvious, less obvious are the benefits to
basic health and education services delivery, and to
marginalized and isolated people who can now have a
voice in the world community, regardless of their
gender or where they live.
To this end, of course, there is the World Summit
on Information Society.
I would like to wish everyone a successful
Prepcom and hope you find ‘Challenges and
Partnerships’ a useful and interesting contribution. ■
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 9
 From the United Nations Information and
Communication Technologies Task Force to the
World Summit on the Information Society
Two Task Force initiatives
Digital diaspora networks
C
onvinced of the positive potential of ICT
to accelerate economic growth and
social development, and as part of its
effort to mobilise key partners for ICT-for-
development, the United Nations ICT Task Force
launched an initiative aimed at bringing together
qualified members of the Diaspora – high-tech professionals,
entrepreneurs and business leaders – into a network with their
counterparts in order to promote ICT-for-development initiatives in
their home country.
This initiative, known as the Digital Diaspora Network, aims to
promote development and the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals through mobilising the intellectual,
technological, entrepreneurial and financial resources of the
Diaspora entrepreneurs.
Through the Digital Diaspora Networks, expatriates working in
the high-tech sector in North America and Europe will seek to
jump-start ICT initiatives in their home region. Thousands of
Internet nodes and digital activities are taking shape in many
developing countries, but usually lack the capital, expertise and
networking ability to stabilise and grow. The Networks will mobilise
expatriate leaders and entrepreneurs to underwrite and mentor
these developments.
The modalities of the initiative are modelled, to a large extent, on
the successful IndUS Entrepreneurs network created nine years ago
for the Indian Diaspora in the United States.
Two Digital Diaspora Networks have been launched by the ICT
Task Force so far: The Digital Diaspora Network for Africa (DDN-A)
and the Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean (DDN-C).
For Africa
The Digital Diaspora Network for Africa (DDN-A) was launched in
July 2002, in collaboration with the United Nations Fund for
International Partnerships, the United Nations Development Fund for
Women and the Digital Partners Institute. The launch meeting
10 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
brought together more than 130 high-level
entrepreneurs, academics and experts of African
origin currently residing in the United States.
Among the tangible outcomes of the launch
meeting was the creation of an AfriShare
Network, a platform for sharing best practices
and matching innovative projects with mentors
and potential sponsors, and the launching of a Social Venture Fund
for Africa that will provide financial support for entrepreneurial
activities using ICT in Africa. A Steering Committee was formed and
immediately started work on the Plan of Action of the Network.
In September 2002, the Digital Diaspora network for Africa was
launched in Europe as well. In the near future the Digital Diaspora
Network for Africa will link the two diaspora networks – in the United
States and in Europe – with existing and emerging networks in Africa,
thus creating a broad platform for empowering African entrepreneurs
and enhancing their contribution to development of the continent.
For the Caribbean
The Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean was launched in
January 2003, in partnership with the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Fund for International
Partnerships (UNFIP). The initiative was supported by the CARICOM
Permanent Missions to the United Nations and the CARICOM
Secretariat, and facilitated by the Caribbean American Chamber of
Commerce and Industry.
The launch meeting of the Network led to the formation of a
steering team, coordinated by the CARICOM Secretariat and the
University of the West Indies with the task of establishing an
organisational framework to promote and manage the resulting
network of interest, to ensure continuity and to oversee and monitor
follow-up activities. ■
For more information, contact: Daniela Giacomelli,
Program Manager, United Nations ICT Task Force Secretariat
Giacomellid@un.org www.unicttaskforce.com
Series on Policy Awareness and Training in Information Technology (PATIT)

Initiative Organised by UNITAR, Mandate given by ICT Task Force, under the auspices of the ECOSOC Working Group on Informatics in
New York, with the support of Intel Corporation, Inc.

Type of initiative Capacity building programme – skills training and awareness building

Objectives To enable diplomats to the United Nations in New York, to acquire specific computer skills and be exposed to workings of the Internet.
To raise awareness and understanding of policy and security issues related to the information society among diplomats and policy makers
To enable govt. officials in countries to acquire specific computer skills and be exposed to workings of the Internet through web-
based learning
To help provide input into preparation for the World Summit for Information Society by exposing Member State delegates and
officials in capitals to technologies, on which they will be required to formulate policies.

Implementing partners UNITAR, United Nations ICT Task Force and Intel Corporation, Inc.

Partnership with Intel Intel’s high level of commitment to the series is demonstrated through its donation of 40 computers for training labs at the United
Nations in New York, and its substantial and financial hands-on participation in training events with UNITAR. This participation
includes providing instructors and facilitators in class, development of training material and complete involvement in delivery and
evaluation of the project in instructor-led training as well as on-line training. Intel is also very committed that this capacity building
initiative should support the eventual quality of inputs into WSIS.

Facts and results Participants – Certificate Programme (4 modules on basic computer and Internet skills and one module on policy and information
security issues):
• In 2002, 4 cycles of the 5 module certificate programme were conducted
• 33 workshops were delivered
• 100 participants trained in the certificate programme in 2002 (Africa 41%, Asia 23%, Latin America and the Caribbean 24%,
Europe and Emerging Economies 10%, North America 1%)
• Participants from 65 countries participated in the certificate programme.

Participants – Open High-level Seminar (Module 5) I, II and III:

• 400 participants attended the 3 high-level seminars in 2002; (Africa 33%, Asia 21%, Latin America and the Caribbean 28%,
Europe and Emerging Economies 16%, North America 2%)

Training Material:
• For Module 1 to 4 a set of handbook, exercises on CD ROMS and Handouts were provided for each. In addition supporting
resources were posted on the training website www.un.int/unitar/patit
• For Module 5 – the high-level seminar, training materials and summary of discussions were provided on CD ROM, and posted on
to PATIT website.

3-Year Plan (2003-2005) Partnership agreement with Intel, with commitment from the ICT Task Force for 2003:
for the PATIT Initiative • Instructor-led Classes in New York: To expand the cycles of instructor-led classes in New York from 4 to 5 for the next 2 years
• Global Outreach through Web-based Training: To develop, in parallel to the above, web-based full-fledged modules to provide
access to training in capitals over the next 2 years. To phase out the instructor-led classes once the modules are fully on-line.
• Policy and Security Awareness Seminars: To provide briefings and input to the diplomatic community in New York in preparation
for the WSIS in 2003 and 2005

Conclusion The organisers and sponsors are encouraged that the participant profile has been in-line with the ICT Taskforce’s developmental
priority of providing policy makers and officials from developing and less-developed countries with basic exposure to computers
and Internet technologies. This can be seen from the regional and hierarchical class profile, where on average 41% of participants
were from Africa (a priority area) and 47% were from Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean combined. By title/hierarchy 48% of
total participants were senior diplomats such as Permanent Representatives, Deputy Permanent Representatives and Minister
Counsellors etc. This indicated a high level of interest and need among the highest level of decision makers for meeting the
challenge posed by new information and communication technologies.

UNITAR and its partners for this series strongly believe that this is one of the rare programmes where results are immediately
visible, because the need is immediate, and can be addressed very simply.

For more information, contact: Humaira Kamal, UNITAR Special Fellow. hkamal@un.org www.unitar.org

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 11
 From the World Economic Forum to the World
Summit on the Information Society

Global digital
divide initiative
O
ver the last three years, the global digital
divide has come into focus as one of the
critical global issues facing poverty
alleviation and development. Indeed, the role of
technology in development has been recognised
through key international efforts undertaken by the
G-8 DOT Force and the United Nations ICT Task
Force. In parallel, the business sector has made
important investments towards digital development
and such practices are being mainstreamed into their
corporate strategy.
The World Economic Forum through its Global
Digital Divide Task Force is pleased to have served
the development community at the intersection of
government, business and the not-for-profit sectors
in addressing the issue of creating digital
opportunities for social and economic growth.
In its third and final year, the Global Digital Divide
Task Force has demonstrated itself as a successful over 10 countries and collective investments totalling
incubator for projects that facilitate digital over $2.5 Million.
development in disadvantaged regions of the world. While the Task Force completes its mandate at
Set up by the Governors for IT, Media and this year’s Annual Meeting 2003, the work
Entertainment at our Annual Meeting 2000, the Task programmes launched by the Task Force will
Force has developed a private sector-led multi- continue their growth thanks to the leadership and
stakeholder community that serves to provide a commitment of their original initiators. Having served
business perspective to policy advocacy, awareness as a ‘launch pad’ for sustainable projects, such as
raising, project implementation, resource mobilisation this one, the World Economic Forum will diminish this
and relationship building. support in the future.
Through the commitment and leadership of its As we commence 2003, the Forum looks forward
co-chairs, and the vision, hard work and dedication to new challenges where we can apply our many
of the Task Force members, the Global Digital Divide lessons learned over the course of our mandate. The
Task Force boasts a significant portfolio of Forum is poised to facilitate efficient participation in
achievements. In 2000, the Task Force was corporate citizenship activities for our members and
mandated to complete an international policy effort partners that wish to increase their involvement in
culminating with the G-8 Summit in Kyushu-Okinawa. development activities. ■
With the momentum generated from this effort, the
Governors requested an additional two-year mandate
For more information, visit:
to implement our recommendations. Today, the Task www.weforum.org
Force work programme has a footprint that reaches

12 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
CEO charter for digital development
At the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2002 in New
York, former Vivendi Universal Chief Executive and Global Digital
Divide co-chair, Jean-Marie Messier, proposed the CEO Charter
for Digital Development (‘CEO Charter’).
The CEO Charter is a resource mobilisation initiative
designed to bring together members of the private sector to
affirm their commitment to social, economic and educational
progress in the developing world. The Global Digital Divide
Initiative has coordinated this process for the last year among
business executives involved or interested in ICT for development
activities. The CEO Charter is a private sector commitment to
transparently allocate human, in-kind or financial resources to
reduce poverty in developing countries and disadvantaged
communities through the use of information and communication
technologies.
It is a signal that participating CEOs stand ready to partner
and collaborate with governments, international organisations
and civil society to find innovative solutions to help bridge the
digital divide.
Participating CEOs agree to make their best effort to target
at least 20 percent of their annual corporate citizenship and/or
philanthropy budgets to support concrete and sustainable actions
aimed at promoting social, economic and educational progress in
developing countries and disadvantaged communities through
information and communication technologies.
We hope that the CEO Charter serves as a step towards
galvanising the private sector to commit to socially responsible
business activities and analysing the ‘support’ market. One result
will be the accumulated body of knowledge on the resources that
are dedicated by the private sector to combating the digital
divide. As we build up information about the ‘who’, ‘what’,
‘where’ and ‘why’ of social investments, we hope that project
partnerships will develop more efficiently (be it technology for
health, education or e-government).
The outline below serves as a first look at the support
market. It includes information generated from an informal
questionnaire answered by our first 10 CEO signers. Members of
the Global Digital Divide Task Force look forward to expanding
this process of information gathering and data analysis towards
more efficient partnerships as companies become more involved
in corporate citizenship activities.
General findings
The drafters of the CEO Charter used the terms ‘corporate
philanthropy’, ‘corporate citizenship’ and ‘social investment’
interchangeably to encourage companies from around the world
with different corporate cultures, traditions and business
practices to volunteer to participate in the Charter.
Of those that answered the questionnaire, 60 percent
exceed the 20 percent corporate citizenship/philanthropy or
investment target for ICT for development projects and 30
percent meet the target. The other CEO Charter signers
aspire to achieve the investment target. They indicated their
hope that participation in the CEO Charter will lead to
expanding their network of potential projects to support and
further exchange of best practices.
Ninety percent of CEO Charter respondents have a clear
mission behind their philanthropic programmes and 50 percent
of respondents undertake their social investments as part of their
core business strategy. This group indicated that such investment
is part of their portfolio of corporate citizenship activities rather
than a philanthropic investment. In their response, they indicated
that a focus on citizenship activities assist the corporate goal of
mainstreaming socially conscious corporate investment into their
core business operations.
All respondents stated in their reply form that partnership
organisations (e.g. international donor agencies, regional
government organisations, the World Economic Forum, etc.) play
a significant role in introducing projects to businesses for
corporate support. As companies expand and innovate on their
citizenship programmes, they will rely more on these
organisation to find sustainable, impactful and credible projects
that they can support.
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 13
 From the Digital Opportunity Task Force to the
World Summit on the Information Society
Digital opportunities for all
I
n July 2001, G8 leaders endorsed the Genoa Plan
of Action, a product of the work of the Digital
Opportunities Task Force. The DOT Force, which
was formed following the 2000 G8 Summit in
Okinawa, represented both a unique model of
international cooperation and a new way of
responding to the challenges of development. It
brought together committed leaders from
government, industry and civil society, drawn from G8
member countries and from the developing world, to
conceive a forward-looking action plan designed to
expand the use of digital technology and to
universalise its benefits. Its report, Digital
Opportunities for All: Meeting the Challenge,
contained a vision of global development based on
the power of information technology to promote
sustainable growth, advance social justice and
strengthen democratic governance.
Less than one year later, the DOT Force vision
has moved dramatically closer to realisation.
Participation has reached well beyond its original
membership to include almost 100 stakeholder
organisations, spanning more than 30 countries.
Through the work of its implementation teams, the
DOT Force has generated more than 20 major
bilateral and multilateral initiatives, operating across a
broad range of areas crucial to balanced development
– access, governance, entrepreneurship, health and
education. In designing and implementing these
initiatives, DOT Force members have also given
special attention to the needs of lesser developed
countries, and particularly to Africa, responding
directly to the requirements articulated in the New
Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).
New tools and partnerships for development
At the United Nations Millennium Summit in
September 2000, world leaders set a series of targets
14 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
for the reduction of poverty, known as the Millennium
Development Goals. They pledged to eradicate
extreme poverty and hunger; to achieve universal
primary education; to promote gender equality and
empower women; to reduce child mortality and
improve maternal health; to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria
and other diseases; to ensure environmental
sustainability; and to develop a global partnership for
development.
Information and communication technologies
(ICTs) provide a powerful tool to help achieve the
Millennium Development Goals. Thus, the
‘mainstreaming’ of information technology within
project planning and design and, even more
importantly, within development strategies is critically
important, both nationally and internationally. The
value and legacy of the DOT Force is clear – it has
focused global attention on sustainable, ICT-enabled
development, and has encouraged the international
development community to mainstream ICTs in its
bilateral and multilateral assistance programmes.
Over the past two years, DOT Force partners
have worked with great passion and dedication to
broaden the understanding that ICTs are a
fundamental tool for reducing poverty and for spurring
sustainable development. As stressed in its first report
to G8 leaders: “Access to knowledge and information
is a prerequisite for modern human development.”
This central premise underlies the continuing work of
the DOT Force and the commitment of its members
to expanding the contribution of ICTs to all forms and
levels of development.
Examples of the enabling power of these
technologies are now emerging. Community radio
stations in Africa are providing vital information on
weather disaster warnings, health and nutrition, and
HIV/AIDS prevention. The quality of life of many poor
women in Bangladesh has improved through the
innovative use of cellular phones. In Bolivia, internet
centres have been set up to provide farmers with
timely information on crops, production and
processing, as well as policies and regulations.
The formula for success
The success of the DOT Force has relied on the
close cooperation from representatives of G8
governments, developing nations, international
organisations and the non-profit and private sectors.
Each participated fully and equally in its work. The
multi-stakeholder approach of the DOT Force now
serves as the model for other global ‘ICT for
development’ initiatives that follow in its footsteps.
Future agenda
Under the auspices of the G8, the DOT Force has
emerged as the primary instrument for harnessing the
potential of information technology for global
development. Through its leadership and sense of
strategic purpose, it has successfully mobilised the
international community behind a common goal of
broadening the participation of countries and peoples
in the information age. As catalysts for action, its
products and partners have demonstrated
conclusively the crucial role of ICTs in addressing
basic development needs – in promoting good
governance and democratic values, improving
healthcare, education, and government services, as
well as supporting industry and small business. The
continuing challenge is to sustain the energy and
creativity of the DOT Force and ensure the full
implementation of its future agenda.
The first and most essential task is to maintain the
sense of political leadership and accountability that
have characterised the mandate and work of the DOT
Force to date. The mobilisation of political leaders,
industry captains and civil society requires a suitably
high-level forum to provide strategic direction to, and
promote the cause of, ICTs for development.
Secondly, given the numerous initiatives under way at
the global level, a focal point is required to provide
policy coherence and coordination in the design and
implementation of ICT-based development initiatives.
This focal point should also act as a strong catalyst in
the formation of partnerships between countries and
organisations of all types, based on an all-inclusive
approach that involves governments, the private
sector, civil society and international organisations.
As a process conducted under the G8, the DOT
Force is formally drawing to a close. Its agenda,
however, has now become the business of a
number of other bodies that will carry on the
leadership role of the DOT Force within the
international community. The UN ICT Task Force,
established by the Secretary-General in November
2001, shares the DOT Force vision and approach,
and provides a focal point for establishing strategic
direction, policy coherence and advocacy in relation
to the global, ICT-based development agenda.
Through its regional networks, the UN ICT Task
Force provides an effective means for broader
outreach and the effective involvement of
developing countries in future implementation work.
In the private sector, organisations such as the
World Economic Forum, the Global Business
Dialogue on Electronic Commerce, and the
International Chamber of Commerce have also
accepted the challenge of widening digital
opportunities within the developing world.
The DOT Force implementation teams have
become the primary means of implementing the
Genoa Plan of Action. Their initiatives illustrate the
key elements in the DOT Force formula — they
include innovative models of development that are
scalable and replicable; they involve partners from
developing countries in all phases, from design to
delivery; they rely on public private partnerships; and
they carry minimal overhead, allowing for speedy
implementation.
Their autonomy and operational flexibility are key
values to nurture in the deployment of projects,
while seeking high-level support from global
organisations.
The teams are important agents to carry forward
the future work of the DOT Force and to complete
the implementation of the Genoa Plan of Action.
They will seek other additional partners and
establish an informal network to coordinate their
work, facilitate the exchange of information and
combine forces on ‘ICT for development’ advocacy.
As part of their ongoing work, DOT Force
partners also invite G8 governments individually to
continue their involvement in the implementation of
the Genoa Plan of Action, including support for
specific initiatives. The World Summit on the
Information Society will provide a good opportunity
to take stock of progress made in achieving the goal
of an inclusive global information society. ■
For more information, visit: www.dotforce.org
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 15
 From the UN ICT Task Force Regional Network for Europe and
Central Asia to the World Summit on the Information Society.

The dialogue of civilisations

O
“
n the 29 April 2002, an inaugural meeting of the UN ICT Task Force
Europe and Central Asia (EuCAs) regional network took place in
Geneva. Two nodes of the UN ICT TF EuCAs Secretariat were
established in Geneva and Moscow. The Moscow node started to operate in May
2002 and has five regular staff members. A special UN ICT TF EuCAs Regional The last five years of our
Network website has been set up. work clearly proved to us
Six EuCAs regional network working groups were established in accordance
with those in the global UN ICT TF. Election procedures for WG coordinators
that we are not talking
were organised. The elected coordinators now represent the following countries: about conquering the
Armenia, Belarus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Switzerland and the United
digital divide, but rather
Kingdom. All six chairmen of the working groups became ex-officio members of
the UN ICT TF EuCAs Bureau, which includes 11 members. This Bureau was about conquering the
established to ensure that the regional network pursues the objectives of the divide between economies
UN ICT Task Force.
Two regional conferences took place in our subcontinent. We have approved
or even civilisations. Today,
the Bishkek-Moscow Declaration and Bucharest Declaration. These two we are appealing to those
important documents will be our ponderable input in preparation for the World who have knowledge
Summit on Information Society, which will take place in Geneva and Tunisia.

”
Upon the meeting of the EuCAs Bureau in Bucharest, we adopted the vision of
the strategy and plan of action for the near future. Now we have regional
priorities, such as creating the infrastructure of the information society,
knowledge-based economy and cultural diversity of the content.
An example of the holistic approach to e-development at the regional level
could be the comprehensive e-Moscow programme. Its main goals were
proclaimed as: improving the quality of life for citizens and their maximum self-
realisation, development of democracy, innovativeness and labour efficiency,
improvement of the social and economic situation through the creation of new
work places and the development of an information industry, improvement of the
environment through ICT, effective use of Moscow’s creative and cultural
potential, etc.
The last five years of our work clearly proved to us that we are not talking
about conquering the digital divide, but rather about conquering the divide
between economies or even civilisations. Today, we are appealing to those who
have knowledge.
On 9 December 2002, the international conference “Global Knowledge –
Russia” took place in Moscow, which brought together decision makers and
high-level experts from 18 countries, representing government, business, civil

16 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
society, the research and education community, mass media, national and
international associations, and international organisations (such as the World
Bank, United Nations Development Program and United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe). The participants were made aware of E- and K-
strategies and programme development implementation worldwide. They could
exchange their own unique practical experience and were informed about the
World Summit on Information Society and its preparatory process. Partnership
networks were looked at and analysed as mighty tools to transform the society
towards an information society for all and to enhance the knowledge economy.
One such network is the Russian e-Development Partnership (PRIOR). It is a
loose association of organisations established in November 2001, aimed at
facilitating Russia’s dynamic and fully-fledged development in the information
society through building a partnership between the key forces of e-
development, undertaking targeted efforts to bridge the digital divide, and
assisting in the development of the knowledge economy. Now the partnership
includes 193 organisations from 26 regions of Russia – those ranging from a
one-man company to leading Russian universities and research organisations,
recognised public organisations and IT leaders. It is open for international
participation as well.
One of the significant outcomes of PRIOR and UN ICT TF EuCAs’ joint
activity is the fact that Russia made a step towards a national e-strategy – a
multi-stakeholder working group has been created to prepare a framework for
this document. The group has been established under the umbrella of the
Ministry of Russian Federation for Communication and Informatization, which is
in charge of issues related to the information society.
Today, we are looking at those who are ready to share technologies. We are
waiting for goodwill actions from those who are willing to share their profits,
realising that without it there will be no profits tomorrow. We are closely
cooperating with the Geneva Node of the UN ICT Task Force Europe and Central
Asia regional network. This cooperation resulted in a contribution to the
preparation of the conceptual outcome of the European Regional Ministerial
Conference (Bucharest, 7-9 November 2002), now it refers to the development of
action plans for the WSIS.
It’s time to speak about the dialogue of civilisations. And it’s time to use ICT
for this dialogue. The time is coming to merge TV, radio, multimedia and the
internet into one entity – the entity of knowledge and technology.
We are approaching the World Summit of Information Society. It will take
place in Geneva and Tunisia. Both Summits with our help can turn into a new
form of a dialogue between civilisations.
This is our dream. This is our will. ■

For more information, contact: Andrey Korotkov, Head of Bureau, UN ICT Task Force Regional Network
for Europe and Central Asia. www.unicttaskforce.org

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 17
 From the European Commission to the World
Summit on the Information Society

eEurope:
An information society for all

T
he European Council held in Lisbon in March
2000 set the ambitious objective for Europe
to become the most competitive and
dynamic economy in the world. It recognised an
urgent need for Europe to quickly exploit the
opportunities of the new economy and in particular
the Internet. To achieve this, the Heads of State and
Government invited the Council and the
Commission to draw up ‘a comprehensive eEurope
Action Plan using an open method of co-ordination
based on the benchmarking of national initiatives,
combined with the Commission’s eEurope initiative
as well as its Communication Strategies for jobs in
the Information Society.’
eEurope initially identified ten areas where action
at European level would add value. The key target
areas were revised following the Lisbon European
Council, and clustered into three main objectives: a
cheaper, faster, secure Internet; investing in people
and skills; and stimulating the use of the Internet.

A cheaper, faster, secure Internet
The first priority of this goal was to establish
cheaper, faster Internet, an important aspect of which
involved developing competition in the local loop and
unbundling the local loop. Ensuring that less-favoured
regions can fully participate in the information society
is a priority for the Union. Projects encouraging the
uptake of new technologies in less-favoured regions
are also now a key element in regional development
agendas. In relation to the next generation Internet,
the Commission is also to launch an initiative aimed
at mobilising telecommunications operators and
equipment manufacturers to work together with
service providers and users to ensure the rapid
deployment and use of IPv6.
The next priority in this objective was faster
Internet for researchers and students. Europe needs
to invest more to provide both a truly ‘state-of-the-art’
infrastructure and the technologies required to fully
exploit it. The Commission launched the research
networking activity under the 5th Framework
Programme, which provide €80 million to ensure the
upgrading of trans-European capacity to 2.5 Gbit/s.
The final goal regarded the establishment of secure
networks and smart cards. This included improving
the availability of solutions for Internet security, better
co-ordination to fight cybercrime and the
encouragement of the use of smart cards to improve
the security of access to electronic services (via a
high level Task Force to initiate and support common
developments in the deployment of smart cards).
Investing in people and skills
A key responsibility established in the framework
of the action plan was to integrate European youth
into the digital age, by promoting the relevant use of

18 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
new technologies and applications, and financing
dissemination of best practices. Extra financial
resources were also made available to ensure that all
pupils have the possibility to be digitally literate by the
time they leave school. Ensuring employability and
adaptability in the new economy is also a primary
responsibility. The Commission played a key co-
ordinating role within the European Employment
Process, which is based on drawing up employment
guidelines at European level and translating them into
National Employment Action Plans.
The Council also noted that there should be no
‘info-exclusion’, adding that special attention should
be given to disabled people. As part of this drive, the
High Level Group on the Employment and Social
Dimension of the Information Society (ESDIS), in co-
operation with the Commission, examined and
monitored legislation and standards relevant to the
information society to ensure their conformity with
accessibility principles. It was also established that
public sector websites and their content in member
states and in the European Institutions must be
designed to be accessible to ensure that citizens with
disabilities can access information and take full
advantage of their potential.
Stimulating the use of the Internet
A critical element of stimulating the use of the
Internet involves accelerating e-commerce. To
ensure the establishment of the internal market for
e-commerce, the Commission proposed a number
of legislative measures – the ‘Dual Use Regulation’
providing an internal market for security products
and the rapid adoption of the e-commerce
Directive, for example. Enabling electronic access to
public services and health information was also
For more information, visit: http://europa.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/action_plan/pdf/actionplan_en.pdf
recognised as a critical component, and the
Commission has revised procedures to better
exploit digital technologies.
The Commission also launched a programme to
support European digital content on global networks
and promote linguistic diversity in the information
society. Finally, the eEurope initiative was also
created to address the growing demand for mobility
within transport infrastructure networks – paying
particular attention to the issues of congestion,
safety and the shortage of new services.
Technologies are already being deployed to address
these issues, and eEurope will also kick start new
solutions and accelerate their deployment.
An operational action plan
The action plan acknowledges that there is an
urgent need for Europe to quickly exploit the
opportunities of the new economy and in particular
the Internet. The objectives will contribute to the
development of a stronger and more pro-active
policy in the information society at a global level. In
the context of e-commerce, for example, it will
provide global co-operation between governments
and the private sector, particularly in the
development of co-regulation.
Europe must play an active role in the
development of a more equitable information society,
which offers fair chances of inclusion to all countries.
Closing the 'digital divide' between developed and
developing countries is a key goal for the European
Union. To meet this goal, collaboration with Europe’s
main international partners and private industry will be
necessary. eEurope assists this collaboration, driving
the ambitious objective of making Europe the most
competitive and dynamic economy in the world. ■
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 19
 From the Markle Foundation to the World Summit
on the Information Society
Creating digital opportunity
for developing countries
T
he Markle Foundation is a private, not-for-
profit philanthropy. In 1999, the Foundation
focused its mission on using emerging
information and communications technology (ICT) to
improve people’s lives.
The Foundation creates and operates most of its
own projects using grants, investments, and strategic
alliances with governments, multilateral organisations,
industry, the academy, think tanks and other
foundations and non-profit organisations. It is a
unique institution that combines the functions of an
operating foundation, granting foundation, think tank,
and incubator.
Policy for a networked society
Markle is currently undertaking work under its
Policy for a Networked Society Program to support
the use of ICT in development efforts. We pursue this
work through the Global Digital Opportunity Initiative
(GDOI) Project and the Policy Cooperation Project.
These projects address two related needs of
developing countries:
• The GDOI Project seeks to integrate ICT into
national development strategies.
• The Policy Cooperation Project seeks to engage
developing countries in global ICT policymaking that
will influence how ICT is deployed at the national
level and in the global marketplace.
The roots of the GDOI and Policy Cooperation
Projects can be found in the G8 DOT Force and UN-
ICT Task Force. Markle helped create the G8 DOT
Force and co-chaired Implementation Team I ‘National
e-Strategies’, and Team V ‘Global Policy Participation’
on the DOT Force currently chairs Working Group I
‘ICT Policy and Governance’, and participates in
Group II ‘National and Regional e-Strategies’ on the
UN ICT Task Force.
20 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Global Digital Opportunity Initiative
Markle, the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and a broad set of public-private
partners launched GDOI in February 2002. Supported
by multi-million dollar commitments from UNDP and
the Markle Foundation along with the collaboration of
a broad set of private and public sector institutions
and experts, GDOI is an implementation vehicle
created to carry on the work of the G8 DOT Force.
The GDOI is based on a report developed for the
G8 leaders at the 2001 Genoa Summit by UNDP, the
Markle Foundation and Accenture, that which out a
strategic framework for action (http://www.opt-
init.org/framework.html) that developing countries can
deploy. It enables them to reap the benefits of the
networked economy and build an information society.
The report issues a strong call to action for the
international community to assist developing
countries in taking advantage of ICT’s potential and
its integration into the mainstream of their
development activities
(http://www.markle.org/programs/_programs_policy_g
doi.stm).
The GDOI assists in the development and
implementation of national ICT for development
strategies that have the highest likelihood of
generating broader development impacts leading to
greater national growth and capacity in selected
countries. It includes a steering committee comprised
of senior officials and experts from both the
development and ICT communities and an
International Partners Group consisting of commercial
and non-profit institutions with expertise and interest
in both ICT and development matters.
GDOI’s engagements to date include:
Mozambique
The GDOI was asked by the Prime Minister of
Mozambique to assist in finalising a national ICT
strategy. Working with an in-country ICT Policy
Commission, the GDOI helped finalise its
implementation strategy by providing policy and
technical support to the government and other
sectors. The Mozambique Council of Ministers
approved the revised version of the ICT Policy
Commission’s Implementation Strategy and UNDP
has made an agreement with the government of
Mozambique on an ICT for Development
Implementation Program.
The GDOI is currently mobilising resources and
enlisting additional partner organisations to help
implement the strategy.
South Africa
A team of seven GDOI consultants was invited to
participate in a national e-Strategy task team
mandated by the South African Electronic
Communications and Transactions Act of 2002. The
GDOI team is providing expertise in key areas of the
strategy development process: education, healthcare,
e-government, job creation access/infrastructure and
policy. Once the national e-Strategy is finalised, the
GDOI will assist South Africans in attracting additional
partners and resources for its implementation.
Policy Cooperation Project
Markle created the Policy Cooperation Project in
2002 to further the work on policy participation begun
in the G8 DOT Force, which expired in the summer of
2002, and the UN ICT Task Force, which is not an
operational body. This project aims to enable
meaningful and effective participation by developing
nations in international multilateral institutions where
ICT commitments, rules and policies are made
(ICANN, ITU, WIPO and WTO)
(http://www.markle.org/globalpolicy/).
While domestic policies are needed to harness
ICT for development effectively, international policies
forged in multilateral institutions will increasingly
define the range of policy options available to
developing countries. Many developing countries
have not participated effectively in international ICT
policy processes due to capacity and process
limitations. These limitations may cause developing
country stakeholders to question the transparency,
legitimacy and accountability of international
governance processes and outcomes related to ICT,
and impede both developing and developed countries
in their national and international ICT goals.
Full and equitable participation by developing
nations in multilateral institutions, therefore, is critical
to the realisation of their developmental goals.
Specific achievements to date include:
Roadmap
DOT Force Implementation Team V’s Roadmap
Toward Enabling Meaningful Participation by
Developing Country Stakeholders defines the
current global ICT policy environment and the most
common barriers to developing-country
participation, examines key lessons in developing
country participation drawn from other global policy
fora that are not ICT focused, and lays out a
framework of priorities and recommended actions to
increase developing nation participation. The
Roadmap complements Louder Voices:
Strengthening Developing Country Participation in
International ICT Decision-making (Louder Voices), a
survey and report conducted by CTO and PANOS
with DFID support.
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 21
 Global Internet Policy Initiative (GIPI)
Markle is a founding partner, along with the
Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and
Internews, in GIPI, an organisation committed to
promoting an open and democratic internet through
the adoption of legal and policy frameworks in
fourteen developing countries. The initiative serves
as a resource for local stakeholders (ISPs, content
providers, investors, telecommunications and
wireless service providers) as well as NGOs,
academics, and government entities in order to
promote transparency and predictability in: internet
business regulation; competition; privatisation;
open network and universal service; and market
driven solutions and user agency. The project is
leading consultative, coalition-based efforts to
identify country-specific legal and regulatory
impediments to internet development, and is
working with local initiatives to integrate open
internet principles.
Foreign affairs
“Governing the internet: Engaging Government,
Business and Nonprofits”, an article published by
Markle President Zoë Baird in Foreign Affairs
(November 2002), examines the limitations of self-
regulation given the internet’s rapid expansion in
protecting the public interest. The article argues for
a new, pluralistic model of regulation that includes
government, business, and non-profits. In addition,
it suggests ways to encourage greater participation
by developing countries in international ICT
policymaking bodies, such as ICANN, the ITU and
the WTO.
ICANN
Markle has been working with ICANN since
1999 to ensure that its decisions, decision-making
processes and venues are representative and
inclusive of developing countries. While many of
ICANN’s decisions appear to be strictly ‘technical’,
they have important social and economic
22 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
ramifications for developing countries, including:
the allocation and maintenance of country-code
top level domain names (ccTLDs); the
standardisation of foreign language domain names;
and the implementation of the Uniform Domain
Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) to
safeguard the intellectual property rights of users
in developing nations.
Recently, at the ICANN board meetings in
Accra, Bucharest and most recently Shanghai,
Markle has funded developing country participation
and organised meetings with ICANN officials and
other members of the global domain name
community to discuss how best to ensure that the
needs of developing nations are met. Among the
possibilities discussed at these meetings: are
ensuring funding for participants from the
developing world to travel to ICANN meetings;
creating a number of ‘regional ombudsmen’ within
ICANN to represent developing countries; and
ensuring that ICANN’s decision-making structures
remain open and in line with some of the
suggestions outlined in the Roadmap (see above).
Other work
Markle supports additional relevant activities
that aim to foster digital opportunity for developing
countries, including: a Markle and the World
Resources Institute co-sponsored report, Serving
the World’s Poor, Profitably, which focuses on
innovative business models; InterAction, an
alliance of 160 international relief and development
non-governmental organisations awarded a two-
year grant by Markle to expand use of information
and communication technology to facilitate their
work; and Voxiva, which seeks to expand
communication services to poor communities in
developing nations. ■
For more information, contact:
Noa Meyer, Manager for a networked society.
nmeyer@markle.org www.markle.org
 From Nokia to the World Summit on the
Information Society

Global focus
on youth and education

N
okia aims to be a good corporate community member
wherever it operates and has been running programmes for
many years to help people, particularly the young, improve
themselves through a wide variety of learning opportunities.
The focus of Nokia’s Corporate Community Involvement
programme is youth and education – a logical step given Nokia’s
leadership in future-oriented technologies. Chairman and CEO
Jorma Ollila puts it this way: “In the future that Nokia’s business is
shaping, people will have the technology to communicate anytime,
anywhere. Helping young people improve their skills, knowledge
and connections to society is a natural outgrowth of Nokia’s
business, vision and values.”
Nokia is committed to having a positive impact on society that
extends far beyond the advanced technology, products and
services it creates. The company’s Corporate Community
Involvement programme is designed to respond to the expectations
of all stakeholders – customers, employees and investors alike –
and to reflect the company’s core values.
It is dedicated to the ideal of continuous learning – constantly
improving life skills, creating an environment that fosters open and
creative thinking, establishing a meaningful connection with
society and sharing best practices across all borders. Veli
Sundbäck, Nokia’s Executive Vice President, who is in charge of
global Corporate Social Responsibility, explains: “It is not our
intention to promote technology as such even though it is our core
competence. In a fast changing world, we want young people to
develop the skills they are going to need – creative thinking, the
life skills needed to make quick decisions, and simply an ability to Nokia and the IYF make a connection
think for themselves and take responsibility for what’s happening While Nokia has been sponsoring activities to support youth
around them.” and education for many years, 2000 saw the beginning of a multi-
Veli points out that the company has also made local donations year commitment to the International Youth Foundation (IYF) – a
for specific events, such as disaster relief in Kosovo and victims of new and truly global partnership to promote corporate
the Venezuelan floods, in addition to supporting long-term responsibility.
initiatives on all the continents. “It’s not a question of pure In the first year, Nokia invested 3.4 million Euros in the well-
donations – we want to take an active role as a company and as established IYF programme to support children and youth
individual employees,” says Veli. “This is all about human values.” development activities in six countries – China, Germany, South

24 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Africa, UK, Mexico and Brazil – as well as to conduct global
programmes. The IYF programme, called ‘Make a Connection’,
will work hand-in-hand with existing Nokia projects in many parts
of the world.
IYF itself is an independent, non-governmental organisation
dedicated to improving the conditions and prospects for young
people wherever they live, learn, work and play. It does so by
drawing on the expertise of a worldwide network of national-level
children and youth development organisations, as well as
corporations, such as Nokia, and governments, to ensure that the
best programmes are identified, strengthened and expanded.
Currently, this global network includes organisations in more than
30 countries with plans to expand to 60 by 2003.
IYF views young people’s needs as an urgent global priority,
with all young people having the innate right to develop their full
potential to become responsible and caring individuals. Its
programmes seek to build character, confidence and competence
and to ‘connect’ young people to their families, peers and
communities.
Creative thinking in China
“In just two days, I learned skills which I believe are most
important to success in the information age. I believe this project
will have a positive and significant impact on nurturing the creative
thinking skills of Chinese university students.”
This is what graduate Fu Peng had to say about Nokia’s
‘Creative Thinking Corner’ project, which helped him to prepare his
thesis for his master’s degree. The programme, launched in Beijing
University of Post and Telecommunications, is the first of its kind
and is touching the lives of thousands of students. It includes a
series of roadshows and Thinking Club activities and has travelled
to 12 universities across China.
An important part of the programme in 2000 was the Nokia
College Student Thinking Challenge Competition, which helped
students from the 12 universities develop their brainpower,
intelligence, innovation abilities, problem-discovery and solutions
capabilities. And, in order to share the project with as wide an
audience as possible in China, the Thinking Corner now has its
own website.
The Thinking Corner, for university students, has a natural
synergy with an existing IYF project called the ‘Little Master
Newspaper’, which is now receiving Nokia backing. Youngsters
under the age of 15 write, edit and produce the newspaper which
has a circulation of more than 1 million.
Folke Ahlback, Chairman of Nokia (China) Investment
Corporation, comments: “We feel that the newspaper encourages
leadership, creativity and responsibility across activities such as
culture, education, sports and the arts. We hope it will emulate the
success of Nokia’s Creative Thinking Corner workshops.”
Life skills initiatives in the UK
For the past seven years, Nokia has sponsored Mencap – the
UK’s leading charity for children and adults with learning disabilities.
The company supports specific projects each year ranging from
establishing a special sensory unit for learning to the construction of
a recording studio to produce Mencap’s newsletter in audio format.
Mencap Chairman Brian Baldock comments: “Computer and
communication technologies have the potential to revolutionise the
lives of people who have a disability by offering a better quality of life
unimaginable only a few years ago.”
Mencap is also one of the partners helping to develop teaching
materials in the new IYF Make a Connection project in the UK,
funded by Nokia and managed by the Children and Youth
Partnership Foundation. The nationwide project is aimed at young
people aged between 11 and 16, including those with special
educational needs, to equip them with the necessary life skills for
future personal and social well-being.
Connecting schools and families in the USA
ClassLink is a well-established example of Nokia’s commitment
to creating a positive impact on society by providing wireless phones
to hundreds of schools across the USA in order to connect students,
teachers and parents more effectively.
More than 90 percent of American classrooms do not have
access to a telephone, yet a national survey of teachers showed that
wireless phones are the one tool they really need. ClassLink, a
philanthropic partnership sponsored by Nokia, the CTIA's Wireless
Foundation and several carriers, answers that need.
Piloted successfully in Texas, Nokia donated 1,000 phones to 200
high schools in the state. Due to the success of the Texas programme,
ClassLink moved into the national arena in 2000. So far, more than
6,000 phones and millions of minutes of airtime have been donated to
schools across the country, bringing teachers and parents into a closer
partnership in the education of their communities’ students.
But ClassLink is not the only Nokia Corporate Community
Involvement project in the USA – others include help for sick children
and support for community issues. The Make a Wish Foundation
supported by Nokia and CBS Channel 11 has given trips to Disney,
puppies and computers to children suffering from life-threatening
illnesses. And The United Way is a programme dedicated to making
communities better places in which to live and work.
Nokia employees choose to donate to a network of agencies
looking after children, families, crisis relief, health and the elderly.
Their contribution went up by 116 per cent in 2000 and the
combination of corporate and employee pledges rose to $472,000 in
2000 from $173,200 the year before. ■
For more information, visit:http://www.nokia.com/cda2/0,1083,2912,00.html
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 25
 From The Swedish International Development
Cooperation Agency to the World Summit on the
Information Society.
ICT –
transforming Views from a roof in Maputo
F
rom above, Maputo looks like a
the world by welcoming warm city. The trees are
green, the ocean shines with an
transforming intense blue colour. But Maputo is also the
capital of one of the world’s poorest
countries, a country with a GDP of only 250
universities USD per capita.
On the roof, a group of students from
Sweden and Mozambique have gathered.
Their aim is to connect six university
“
buildings in Maputo to the university
backbone – and to the rest of the world.
The Open.Net concept has been
There is still a long developed by The Royal Institute of
way to go. But here, Technology in Stockholm. The concept can
be described as an access network with a
on the roof in freedom of choice of service operators.
Maputo, with the sun In Mozambique, few students can afford
their own computer and they only have
and the breeze from access to computers and the internet at the
the sea, the vision university during school hours. This means
does not seem totally that it is very difficult to conduct research
activities in the evenings when the university
impossible
”
is closed. But thanks to the project, the
students will have access to the internet
through wireless computer labs in four
student residences. As the situation in
Maputo is not unique, the project might well
be replicated in other countries.
“This is a truly multicultural project and
for us this has been a great opportunity to
learn more about ICT in another – and to
Sweden a very different – country,” says
Qarin Hjortzberg-Nordlund, one of the
Swedish students.
Eneas Huguana, one of the
Mozambicans in the project, is also
enthusiastic: “For me it has been a very
good experience working together with the
Swedish students. Here, most of our
26 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
studies are theoretical with teachers
lecturing. Now we have to solve real world
problems and that is of course very
interesting,” he says.
The name of the project – Mozambique
Open – is in itself also a symbol of what
needs to be achieved in most of the world’s
developing countries. Open means opening
up access to the world so that students,
researchers, university teachers in
Mozambique and other countries can truly
become partners in a global, open
community where knowledge, information
and experiences are freely exchanged.
There is still a long way to go. But here,
on the roof in Maputo, with the sun and the
breeze from the sea, the vision does not
seem totally impossible.
Main issues at stake
ICT and development is a broad subject.
This deals entirely with ICT in relation to
universities in developing countries.
1. Access and connectivity.
• Connectivity. Internet access is
paramount and in many cases a key issue
for ICT development projects.
• Bandwidth. The lack of bandwidth is the
prime obstacle for ICT in developing
countries in general and in Sub-Saharan
Africa in particular. By working together,
universities in developing countries could
negotiate better prices for bandwidth.
• Technical constraints. Lack of
infrastructure, lack of qualified man power
and unreliable power supply are among
the major problems.
• Access to information. For a higher
quality in education and research, access
to information is fundamental.
2. Human resource development (HRD) 6. Gender the private market once donor programmes
• Efficient administration. ICT must be • ICT cannot be a male-only club. If you do come to an end?
used in the universities’ administration in not get various perspectives you risk Sustainability requires income
order to guarantee transparency and a losing valuable aspects. The gender generation and universities can actually
more effective use of resources. issue must therefore be further make money – so cooperation with the
• Capacity building. Training of addressed in all programmes. private sector is of vital importance. Many
professionals in the ICT field will give
developing countries an important
knowledge base.
• Cooperation with other universities. ICT
opens up new possibilities for
cooperation.

3. Local content
• ICT in research and research on ICT.
Universities in developing countries can
better participate in research projects and
contribute with their findings. There is
also a need for specific research on ICT in
developing countries.

4. Innovative use
• The university as incubator. By working
closely with the private sector the
university can play an important role for
the establishment of an emerging ICT
industry. This will also make it possible
for the university to sell services and be
more sustainable.
• The university within society. The Achieving sustainability universities in developing countries are
university plays an important role in To bridge the digital divide, huge selling their services to the private sector in
introducing ICT as a way of combating investments are required in bandwidth, the form of internet services, consultancy
poverty and improving living conditions in running cost, infrastructure, equipment and for private companies, fees for students,
the country. human resources along with major support etc. SIDA is planning to start a study that
from the donors. But here lies the problem will address the issue of sustainability of
5. Sustainability with sustainability. In order to make the ICT projects in the public sector of low-
• Huge investments are needed, but how investment sustainable, there is a need to income countries. ■

could they become sustainable? What will develop a long-term financing model for ICT
happen the day the donors phase out at the universities. But who will pay? What
their programmes? Sustainability is a key will happen with salaries, software licenses, For more information, visit: www.sida.se

issue for long-term development. connectivity costs, and salaries to match

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 27
 From ST Microelectronics to the World Summit on
the Information Society
Closing the digital divide
through education and training
T
he proposal made by Pasquale Pistorio and
STMicroelectronics (ST) concerns the involvement of
corporations in the fight against the digital divide. The
proposal is based on the firm conviction that, while building
infrastructure – and whatever else is needed to provide internet
access – is essential for overcoming the technological gap between
the most advanced nations and the developing world, it is equally
important that people be able to use the technology, understand its
importance and recognise the benefits it has to offer. Education and
training are essential to access modern means of communication
and information.
In Pistorio’s opinion, all companies can and should invest in
teaching those who have not had access to the education necessary
to use a PC, no matter where they might live. He suggests that
medium to large corporations – i.e. companies with over 250
employees – voluntarily donate up to 0.1 percent of their annual
revenues and up to 0.1 percent of their employees’ working hours to
this cause. The intention is to create a widespread movement and to
mobilise voluntary donations, not only of hardware, software and
communications connections but also of human resources.
Why get business involved? Firstly, because Pistorio and ST are
deeply convinced that socially responsible companies – that is,
companies that are committed to promoting the wellbeing of the
communities in which they work – generate more value not only for
their stakeholders but also for their shareholders.
Secondly, corporations should consider that by encouraging
employees to transfer basic computer skills they also provide them
with extra motivation. This kind of initiative helps companies to
recruit the best young talent and retain them for longer since they
contribute to increase the motivation of employees and their
acceptance of and identification with the company.
Lastly, in the long run, the most advanced economies will clearly
benefit if, by triggering a process to limit the digital divide and to
contribute to the development of poorer areas of the world, new
markets and new opportunities for trade and production are created.
28 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Moreover, no one should forget the payback in terms of security and
peace for the entire world if economic reasons for potential conflicts
are reduced in the future.
ST has already started down on this track and has completed
the most significant part of the preparation job, that is, building up a
model course for basic PC and internet literacy, and a course to
train its employees or other volunteers to become trainers. The
courses were designed by ST information technology specialists
leveraging the training expertise of the internal corporate school of
management, and are totally royalty-free. As such, they will be
offered to any organisation willing to run the same programme.
The model course, to be deployed in at least 20 hours in a
classroom, not only includes basic PC and internet tools for a user
starting from scratch, but also instructions on security and quality,
as well as an introduction on hardware key elements.
After a successful trial with teachers in an Italian primary
school, translation in all the main languages spoken by the ST
community worldwide has begun, taking into consideration both
local culture and local standards of computing literacy. The
English, French and Italian versions have already been
completed.
More than 50 trainers have now been trained and will initiate,
in 2003, the cascading process by which the company aims to
reach one million people in a decade.
The process will first involve members of the ST community at
large, including employees, their relatives, small businesses, schools,
local organisations and administrative entities in the vicinity of ST sites.
The next steps will foresee the setting up of internet kiosks for
free access to the web and its services and the start-up of remote
training activities, while at the same time expanding the cooperation
with other organisations and business enterprises in order to
broaden the scope and the reach of the initiative. ■
For more information, visit: www.st.com
From Talal Abu-Ghazaleh International to the World
Summit on the Information Society
The Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge
IT Skills Centre
T
alal Abu-Ghazaleh International (TAGI) is one
of the leading providers of professional
services in the Arab world. Although it is a
profit-making firm, it is uniquely distinguished by the
inclusion, in its core mission statement, of a
commitment to contributing to the socio-economic
development of the Arab world. This unusually strong
focus on development issues originates in the life-
long commitment of the firm’s founder, CEO and
namesake Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, to fostering a
renaissance in the Arab world. Abu-Ghazaleh’s
special interests and commitments in this area have
resulted in his becoming a leading Arab business
leader in the field of development.
In the late 1990s, his belief in the power of
information and communication technologies (ICTs)
increased to such an extent that he acted as a
catalyst to the development process. The increasing
focus on ICTs led to an evolving leadership role at an
international level, which culminated in his current
international leadership position as chairman of the
ICC’s Commission on Electronic Business,
Information Technology and Telecoms (EBITT), and
co-chair of the UN ICT Task Force.
The stumbling block for Mr Abu-Ghazaleh in
seeing his vision of an Arab information society
realised is that the Arab world is one of the most
digitally deprived regions in the world. Other issues
that pose problems include lack of high-quality local
content (i.e. Arabic language materials), and
significant lack of literacy in basic computer skills.
One solution pioneered by Abu-Ghazaleh was to
partner with Cambridge International Examinations
(CIE), one of the world’s foremost educational
institutions. Together with the Arab Knowledge
Management Society (AKMS), they formed Abu-
Ghazaleh Cambridge IT Skills Centre (AGCA). AGCA
was established to prepare prospective candidates for
the Cambridge IT Skills Award tests in Arabic.
“
The key to initiating the
project was TAGI’s core
commitment and
mission to Arab
development
”
Individuals who successfully complete this course are
awarded the Cambridge Skills Award in Information
Technology. CIE provided their world-renowned
educational materials and awards, which were
translated into Arabic and marketed by TAGI.
The only difficulty the project experienced was
that which affects most development-oriented
initiatives: financing. CIE and TAGI are both profit-
making companies. For CIE, venturing into the
marketing of Arabic versions of their products would
be too risky without a strong local partner. Even for
TAGI, some of their in-house consultants were
sceptical of the profitability of the project. The key to
initiating the project was TAGI’s core commitment and
mission to Arab development.
Thus far, the project has yielded far greater
success than was initially imagined. Utilising a
franchising system, TAGI has begun spreading the
Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge IT Skills Centres (AGCA) to
academic and other institutions across the region.
This is a demonstration of a winning partnership
between the two motivations of development and
profit making in one successful project. ■
For more information, visit: www.tagi.com
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 29
From the World Bank Group to the World Summit on the
Information Society
The World Bank Group:
fostering digital opportunities
T
he World Bank Group’s strategy for
ICT lays out four directions for our
work:
• Policy for ICTs, including
telecommunications reform, access
programmes and e-strategies.
• Connectivity, including support for private
sector roll-out of information infrastructure.
• Skills, supporting public private
partnerships to generate human capital to
exploit ICTs.
• Applications, using ICTs to deliver the
goals of development.
The Bank is currently involved in over 70
countries worldwide working with
governments to improve the policy and
regulatory environment for information
infrastructure. This involves support not only
for the development of well regulated,
competitive private provision of
infrastructure, but also innovative subsidy
schemes to support the roll-out of services
to poor and rural communities.
The IFC, the World Bank Group’s
private sector arm, has mobilised about
US$5 billion in private capital over the past
10 years to extend access to information
infrastructure in developing countries.
Including the catalytic impact of IFC
projects, this investment can be linked to
the roll-out of 32 million new cellular
connections – equal to 20 percent of all of
the mobile phones in developing countries
at the start of 2000. MIGA, the private
sector guarantee agency, has also
supported a number of
telecommunications investments.
Turning to skills, the Bank has been a
leader in expanding e-learning operations.
This is not only through lending operations
such as the Turkey Basic Education Project
which will eventually link 10,000 schools to
the internet, but also through a number of
special initiatives. The Global Development
Learning Network, World Links and the
Africa Virtual University all provide e-
education facilities – the first through a
network of 32 learning centres, the second
through virtual teaching that has reached
24,000 tertiary students and the third
through a programme that has reached
130,000 primary and secondary school
students in LDCs.
Finally, the Bank also supports roll-out
of ICT applications in government services
from budget and accounting to education
and telemedicine. In total, somewhere
between US$1-2 billion in lending each year
goes to support the ICT components of
such projects.
The World Bank Group is continually
evolving its ICT agenda to ensure that its
policy and investment tools remain effective
in a rapidly changing sector. This evolution
is underpinned by a commitment to learning
and knowledge development within the
Bank and beyond, covering research, pilots
and dissemination. Much of this
development and dissemination is
supported by infoDev, which was one of the
first grant initiatives created to back pilot
projects that put ICT to work in the fight
against poverty. It has supported over 250
projects covering initiatives such as rural
telecentres, e-readiness studies and use of
the internet to sell products created by
artisans. More recently, the Development
Gateway has also played an important role.
The Gateway is more than a website
containing best practice and information on
development topics, it also acts as an e-
procurement portal, an aid database and a
centre for knowledge creation surrounding
ICT and development.
Finally, it should be noted that the World
Bank Group’s ICT strategy recognises the
great importance of cooperation and
partnership in an area where so many
governments, private companies, donors
and non-governmental organisations are at
work, and on an agenda that is far too large
for any one organisation to hope to tackle
alone. The World Bank Group sees
collaboration with and learning from our
development partners central to the effort of
grasping digital opportunities. ■
For more information, visit: www.worldbank.org
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 31
 From the United Nations Information & Communication
Technologies Task Force to the World Summit on the
Information Society on behalf of Working Group 1.
Metapolicy for ICTs:
The Digital Nations Consortium
D
espite the incredible technological advances
of the past decade, the digital revolution has
yet to touch the lives of most people in most
parts of the world. Even where new technologies are
available, they have had only minimal impact on the
great social needs of our times: improving education,
reducing poverty, enhancing healthcare and
supporting community development.
The Digital Nations Consortium focuses explicitly
on these major social challenges. The Consortium
does not aim to impose solutions but rather to
empower people in all walks of life to invent their
own solutions. The Consortium is developing a new
generation of technologies and policies that enable
people to design, create and learn in new ways,
helping them become more active participants in
their societies.
The Consortium focuses especially on populations
with the greatest needs – children and the elderly,
underserved communities and developing nations. The
Consortium tests out ideas and technologies in pilot
projects around the world, helping individuals and
communities develop innovative strategies in domains
ranging from commerce to agriculture to healthcare –
and, more broadly, it transforms the ways they learn
and develop.
To accomplish this goal the Consortium helps
organise and coordinate action projects that make
use of cutting-edge ideas and technologies in real-
world settings. In each country local organisations
(typically a public private corporation) create similar
action projects in their own communities and
countries. The learnings from these action projects
are shared among consortium members, and form the
basis for informed policy decisions.
The largest participant in the Digital Nations
Consortium is Media Lab Asia, a not-for-profit
32 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
company funded by industry and by up to US$100
million seed money from the Indian government.
Media Lab Asia has four main research themes: bits
for all (universal broadband connectivity), world
computer (low-cost computing and universal
interface), tomorrow’s tools (low-cost sensors and
fabrication) and the digital village.
The digital village research theme uses large-scale
field experiments to examine the effect of new
technologies on village life, asking if the change is
beneficial for the various stakeholders and if it is
sustainable. It also works with the government to
develop policy recommendations that can aid in
adoption of the technology and, at the same, time
minimise negative effects.
From this process two main policy
recommendations have emerged: one concerning
spectrum allocation and the second concerning the
telephone companies universal service obligation.
Spectrum allocation: After examining the
technology available for broadband wireless
connectivity and the economic trends associated with
those technologies, it was determined that the IEEE
802 standards offered great promise for rural
communications. Although these wireless standards
were originally intended primarily for office use, many
have noted that with a suitable antenna these very
inexpensive digital transceivers (now under US$200)
can be used for broadband communications over
many kilometres.
To leverage this technology Media Lab Asia
argued to the government that the 2.4Ghz frequency
band used by the IEEE 802.11b standard should be
deregulated. The goal was to allow local
entrepreneurs to become ‘mini-ISPs’ and quickly
spread broadband connectivity throughout India, in a
manner similar to the spread of India’s cable TV
 “The largest participant in the Digital Nations
Consortium is Media Lab Asia, a not-for-profit
company funded by industry and by up to US$100
million seed money from the Indian government
service via entrepreneurs capitalising on India’s
unregulated cable TV service industry.
In autumn 2002, the government of India freed the
2.4Ghz frequency band, becoming perhaps the first
nation in history to deregulate spectrum. More
recently, the FCC in the US has also issued policy
recommendations that may lead to greater
deregulation of the spectrum.
Universal service obligation: throughout most of the
world, telecommunications companies have an
obligation to provide service to rural areas, in essence,
a tax on urban service to promote universal service. In
most developing countries the specified service is
typically a pay telephone in the village centre, often
manned by a local official or entrepreneur.
In an age when developed countries are removing
pay telephones because they are too expensive to
maintain, and in which SMS messaging frequency
dominates that of voice traffic, it makes sense to
”
revisit the definition of the universal service obligation.
Media Lab Asia has argued that a wireless broadband
‘village area network’ based on the IEEE 802.11
standard may make more sense, and is certainly more
scalable, than the current standard of service.
As single-chip implementations of the standard
become common, we expect to see the emergence of
wireless ‘communicators’ at under US$25. This opens
the possibility of providing dozens of multimedia
terminals (each capable of voice and data) at a price
comparable to the current isolated village telephone,
in essence, leapfrogging to a level of service higher
than in most developed countries. ■
For more information, contact: Prof. Alex (Sandy) Pentland
Co-Director, Digital Nations Consortium
Founding Director, Media Lab Asia
MIT Media Laboratory E-mail: pentland@media.mit.edu
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 33
 From the United Nations Information &
Communication Technologies Task Force to the
World Summit on the Information Society on
behalf of Working Group 2.

National & regional e-development strategies:

A blueprint for action

T
he focus of e-development strategies
is to enhance development through
effective deployment of ICT, putting
in place the conditions necessary to achieve
these ends.
Convinced by this potential of ICT to
enhance national and regional development
opportunities, and realising that
telecommunication and IT sector reforms
by themselves were insufficient to release
this potential, a number of developing
countries have embarked on formulating
and implementing e-strategies or ICT for
Development (ICT4D) strategies. Many
have yet to do so, and are looking to
understand what needs to be done and to
get a clearer sense of the results that can
be expected.
In developing e-strategies, countries do
not necessarily retrace all the steps of
those who have gone before but adapt
their strategies to new environments and
opportunities. For both developed and
developing countries, e-strategies are thus
an evolving process rather than a fixed
output that is defined once and for all. In
analysing past national and regional e-
strategies, impact is seen to vary
according to the approach followed.
Strategies can be differentiated along some
of the following:
largely connectivity-centred focus on the
digital divide to a more holistic
development focus that concentrates on
the deployment of ICT.
• Awareness of the networked economy
and society as opportunity and
challenge: ICT themselves have helped
to underpin the process of global
integration through the creation of a
networked economy and society. This
has transformed the ways in which
organisations, services, production and
markets are organised, creating new
opportunities and challenges for those
not yet networked.
• The distinctive focus on ICT – as a
sector and/or enabler of development:
development of the ICT sector is not
essential for deployment of the
technology, nor can all countries benefit
from developing a sector.
National approaches to ICT
ICT as a sector
While falling costs and an increase in
technology options are making ICT more
accessible than ever before, difficulties in
securing investment funds and private
sector involvement remain in the wake of
the dotcom and telecom crashes. This
increases the premium on well-defined,
costed and implementable strategies, as
well as the need to think of new
partnerships, business models and
implementation strategies in terms of ODA.
The e-strategy
As an enabler of development, ICT has
the potential to assist in the achievement of
millennium development goals: through the
creation of new economic and social
opportunities; the promotion of greater
participation in development policies and
processes; an increase in the efficiency,
accountability and delivery of public
ICT as an enabler

• Degree of integration of telecom in e-

strategies: few address the full range of National capacity/ Export market Global Development
ICT and converging technology choices domestic market focus positioning focus goals focus
Focus e.g. Costa Rica, e.g. Malaysia/ e.g. Estonia, South
and platforms. e.g. Brazil, India India (1990s) Ireland Africa (1990s)
(1960s-1980s)
• Digital divide as opposed to digital
opportunities for development focus:
Source: p. Final Report of Digital Opportunity Initiative, a partnership of UNDP, Accenture & the Markle Foundation
strategies are only slowly evolving from a http://www.opt-int.org/

34 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
 e-strategy essentials / a blueprint for national and regional e-strategies
This blueprint highlights 10 key steps for conceiving, planning and implementing e-strategies.
Telecom-IT cohesion
Regional integration
services; as well as through assisting with
improving the content, access and delivery
of education and healthcare.
However, this awareness of the
development potential of ICT is often not
fully reflected in the formulation of national
e-strategies, many of which either lay
primary emphasis on ICT as a sector (IT
services, call centres), assuming that this
can emerge as a new growth and export
sector, or focus on ICT as an enabler, but in
a more piecemeal fashion.
Also critical in making the case for a
strategic deployment of ICT to support the
achievement of millennium development
goals is the potential to demonstrate
impact. There are currently few studies or
strategies that outline a strategic
programmatic vision with regard to ICTs
and development in terms of benchmarks,
goals, etc.
Poverty
reduction goal
Implementation modalities
Prioritisation programmes
Holistic framework
Multi-stakeholder strategy
Vision and leadership
Bottom up approaches
Identification of strategic entry points
It is important to begin by identifying
areas where ICT can have a critical
development impact. Most e-assessments
do not have this development focus in
mind. Development entry points for the
strategy may be usefully derived from the
priorities identified in the national poverty
reduction strategy and other development
policies and plans.
To consider a few recent examples: in
the case of Mozambique, the ICT policy
implementation strategy draws its priorities
from the PARPA or poverty reduction
strategy. There are indications that the
PARPA may in turn be iteratively revised to
address deployment of ICT for development.
Within the context of the IT Masterplan
2001-2005, the pre-eminent focus is more
on ICT as a sector rather than ICT as an
enabler. But in general, these are the
Processes to enhance
global inclusion
Donor cooperation
and resource mobilisation
exceptions rather than the rule. In the
context of the PRSP exercise, ICT is yet to
be viewed as a strategic enabler for
development and poverty reduction. There
are examples of ICT but as of yet there are
no systematic case studies or guidelines
on ICT as an enabler in the PRSP
sourcebook. ICT is viewed as infrastructure
or considered in the context of private
sector development.
Moving forward, it could prove both
useful and important to secure
complementarity at the policy and
implementation levels between the national
ICT and poverty reduction strategies by
inserting development in ICT strategies and
ICT in poverty reduction strategies. ■
For more information, contact:
UN ICT TF Working Group 2.
E-mail: denis@undp.org
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 35
 From the United Nations Information & Communication
Technologies Task Force to the World Summit on the
Information Society on behalf of Working Group 5.
A road to universal
broadband connectivity
A
s an implementation of very low cost ICT
infrastructure, we have developed a store-
and-forward wireless network for rural
connectivity known as DakNet. The name derives
from the Hindi word ‘dak’ which means ‘post’ or
‘postal’. The DakNet wireless network takes
advantage of existing communications and
transportation infrastructure to distribute digital
connectivity to outlying villages lacking digital
communications infrastructure. DakNet combines
physical means of transportation with wireless data
transfer in order to extend the internet connectivity
provided by a central uplink or hub (e.g. a cybercafe,
VSAT or post office) to kiosks in surrounding villages.
Instead of trying to relay data over a long distance
(which can be expensive), DakNet transmits data over
short point-to-point links between kiosks and portable
storage devices called mobile access points (MAPs).
Mounted on and powered by a bus, motorcycle or
even bicycle, the MAP physically transports data
“DakNet transmits data over
short point-to-point links
between kiosks and
portable storage devices
called mobile access points
”
36 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
among public kiosks and private communications
devices (as an intranet) and between kiosks and a
hub (for non-real-time internet access). Through the
use of low cost WiFi radio transceivers, the data
carried by the MAP is automatically and wirelessly
transferred at high bandwidth for each point-to-point
connection. The operation of the network can be
described as follows:
1. As the vehicle carrying the MAP comes within
range of each village (up to 1km depending on line-
of-sight, velocity and use of antennas) they
automatically sense a wireless connection with a
kiosk and deliver and collect data at relatively high
bandwidth (300Kbs-11Mbs).
2. Whenever a MAP comes within range of another
kiosk or a hub, data is automatically uploaded to,
and downloaded from, the intranet/internet.
3. This cycle is repeated for every vehicle carrying a
MAP unit, thereby creating a low-cost wireless
network and seamless communications
infrastructure. Even a single vehicle passing by a
village once per day is sufficient to provide daily
information services.
Although the data transport provided by DakNet
is not real-time, a significant amount of data can be
moved at once, supporting a variety of applications.
As a result, it is interesting to note that physically
transporting data from village to village by this
means generally provides a higher data throughput
than other low bandwidth technologies, such as
telephone modems.
By employing short distance radio links, DakNet
allows for small low cost, low power radio devices to
be used. Perhaps more importantly, the use of short
distance radio links also ensures high data rates and
does not have the interference problems, security
problems and maintenance costs associated with
long distance wireless links.
 DakNet can be used to support a wide variety of
applications such as:

“
• Internet/intranet messaging: e-mail and video/audio
messaging.
• Information distribution/broadcasting: community
bulletin boards, public health announcements,
music and video broadcasts.
Although the data transport provided
• Information collection: collection of environmental by DakNet is not real-time, a
sensor information, voting, census/polling, health significant amount of data can be
records and land records.
• Information searching, web services: searching and
moved at once, supporting a variety
browsing, and e-commerce. of applications

”
• Rural supply chain management: tracking the
movement of goods. ■

For more information, contact:

Prof. Alex (Sandy) Pentland, Dr Richard Fletcher,
Amir Alexander Hasson, MIT Media Laboratory
E-mail: daknet@media.mit.edu

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 37
 From the United Nations Information & Communication
Technologies Task Force to the World Summit on the
Information Society on behalf of Working Group 6.
Technology solutions advance
entrepreneurship in developing countries
W
orking Group 6 (WG6) was
created with the understanding
that ICTs can be leveraged to
achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
Over the past year, the working group has
assessed the development environment and
has recently engaged in three specific
projects aimed at helping enterprises and
entrepreneurs build sustainable businesses.
With the assistance of experts in the field
and inputs from those who have worked in
development, the chair of WG6 has crafted
a strategy that will allow the working group
to directly affect medium enterprises, small
to medium-sized businesses and micro-
entrepreneurs. In addition, WG6 is also
drafting policy recommendations for
governments wishing to create a more
enabling environment for business
development. To achieve this goal, WG6 has
partnered with outside NGOs, most notably
Bridges.org and Open Economies.
Each of the projects being pursued
under the WG6 umbrella is unique in its
focus, scope and reach. Yet the projects are
consistent in their overall goals: addressing
the business and financial needs, and
sustainable economic growth in developing
countries. These goals parallel those of the
Millennium Development Goals. Thus all the
WG6 projects are focused on concretely
applying the benefit of ICTs to entrepreneurs
and enterprises in developing countries.
Enablis
In the category of medium-sized
businesses, WG6 is continuing the efforts
initiated by the DOT Force entrepreneurship
task force through an already partially
38 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
“
funded initiative called Enablis. A new
organisation that will be piloted in South
Africa, Enablis will provide venture capital-
style funding and support to medium-sized The projects are
businesses that are either focused on ICT
or are using ICT in innovative ways.
consistent in their
Enablis will also serve as a focal point for overall goals:
expertise in the ICT/entrepreneurship area.
It is believed that Enablis will have a
addressing the
transformational impact on the socio- business and financial
economic environment of the businesses it needs, and sustainable
supports. This vision is to be achieved
through loan financing, direct business and
economic growth in
technical support to the SMEs, as well as developing countries
policy advice to governments that
”
encourages a more bottoms-up approach
to business development.
DevelopmentSpace Network
WG6 has formed an alliance with the
Center for Global Development, Many
Futures Inc. and State of the World Forum
to create the DevelopmentSpace Network
(DSN). DSN is an innovative approach to the
way the private sector and civil society can
participate in development. Through a
website (www.developmentspace.com)
created by Many Futures, the alliance will
create a virtual marketplace that matches
pre-qualified community-based projects in
developing countries to individual donors
who wish to make direct contributions. By
building a bridge between small donors and
small entrepreneurs, DSN plans to link
individuals at a person-to-person level for
the transfer of financial and skills-based
resources. It is the vision of the alliance that
grantmaking and individual and corporate
investment to the developing world will
dramatically increase, resulting in direct
partnerships between the private sector and
civil society that will help reach and surpass
the Millennium Development Goals.

Microdevelopment finance team

WG6 has focused on micro-
entrepreneurs by seeking solutions that
enable the dramatic scaling of microfinance.
A team of dedicated and talented
individuals who comprise a cross-section of
organisations involved in microfinance has
been convened by WG6. Over the past
several months, this team has been
considering the key obstacles that are
preventing the microfinance industry from
reaching scale and exploring potential
solutions. The elements of the solution are
likely to include:

• Financial instruments that can attract

sizeable new commercial investment.

• Consistent management information for each aspect of microfinance. The

systems and standardised operations and implementation of such a solution will

“
reporting systems. require a voluntary, decentralised
• Universal, low-cost, end-to-end, real-time organisation structure that supports

It is believed that information flows within the sector and
between microfinance institutions and
Enablis will have a organisations outside the sector.
transformational impact • Innovative solutions (both high-tech and
low-tech) for reducing the cost of
on the socio-economic transactions.
environment of the • Flexibility in the design and delivery of
continued local innovation, institutional
autonomy and consensus building around
critical issues. The concept behind this
initiative was announced at the
Microcredit+5 Summit held the week of 11
November 2003 in New York City. The team
is continuing to reach out to parties who are

businesses it supports financial services to meet diverse and interested in participating. ■

changing local needs.

”
For more information, contact:
The group is seeking a solution that will www.unicttaskforce.org
leverage the most appropriate technology

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 39
Hewlett Packard (Services) 31/1/04 10:43 am Page 40

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Professional experts, proven work methodology, and knowledge create our competitive advantage.
We have earned the trust of the largest financial and government institutions, as well as modern
businesses. We look forward to working with you. www.hp.com/hps
From the Asia-Pacific Development Information
Programme to the World Summit on the
Information Society
ICT Policy Development
and Implementation seminar for Afghanistan
T
he Asia Pacific Development Information Programme
(APDIP) in collaboration with the UNDP Afghanistan Country
Office successfully conducted a specialised seminar on ICT
Policy Development and Implementation from 14-18 October 2002
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The curriculum of the seminar was
tailored to the specific needs of government officials from
Afghanistan: to provide professional expertise and assistance in the
development of organisational, national and international ICT
policies for their country.
“APDIP aims to promote the development and application of
ICT for poverty alleviation and sustainable human development in
the Asia Pacific region,” said Shahid Akhtar, the programme’s
Regional Coordinator. “By providing assistance in formulating
comprehensive ICT frameworks and enabling policies, we help
countries to harness the potential of ICT to support national
development in line with their social, economic and political
objectives.”
Headed by the Afghanistan Minister of Communications, H.E.
Masoom Stanekzai, the Afghan delegation included representatives
from the Ministries of Information, Foreign Affairs, Education,
Justice, Higher Education, Women Affairs, Commerce and Finance,
as well as from the Afghan Assistance Coordination Authority. “The
need for ICT development in Afghanistan is huge and the
development of policy is a critical ingredient for the success of the
ICT programmes,” said Mr Stanekzai.
With the assistance of a skilled facilitator and ICT policy
specialist, the group identified challenges, issues and processes for
developing and implementing a national ICT policy for Afghanistan.
Citing a vision to build a high-quality, low-cost ICT network for
Afghanistan, a strategy paper was produced that outlines pertinent
public policy issues and recommends the development of a
national ICT policy for Afghanistan in consultation with
stakeholders. The paper puts forward three objectives to be
pursued by the strategy:
1. Ensure affordable and equitable access to ICT networks and
infrastructure.
2. Provide universal access to ICT information and knowledge.
3. Reinforce the role of government as a model user of ICT.
Five principles are also put forward to guide the development
and implementation of policy:
1. An interconnected and interoperable network of networks.
2. Collaborative public and private sector development.
3. Competition in facilities, products and services.
4. Privacy protection and network security.
5. Lifelong learning as a key element of ICT policy.
Afghanistan already has two key building blocks in place for a
national ICT policy: the National Telecommunications Policy issued
in July 2002, and the Telecommunications Development Strategy
issued in October 2002. These documents tackle critical aspects of
building communications infrastructure. However, a number of
complementary public policy issues related to content and capacity
building must be addressed before further progress can be made
towards the development of a national ICT policy. These public
policy issues, ranging from competition to culture, and from access
to learning, will be discussed and debated by representatives of all
levels of Afghan society.
Mr Stanekzai is considering the establishment of a National
Information and Communications Technology Council (NICTC)
consisting of a core group of UNDP/APDIP ICT policy seminar
participants, to which representatives from various levels of Afghan
society would be added. The NICTC would use the strategy report
as a roadmap to ensure an appropriate and balanced approach to
providing network access, information and knowledge access to all
sectors of Afghanistan that respects Afghanistan’s history, socio-
economic and cultural realities, international context and
encourages investment and innovation. ■
For more information, visit: www.apdip.net
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 41
 From the Association for Progressive
Communications to the World Summit on the
Information Society

APC: internet and ICTs for

social justice and development

“ Our Internet Rights programme works to build the capacity

of civil society organisations to understand the issues and
influence of policy and to ensure that ICTs and the internet

”
are tools for development and democracy

T
he Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is an
international network of civil society organisations. APC is
dedicated to empowering and supporting groups and
individuals working for peace, human rights and the development and
protection of the environment, through the strategic use of information
and communication technologies (ICTs), including the internet.

Technology: practice and policy

APC’s members were often the first providers of the internet in
their countries. Today, we continue to pioneer practical and relevant
uses of ICTs for civil society, especially in developing countries. APC
is an international facilitator of civil society’s engagement with ICTs
and related concerns (in both policy and practice), who strives for a
just and inclusive information society. Our Internet Rights
programme works to build the capacity of civil society organisations
to understand the issues and influence of policy and to ensure that
ICTs and the internet are tools for development and democracy.
The APC’s Internet Rights charter
(http://rights.apc.org/charter.shtml) outlines our position on the right
to communicate, freedom of expression, diversity of ownership and
control, licensing, intellectual property, privacy, governance of the
internet and awareness of rights.
We work to expand concern for ICT issues into the broadest
range of civil society organisations: social movements, women’s
groups, human rights organisations, trade unions, environmental
activists and more. We aim to generate information, explain
issues, build capacity and encourage lobbying – supporting the
voice of civil society to build a just information society. Visit
http://www.apc.org/english/rights/why_ir_and_civsoc.shtml to
read why civil society should lobby and protect our right to use
the internet.

42 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Working regionally in Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean
The APC has active Internet Rights initiatives in Africa and Latin
America and the Caribbean (LAC), and works with networks of
activists in Asia and Europe. To read more about our activities,
please visit http://rights.apc.org.
In 2001, APC brought together civil society representatives to
Internet Rights workshops in Europe, Asia and LAC. In November
2002, we held a successful African Civil Society and ICT policy
workshop in Addis Ababa hosted by the UN Economic Commission
for Africa. Over 80 people attended from all over the continent. This
workshop (http://africa.rights.apc.org/workshop.shtml) developed an
African civil society statement on ICT policy, with specific actions
and contact people in each region.
Monthly newsletters are produced in LAC and Africa on ICT
policy issues as complements to our regional ICT policy monitoring
websites. Occasionally special issues on WSIS and related themes

“
are produced.
We are developing a one-week training course on ICT policy
for civil society, which will be translated into French and
Portuguese. Currently in draft form, this was demonstrated at the
Addis conference.
We work to expand concern for ICT
issues into the broadest range of
The Communication Rights in the Information Society campaign
civil society organisations
The APC is a member of the campaign for Communication

”
Rights in the Information Society (CRIS) (http://www.crisinfo.org),
which brings together many civil society organisations and
individuals committed to building an information society that
benefits all. Communication rights are emerging as a key issue. The
Universal Declaration of Human Rights does not fully recognise this,
however, the World Summit on the Information Society could declare
it a universal right.
APC would like to thank IDRC, the Open Society Institute, the
CTO and Hivos for their support of our Internet Rights work. ■

For more information, contact: Dr Peter Benjamin, APC Communications

and Information Policy Programme Manager. E-mail: peterb@apc.org

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 43
 From Cisco Systems Inc. to the World Summit on
the Information Society.

Bridging the digital divide

through the Cisco Networking Academy Program

T
he Cisco Networking Academy
Program is a comprehensive e-
learning programme that provides
students with the internet technology skills
essential in a global economy. The
Networking Academy Program delivers
web-based content, online assessment,
student performance tracking, hands-on
labs, instructor training and support, and
preparation for industry-standard
certifications. 24 of the world’s 49 least developed countries, companies and individuals,”
Launched in 1997, there are now over countries (LDCs) by the end of 2001. Chambers stated.
10,000 networking academies in 149 “The Cisco Networking Academy The initial target was met six months
countries. Over 296,000 students are Program enables the internet to bring digital ahead of schedule. The Academy Program
enrolled in academies in high schools, opportunity to every corner of the earth. By has been established in 32 LDCs and six
colleges and universities, technical schools, including these countries in our programme African non-LDCs. Eighty-six academies
community-based organisations, and other we will show that the internet and education have been established at universities,
educational programmes around the world. are truly the two great equalisers in life for technical schools, secondary schools and
Cisco has partnered with various
international organisations to help bring
digital opportunities to disadvantaged and
at-risk communities worldwide.

Least developed countries initiative

During the G-8 Summit in July 2000,
leaders of eight major industrialised
democracies called for new public and
private sector efforts to bridge the global
digital divide. In response, Cisco System’s
President and CEO, John Chambers, and
United Nations Development Program
Administrator, Mark Malloch Brown,
announced the Least Developed Countries
Initiative. Their intention was to partner with
the US Agency for International
Development/Leland Initiative/EDDI and the
United Nations Volunteers/UNITeS to extend
the Cisco Networking Academy Program to

44 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S

“The Cisco Networking
Academy Program
enables the internet to
bring digital
opportunity to every
corner of the earth”
non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Three-hundred instructors have been trained
and more than 2440 students are currently
enrolled. Furthermore, 20 UN/UNITeS
volunteers have been deployed in the
targeted LDCs to focus on outreach to
groups with restricted access to ICT training
and to promote female participation.
Internet Training Centres Initiative for
Developing Countries
Leaders and experts worldwide
increasingly recognise human-resource
capacity development as one of the most
crucial constraints facing developing
countries in their attempts to bridge the
digital divide. In both the developed and
developing world there is an acute shortage
of skilled networking and IT professionals.
Students in developing countries face
particular difficulties in gaining access to
training in the IT field.
With the aim to close the gap in internet
and networking skills in developing
countries, the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU) launched the
Internet Training Centres Initiative for
Developing Countries (ITCI-DC) in May 2001.
Cisco is the pioneer corporate partner under
this initiative. Cisco Networking Academy
Program will be offered at the ITU’s training
centres, which will provide training in
networking skills. The goal is to establish a
worldwide network of 50 internet training
centers by end of 2003. As of November
2002, 26 centres were participating in the
initiative, with more than 800 students
enrolled in the Academy Program. opportunities with particular emphasis on
women, ensuring that they play an active
Jordan – achieving e-quality in the IT sector role in the internet economy.
In Jordan, Cisco and Cisco Foundation Under this project, 10 institutions
have partnered with UNIFEM and the including community centres, NGOs,
Government of Jordan to establish 10 colleges and high schools were identified in
gender-focused academies. The primary the capital and secondary cities. Instructor
goal of the project is to create training training took place in August 2001 in
Amman and since then, nine of the 10
academies have started classes. There are
currently 520 students enrolled, of which
345 are females (66 percent).
In addition to establishing the
academies, this partnership also includes
other activities such as research on the role
of women in IT in Jordan, as well as
developing marketing materials intended to
improve recruitment and retention of women
into the IT sector. ■
For more information, visit:
www.cisco.com/edu/academy
(The Cisco Networking Academy Program)
www.cisco.com/edu/ldc
(The least developed countries initiative)
http://cisco.netacad.net/public/digital_divide/
partners/ITU.html (The ITCI-DC)
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 45
 From the Fundación Cisneros to the World Summit
on the Information Society
AME and the Cl@se initiative
What is AME?
D
esigned to make a contribution to
the quality of basic education in
Latin America, AME (Actualización
de Maestros en Educación) is a partnership
between an entertainment content providing
satellite-based platform and the educational
authorities of seven Latin American nations.
AME is also an innovative distance-learning
programme that provides training to
schoolteachers across the region via digital
satellite television.
AME relaunches its services this year
to serve 250 schools in seven Latin
American countries: Argentina, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama and
Venezuela. Teachers access an eight-
month distance-learning course that
originated in Barcelona, Spain, at the
headquarters of the Universidad Autonoma
de Barcelona via DIRECTV, and
communicate with the University and fellow
trainees through the internet.
Groups of teachers from different
countries then work together to resolve
practical tests and to prepare research
projects designed to deepen the knowledge
acquired through the distance-learning
courses. The effort has been widely praised
by teacher participants, and preparations
are underway to become a full-scale
resource for teachers throughout Latin
America. UNESCO assessed AME at the
end of its pilot project phase (September
1998-May 1999). Strong recommendations
to continue the project were issued by this
UN authority on educational matters.
46 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Founding partners
AME’s founding partners have made this
programme a forceful reality through their
generous contributions. These enlightened
institutions are:
DIRECTV Latin America
Made available transponder space in its
region-wide digital satellite platform (Galaxy
VIII i).
The Microsoft Corporation
Donated the operating programs and
internet software to schools.
Fundacion Cisneros
Provides the project management and
finances the training fees and the publishing
of learning manuals for teachers.
Inter-American Development Bank
Covered the fees charged by UNESCO
to assess the pilot project.
Centro de Transferencia de Tecnología
Trained, free of charge, participating
teachers in the pilot project phase in the use
of computers and the internet.
Why AME?
As the DirecTV partnership (Hughes
Electronics-Cisneros Group of Companies)
prepared to enter the Latin American
market, disparities between economic and
social trends became painfully apparent.
Most salient was the status quo of
education in the region.
• 45 percent of entrants into primary school
do not graduate
• 40 percent of primary school graduates
do not understand a 500-word essay
• 55 percent of high school graduates fail a
basic algebra test
• 35 percent of primary school children
repeat grades
• 45 percent of children in high school
repeat grades
• 70 percent of primary school teachers do
not receive their teaching materials
• 80 percent of primary school teachers are
not empowered with new teaching skills
throughout the duration of their careers.
• Average teacher salary in the region is
US$1.09 per hour.
This situation posed a development
challenge for the partnership, as the
expansion plan was based on the constant
recruitment of skilled human resources. The
Fundación Cisneros was thus enlisted to
develop a region-wide teacher-training
programme that would contribute to
redressing this situation – resorting to the
DIRECTV digital satellite platform as the
distribution medium. ■
For more information, contact:
AME
Dennys Montoto dmontoto@ame.cisneros.com
http://www.cisneros.com/company/ame.asp
CL@SE
Maria Ignacia Arcaya
Marcaya@Claxson.com
http://www.cisneros.com/company/clase.asp
 “Thank you so much for your devotion to a
kid like me… Congratulations to all programmes,
especially to the Math Crew that is leading me
out of my fear of numbers.”
John Jairo Marulanda Arroyave, aged 12,
Pereira, Colombia
What is the Cl@se initiative
Cl@se was developed in 1996 as an educational
channel for families in DIRECTV subscriber homes in
Latin America. The first pan-regional educational
channel, it was further developed in 1999 to provide
educational content for children and teenagers.
Cl@se offers dynamic content relevant to
primary and secondary school students, thus serving
as an educational tool for teachers that children and
teenagers become easily engaged with. Its valuable,
educational content provides a clear purpose for the
integration of new technologies in the classroom and
its integrated system takes full advantage of available
technologies, offering:
• Cl@se: the educational channel direct-to-home
and direct-to-schools.
• Teacher guides: distributed to schools to assist
teachers in taking full advantage of the channel
content as a complement to the curriculum.
• Cl@se website: an interactive environment allows
for open communication within the continent
between students, teachers, parents and Cl@se.
The Cl@se channel
• Targets 6 to 17 year olds.
• Includes hosts who make programming content
relevant for a Latin American audience, frame
programmes with questions to stimulate classroom
discussion, and promote audience participation
through contests, e-mails, on-line games, etc.
• Features programmes from: BBC, Dorling
Kindersley, TV Ontario, Pearson, Canal Once.
Programming includes:
• Eyewitness – Dorling Kindersley. This series
stimulates the imagination through the use of
computerised images, documentaries, footage
from films and animations. In Eyewitness, history
and science are presented in an anecdotal manner
with energy and a touch of humour.
• Eddie Files – FASE Productions. Eddie solves
interesting mathematics assignments and, through
his video camera, shows us that numbers are a
part of our day-to-day lives.
• Beakman’s World – Columbia Pictures. Mr
Beakman and his assistants use ingenious
humour, special effects and fascinating scientific
experiments to make learning an adventure.
• Sacbe, The Maya Route – Canal Once.
Documentary content and fiction are combined
to yield a passionate adventure through the
Maya World.
• Connect with English – WGBH/CPB/Annenberg.
Provides all of the pedagogical foundations
required to use television to teach a second
language. Throughout the video, key phrases are
repeated, important events retold and idioms
paraphrased.
• The Arts – BBC. Artists and artisans show the
techniques applied to their artwork, while they
explain their perspective on the world and how it
provides them with inspiration.
Teacher guide
Developed by Latin American educational experts
to add didactic value and relevance to the channel’s
programming, the teacher guides provide detailed
information about the channel’s programming,
suggested activities in accordance with the students’
grade level, programme summaries and more in depth
information about related subjects, and articles
regarding teaching trends.
Website
The Cl@se website provides a meeting point for
the Latin American educational community. Alongside
programming information and teacher guides, the site
also provides children with the opportunity to interact
with the programmes’ content through games, and
offers access to additional resources for parents,
teachers and students.
Distribution
Argentina
Cl@se is offered as part of the package of
channels that is made available to 8000 rural schools
through the Ministry of Communications’ Schools
without Frontiers initiative.
Costa Rica
Cl@se reaches 150 schools that have access to
DIRECTV programming through a government-
sponsored project.
Mexico
Cl@se signed a collaboration agreement with
the Instituto Latinoamericano para la Comunicación
Educativa (ILCE) for distribution of the channel and
teacher guide to 30,000 schools throughout Mexico.
Pan-regional
Cl@se provides educational content to more than
6000 teachers and 150,000 students in schools that
have participated in the Fundación Cisneros’ AME
project in seven countries (Venezuela, Ecuador, Costa
Rica, Panama, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia).
“At our school we follow Cl@se’s
programming with much enthusiasm, which we
wish could be seen in all Mexican homes. We
await the fourth teacher guide and wish you
much more success.”
Prof. Martin Alcocer, teacher, Mexico City, Mexico
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 47
 From WSIS-Gender Caucus to the World Summit
on the Information Society.
Promoting ICT for development
alongside gender equality issues
T
here is a wide consensus that ICT can play
an important role in reducing poverty,
improving education and healthcare,
enhancing political participation and empowerment,
and promoting sustainable development in
developing countries as well as countries with
economies in transition. The ICT sector is the central
core of the emerging global knowledge-based
economy in which access and control of ICT
facilities and applications are prerequisites for
effective integration into the global economy.
The role of ICT as a tool for development has
recently attracted the sustained attention of the
United Nations. In 2000, the Economic and Social
Council adopted a Ministerial Communiqué on the
role of information technology in the context of a
knowledge-based economy. Later that year, the
Millennium Declaration underscored the urgency of
ensuring that the benefits of new technologies,
especially ICT, be available to all. The World Summit
on the Information Society, with ITU as lead
organising entity, which takes place in 2003 (Geneva)
and 2005 (Tunisia), provides a unique opportunity to
advance the ICT for development agenda.
These positive opportunities are undermined by
the prospect that ICT will remain accessible only to
the elite and will not contribute to the achievement of
fundamental human development.
The majority of the world’s population still lives
in poverty and remains untouched by the benefits
of ICT. There are critical disparities between and
within countries and among groups within countries
and regions. One of the most overlooked and
ignored disparities is the one that exists between
men and women. Unequal power relations in our
societies contribute to differential access,
participation and treatment for men and women in
the Information Society.
48 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
These inequalities in access to, and control of,
ICT between men and women limit the potential of an
information society to make the most valuable
contribution to the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals MDGs. Without women’s
participation in decision-making in all spheres of life
and at all levels of society, poverty will not be
eradicated nor will fully democratic societies be
created. Limited access to ICT for women also has
the effect of reducing countries’ competitiveness in
the global market.
Promoting ICT for development can assist with
achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
The first goal of the MDGs is to: “Eradicate extreme
poverty and hunger.” The UN General Assembly
recognised that the achievement of this goal depends
in part on: “Good governance at the international
level,” and also resolved to: “Ensure that the benefits
of new technologies, especially information and
communications technologies… are available to all.”
(UN Millennium Declaration paras. 13 and 20.5
[A/res/55/2]).
Gender implications
The challenge of gender inequality can be
overcome with urgent and concerted actions at the
national, regional and international levels to put ICT
firmly in the service of development for all. However,
this will not happen if ICT decision makers continue
to treat gender issues as being non-existent or
unimportant. In recent months, specifically since the
first WSIS PrepCom in July 2002, there has been
consolidation of evidence on the status of women in
the Information Society and development of analysis
of strategies for improving this position. WSIS should
provide a platform for sharing this information and
debating on the best course of action to reduce
inequalities and increase opportunities.

“
The majority of the world’s
population still lives in
poverty and remains
untouched by the benefits
of ICT
”
Evidence shows that it is important for decision
makers on a national and global level to recognise
that, in order to formulate an appropriate plan of
action to proactively target the themes proposed by
WSIS, there must be a clear understanding of the
issues that impede some sectors of the population to
maximise their potential. In doing so, it will be
possible to formulate measures to effectively provide
access to ICT for all, to understand the value of ICT
as a tool for economic and social development and to
assure confidence and security in the use of ICT
(www.itu.int/osg/spu/wsis-themes/).
Therefore, some of the issues that must be
seriously taken into account are:
• A lack of participation by the majority of the people,
particularly women, in the developing countries,
because of structural and cultural impediments,
which significantly reduce the developmental
benefits of ICT.
• The uneven and unaffordable access to ICT
facilities and services by women, especially, but not
exclusively, in developing countries.
• Inadequate provision of relevant content and
applications, particularly in local languages and
adapted to needs of non-literate women.
• Gender discrimination in labour markets and in the
provision of education and training opportunities
and allocation of financial resources for
entrepreneurship and business development, which
also offer negative consequences.
• Under-representation of women in all aspects of
decision-making in operations, policy and
regulation in the ICT.
The convening of a World Summit on the
Information Society by the United Nations system
provides a unique opportunity to focus global
attention on these issues. In making preparations for
the Summit, the organisers are urged to take the
opportunity to ensure that WSIS provides an
opportunity for women and men to enjoy the myriad
of potentials for social and economic empowerment
offered by ICT, and to participate effectively in all
aspects of the ICT field. WSIS can assist in building
an information society that contributes to promoting
gender equality as well as furthering progress in the
eradication of poverty, promotion of peace and
security and the enjoyment of human rights. All
stakeholders must take urgent action to ensure that
gender equality and women’s rights are integrated
into the WSIS and its follow-up programmes. Unless
these actions are taken, there is a grave risk that the
Summit will not succeed in its aim of creating a
vision of the information society that contributes to
human development. ■
For more information, visit:
www.wougnet.org/WSIS/wsisgc.html
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 49
 From Germany to the World Summit on the
Information Society.
German initiatives
I
n the framework of bilateral development
cooperation, Germany supports a number of
projects aimed at the application and use of ICT.
These, above all, are projects that improve the access
of the rural population to ICT services, contribute to
the modernisation of the economy and strengthen
civil society organisations.
Some examples of these initiatives include:
Communal multimedia centres in Mali
Mali has a very dynamic and wide-ranging media
environment. Its 110 private radio stations represent
the largest transmitter density in the whole of sub-
Sahara Africa.
These private radios are of a commercial,
communal, religious or cooperative type. Radio is the
most important means of communication and
information in rural areas. Communal radio not only
conveys important information, but it also gives a
‘voice’ to the rural population. In the course of the
decentralisation process, communal radio stations
have become particularly important because they
contribute to creating a local identity.
The project, currently in the pre-feasibility stage,
aims to create multimedia centres in small towns and
rural communities in Mali. These centres are to be
attached to existing private radio stations, thus
creating an added value of communication services
for the population. The one-way communication of
radio transmitters is to be extended by means of a
modern communication infrastructure (telephone, fax,
computer, internet access).
The aim is to give an additional means of income
to private communal radio stations while, at the same
time, facilitate a more active participation of the
population in the political decision processes on the
communal and national level.
The project promotes the connectivity of remote
areas and supports the process of decentralisation in
50 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Mali. In this way, it makes a contribution to bridging
the digital divide.
Extension of the digital patent information system
in the People’s Republic of China
With the first Patent Law of 1985 the People’s
Republic of China has created the legal conditions for
granting commercial patent rights to applicants from
China and abroad.
Because of rapid economic development, the
Chinese Patent Office (CPO) reached the limits of its
technical capacities. The increasing duration of patent
procedures (on average four years) was an obstacle
to the modernisation of the People’s Republic of
China and to economic growth.
The project supports the capacities of the CPO
and access to patent information by affiliated patent
information centres of the most important industrial
cities in China. The CPO was equipped with new
data-technical equipment. There was also extensive
training of CPO employees.
The German Patent Office has been involved in
the whole process from the beginning. The exchange
of information between the two patent offices is to be
continued by means of a sponsorship agreement.
Development of the electronic payments system in
Uganda
Uganda has implemented substantial reforms in
the financial sector since 1993, with the support of
the international donor community. A lack of trust in
the system has preventend an interbank market from
coming into existence. Clearing of checks by the
Ugandan Central Bank can take several months. The
deficiencies of the system burden the rural
population, because financial transactions often
require travelling to the capital. The project aims at
improving the efficiency of the Ugandan payments
system by creating an electronic clearing house. Both
companies and private bank customers will profit
from reduced transaction costs.
In the near future, cross-boundary digitalised
payments will also be possible.
The project comprises the equipment of this new
electronic clearing house with the necessary
computer hardware and software, as well as
installation, maintenance and training.
The commercial banks have been involved in the
preparation of the project and the elaboration of
standards and regulations.
Support of the project of the NGO Kabissa
‘It’s time to get online: simple steps to success on
the internet’
Many NGOs in developing countries are not able
to take advantage of the internet, because they do
not realise the benefits or because they do not have
the necessary knowledge to use it. The project aims
at removing these two barriers.
Training material will be developed and capacity-
building workshops will be organised in order to
convey the necessary knowledge for an efficient use
of the internet.
The project is aimed at NGOs in West Africa that
commit themselves to human rights, freedom of
information and democratisation.
At first, Germany will support the pilot phase of
the project. It is planned to finance the propagation in
West Africa together with other donors. Overall, 1000
NGOs are to be reached with the project and more
than 3000 sets of training material are to be
distributed.
Support of the UN University for Peace in Costa
Rica in setting up and propagating study programmes
in the field of crisis prevention, conflict management
and peace education.
Beginning in autumn 2003, the UN University for
Peace in Costa Rica will – with German support –
offer study programmes for a Master’s Degree in
international peace education.
These programmes can be made available on a
worldwide scale through links with partner universities
(above all in developing countries) and the use of new
information and communication technologies
(distance learning).
ICT in development cooperation
In 2002, Germany presented a study concerning
the state of ICTs in five countries (Peru, Laos,
Vietnam, Tanzania and Uganda). This study, which
was carried out against the background of the G8
countries’ commitment to promote the application of
ICTs in developing countries, analyses the potential
for possible cooperation in this field. ■
“
Many NGOs in developing
countries are not able to
take advantage of the
internet, because they do
not realise the benefits or
because they do not have
the necessary knowledge
to use it
”
For more information, contact:
Gerd Benke, Federal Foreign Office, Germany
406-RL@auswaertiges-amt.de
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 51
 From Hewlett-Packard to the World Summit on the
Information Society
e-Inclusion: Dikhotole Digital Village,
South Africa – rising out of a cycle of poverty
D
ikhatole, a community just outside of Johannesburg, suffers
from chronic unemployment coupled with primitive living
conditions – no running water, electricity or basic housing.
The unemployment rate is more than 30 percent and many of
the community’s 8,000 people still cling to the bottom rungs of the
South African economy: most families are led by single mothers who
lack the skills needed to get a job. Often, young people leave their
unstable home environments to live on the street, and are vulnerable
to a life of violence, crime and infectious disease. There is a
perpetual cycle of poverty that leaves little hope for the future.
A reason for hope
A business consortium led by Hewlett-Packard South Africa has
launched a project to provide the Dikhatole community with basic
computer, Internet and business skills to improve their chances of
getting work. The training will be provided through the Dikhatole
Digital Village, the largest facility of its kind in the country, with more
than 90 Internet-enabled workstations.
To stem the tide of chronic unemployment in this South African
township, this Digital Village strives to help unemployed youth and
women develop sought-after computer and business skills, giving
them access to the Internet to open job opportunities.
The project is spearheaded by the non-profit Organisation for
Rehabilitation and Training (ORT) South Africa and sponsored by
HP, Macsteel and Microsoft. HP is donating much of the
equipment, while Microsoft is donating the software. Macsteel, a
South African industrial-steel producer is providing the training
room and related offices.
Opening new opportunities
The programme’s goal is to improve the standard of living
among Dikhatole residents by increasing their earning potential and
connecting them to the world. “The project targets unemployment
and low income in the area by helping youngsters gain qualifications
52 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
and experience, and encouraging entrepreneurship, particularly
among women,” explains Henry Ferreira, Managing Director of HP
South Africa.
Residents will be taught skills such as computer literacy, CV
writing, communications and presentation, and entrepreneurship.
More than 1,000 unemployed youth will be trained in employability
skills and self-employment, while 540 women will be trained in basic
Internet use for networking and support, as well as in starting and
running a small business.
Addressing community needs
The second major thrust of the project is to build up computer
resources and skills in the region’s schools. HP and ORT aim to train
at least 70 teachers in essential computer skills and will help train
more than 2,400 children in basic computer use. In addition, the two
companies will upgrade and install computers and Internet facilities
at the schools.
The third aspect of the project involves training local
government employees in basic computer and Internet skills, and
installing computers in the workplace to allow them to communicate
effectively and share information more readily.
The project is expected to last for three years; by then it is
expected that the community will be trained enough and
experienced enough to become self-sufficient. HP and ORT have
worked closely with governmental and private-sector bodies, and
members of the community, to ensure the project will sustain itself
once ORT and HP have withdrawn.
Dikhatole, which literally means ‘lost’, may have represented the
feelings of many youths and women in the community up until now.
But hopefully this project will be one small step toward self-
sufficiency and helping people find their way. ■
For more information, visit:
http://www.hp.com/e-inclusion/en/project/dikhotole1.html
From the Inter-American Development Bank to the
World Summit on the Information Society.

The first Latin American and Caribbean

video art competition and exhibition

L
ast year, the Cultural Centre of the
Inter-American Development Bank
and the Information Technology for
Development Division of the IDB (SDS/ICT)
announced a competition and international
video art exhibition, to be held in December
2002 and January 2003, at the IDB Cultural
Centre Art Gallery in Washington DC, and in
April-May 2003 at the Istituto Italo-
Latinoamericano (IILA) in Rome.
The objectives of the competition were
to broaden the discussion of economic and
social factors affecting Latin America and
the Caribbean with the participation of
individuals who use technology-based visual
media; to encourage those working in the
cultural milieu to use their creative abilities
to formulate viewpoints that enhance public
awareness and understanding; to inspire the
public to consider possible alternatives and
solutions; and to establish a benchmark for
the advancement of video art as a form of
expression in the region.
According to Mirna Liévano de such as justice, security, social inclusion, Carlos Fernando Osuna (Colombia), Ester
Marques, IDB External Relations Advisor: ethnicity and the environment, among many Guízar and Maries Mendiola (Mexico),
“The social and economic reality of Latin other issues. As a result, we have a chance Humberto Polar (Peru) and David Morey
America and the Caribbean, and the role of to experience the everyday reality of life in (Venezuela).
communications in development appealed the region as video artists see it. The results The strength of the exhibition lies with
to a large group of people who work with are poignant, revealing and educational. those video artists who are able to
cutting-edge video technology. It is the first They also underscore and celebrate the key interpret particular issues affecting their
international video contest of its kind in role of culture in the development process.” countries, and who reflect, in their
Washington DC, a benchmark that has An international jury selected 56 videos personal ways, their social and economic
afforded talented artists an opportunity to from 21 countries. The two cash awards realities. The significant response to the
show their abilities. These, mostly young, went to Brooke Alfaro (Panama) and to call proves that the IDB Cultural Centre
filmmakers presented short films on social Eduardo Baggio and Carlos Rocha (Brazil). was able to penetrate an entire community
issues that the IDB works with every day, Honourable Mentions were awarded to not yet familiar with the IDB and its

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 53
 agenda. The outstanding number of
excellent pieces received from certain
countries attests to their past economic
well-being, their long standing attention to
education and the visual tradition in the
realm of filmmaking. In some countries it
appears that artists have been able to
keep up technologically but are having
difficulty in adjusting video to artistic
terms, or they are having trouble dealing
with current situations. The structure of
many pieces shows that in almost all
countries the boundaries between
documentary, short film, performance
recording and video art are blurred.
In all countries, access to technology
for the regular individual continues to be
an outstanding issue, in some more than
others and in physical terms as well as
economic terms. In Latin America and the
Caribbean, technology still has a long way
to go to fulfil its promise of making life – or
at least work – simpler, cheaper and more
functional. Judging from the clippings that
the IDB representations sent to the IDB
headquarters, the general feeling among
artists is that video, and video art in
particular, requires resources they just do
not have. It is significant to note that
Nicaragua, Honduras, Jamaica and
Guyana were four out of the five countries
that did not submit any entry.
The press of Washington DC quickly
responded to the event in a variety of
reviews: “Without a doubt, the First Latin
American and Caribbean Video Art
54 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Competition and its accompanying video
installation exhibition requires patience and
pacing from its audience, but the effort
spent viewing this show is worth it,” said
washingtonpost.com. The Washington
Times listed it in the Top Picks of its
weekend section. The Washington Diplomat
went further, stating that: “The aspect of
“
The results are
poignant, revealing
and educational. They
technology was key here because the IDB
also underscore and
was dealing with countries that may not celebrate the key role
have advanced video technology, education of culture in the
or knowledge of video as an artistic
medium. This, in itself, is already a reflection
development process
”
of the social and economic realities facing The Washington Diplomat
these countries, and how the artist
overcame their lack of resources was part of
their artistic journey.” And: “In some videos,
the equipment may have been less than
state-of-the-art, but the message is no less
intense, and the images no less disturbing
or beautiful.”
Despite the unsympathetic and
sometimes angry messages that video
artists are sending to society’s leadership
through their work, there are positive,
optimistic and even humorous alternatives
that assimilate the region’s problems and
individual shortcomings. Taken as a group,
the present exhibition may be a strong
reminder of unsolved and lingering
problems, but it is also a gratifying
demonstration of the talent of the region
that, despite chronic limitations, is found in
abundance, and is waiting for better
opportunities to help re-conceptualise the
elusive idea of integral development. ■
DIGITALYART,
an exhibition on technology in art
T
he Cultural Center of the Inter American
Development Bank, in cooperation with the
Information and Communication Technology
for Development Division, of the Sustainable
Development Department and the Istituto Italiano di
Cultura, of Washington, DC, has organised
DIGITALYART, an exhibition honouring Italy and the
City of Milan, host of the 44th Annual Meeting of IDB
Governors in March of 2003.
It has become the Center’s tradition to honour the
member country hosting the Annual Meeting with an
art exhibition. This allows the IDB to bring to global
attention some of the most significant cultural
expressions from the LAC region. Most importantly, it
helps establish a tangible relationship between culture
and development, a notion that is obvious for some,
but debatable for others; the debate illustrates how
imperfectly the definition of development is
sometimes conceived.
Technology summarises the dynamic of the world
in the 21st century. The ‘revolution’ that started at the
end of the past century has brought many unresolved
issues into the beginning of the new one. Technology
has always been entangled in the socio-cultural
evolution of civilisation, but has never before played
such an important role affecting almost every second
of our lives. Although technology is assumed to be, in
itself, an expression of advancement, its goals are
unavoidably linked to the improvement of life and
elevation of human kind. Technology, however, has
not always brought man to better understanding,
refined his nature, or made him wiser. If not these,
what other purposes should technology have?
The artists selected for this exhibition represent a
variety of current proposals within the ample framework
of artists working with interactive digital technology in
Italy. Maestro Fabrizio Plessi is one of the most admired
and recognised contemporary Italian artists. For this
presentation, the Center was able to secure his piece
ROMA II, currently in the collection of the Guggenheim
Museum in New York. Both the monumental scale and
the bold statement he makes with the use of marble
and video combined, not to mention the sensible use of
water imagery, speaks of the balance between the past
and present, the reference to history for man to remain
alert to recurrent errors, and the awareness of
everything else humans share life with.
The position of Plessi in the international scene is
that of an artist concerned with developing a
contemporary language inspired by the newest and
most advanced resources available. At the same time,
however, he uses that language which is inscribed in
the context of man and the existential realm.
Architect Celestino Soddu has dedicated his
entire career to investigating the possibilities of
generative design. He creates software that endows
the machine with the capacity to produce multiple
alternatives to a given program, producing designs
that depart from cultural and physical DNA. Adriano
Abbado’s work illustrates an artist interested in
expressing himself with new tools. To achieve these
goals in a contemporary world, sensibility has to be
guided into new dimensions where both aesthetics
and intellectual thought coexist with technology; the
resultant imagery cannot be rejected under the
traditional arguments or modes of perception.
For the IDB it has been very rewarding to
coalesce such an interesting and different group of
efforts and realisations departing from a common
premise. This is the first time that the work of these
three artists has been exhibited in Washington, DC ■
For more information, contact:
Enrica Murmura, Information and Communication Technology for
Development, Division SDS/ICT
enricam@iadb.org www.iadb.org/ict4dev
Felix Angel, Cultural Centre- Inter american Development Bank
felixa@iadb.org www.iadb.org/exr/cultural/center.html
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 55
 From the Inter-American Development Bank to the
World Summit on the Information Society.
The Inter-American Development Bank
steps in to support ICT applications for small businesses
T
he Inter-American Development
Bank (IDB) and the Multilateral
Investment Fund, a unit of the IDB
Group, have launched the ICT Innovation
Program for e-business and SME
Development (in short ICT-4-BUS
Program). This is a US$5 million fund,
which supports innovative ICT applications
in Latin America and the Caribbean and is
aimed at strengthening the competitive
position of SMEs.
The Program’s first call for proposals
was closed in October 2002 with 101
project applications from 18 countries. A
new call for proposals will be opened in
June 2003.
Background
In the past few decades, knowledge-
driven innovation has become a decisive
factor in the competitiveness of both
nations and firms. This trend is particularly
pronounced in developed countries where,
by 1999, knowledge-based industries
represented more than 50 percent of GDP.
ICT is the backbone of knowledge-
based economies. ICT solutions and
services improve efficiency in the value
chain by providing better and faster
communication between trading partners,
integrating transactions with logistics
functions, reducing intermediation costs,
facilitating the search for new markets and
allowing better pricing policies. ICT also
serves as an important tool for other
corporate functions such as strategic
planning, business operations, customer
services and decision-making processes
56 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
through the provision of rapid and
strategic information.
As ICT has become a key element for
improving the productivity and efficiency of
private firms, it also plays a crucial role in
strengthening the competitiveness of
national economies. However, access to,
and use of, these technologies remains
uneven. This disparity, the so-called digital
divide, is a reflection of deeper social and
economic inequalities. In particular, the lack
of financial, human and technical resources
prevent SMEs from swiftly adopting new
technology to compete in national and
international markets.
On the supply side, during 1999-2000,
an incipient industry for ICT has emerged in
Latin America and the Caribbean confirming
the potential for a small but vibrant
information sector that could count on a
reservoir of technology and business
talents. The subsequent downturn in the
fortunes of the sector led, in 2001, to a swift
reduction of resources in the development
of ICT applications.
Innovation by tech firms has been
reduced and marketing efforts have been
concentrated on providing IT services to
large corporations, a market that is already
controlled by large consulting and/or IT
firms. Investments in new ICT technologies
tailored to the need of hitherto marginalised
medium and small sized business users
have become much more risky. This
represents a potential setback for the
access of these users to ICT technologies,
either for increased efficiency and
competitiveness or for market penetration.
The ICT-4-BUS Program
ICT-4-BUS aims to improve the
competitiveness, productivity and efficiency
of SMEs in Latin America and the
Caribbean through the implementation of
innovative ICT and e-business solutions. It
will make ICT solutions available to SMEs
that strive for market penetration and
business efficiency, which were once
limited to larger companies and
international corporations. In so doing, this
initiative will lend a truly global dimension to
the multitude of efforts to bridge the global
digital divide, foster digital opportunity and
thus firmly put ICT at the service of
development for all.
In this context, ICT-4-BUS will provide
non-reimbursable matching funds for the
development and implementation of pilot
projects that will test innovative ICT
services and solutions for SMEs, primarily
in the areas of value chain integration,
workplace productivity and efficiency, and
market penetration. The overall cost of the
projects to be funded is estimated at US$8
million, out of which, US$4.5 million will be
provided by the ICT-4-BUS Program. Over
450 SMEs will participate in the pilot
projects. It is also expected that a large
number will benefit from new services and
solutions through the dissemination and
replication of the ‘best practices’ and
‘lessons learned’ from the pilot projects.
Between 15 and 20 pilot projects will be
selected through a thorough evaluation
process coordinated by the IDB. The projects
that will be selected for funding may receive
between US$75,000 and US$500,000 in
matching grants from the fund.
Potential ICT solutions and services that
could be used by the projects include:
• E-commerce and e-business applications.
• E-productivity applications for individuals
and organisations.
• Infrastructure and access enhancing
systems.
“
• Knowledge management and distribution
systems.
• Mobile (including satellite-based)
applications and services for businesses.
As ICT has become
The projects will be presented by non- a key element for
profit institutions in the region, which are improving the
involved in promoting SME development
and/or have proven experience in the
productivity and
development of ICT solutions or services. efficiency of private
Examples of these institutions are trade
firms, it also plays a
associations, universities, foundations,
NGOs, chambers of commerce, business crucial role in
development centres and research centres. strengthening the
The Program is managed by the
Information Technology for Development
competitiveness of
Division (SDS/ICT), and the IDB technical national economies
division that provides support to the IDB
”
and Latin American and Caribbean countries
in ICT-related areas. The Division’s specific
responsibilities include providing technical
and financial backstopping for projects to
be funded by the Bank, and offering
strategic and technical advice to
governments on how to make better use of
available information technology.
The IDB is actively participating in the
activities carried out by the UN ICT Task
Force and has also joined the Working
Group on Business Enterprise and
Entrepreneurship, in order to share and
exchange lessons learned and best
practices in the development of ICT policies
and programmes for developing countries. ■
For more information, contact: Antonio Ca’ Zorzi,
Program Manager Information Technology for
Development Division Inter-American
Development Bank E-mail: antonioca@iadb.org
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 57
 From the Inter-American Development Bank to the
World Summit on the Information Society.
The ALDEA Program:
Digital strategies for the Latin American
and Caribbean governments
I
nter-American Development Bank offers, through this program, a
solution to the Latin America and Caribbean countries, in order to
allow them to properly face the Digital Era challenges.
Introduction
The Digital Strategies program for Latin America and the
Caribbean – the ALDEA Program – has recently been launched in
several countries. The ALDEA Program was first developed in
Uruguay, and, at the moment, different operations are carried out
also in the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Argentina and
Paraguay.
The ALDEA Program offers technical assistance and/or loan
operations for digital strategies development through the different
financial segments managed by the Bank. In particular, the Program
is oriented to work with Flexible Loan Institutions for Innovating
Operations (almost 10 million fast approvals!). The Program started
from a central concept: to partner digital strategies’ development
with institutional strength in order to support the implementation of
58 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
different pilot projects (e-government solutions, e-commerce, and
access to information and communication technologies [ICTs]) to be
realised in each country.
The Program’s focus is to create the National Committees for
the Information Society (CNSI), connecting a political effort, mainly
represented by each country presidency, with representatives of
telecommunications, academic world, entrepreneurs and all
citizens. This particular partnership has to analyse each single case,
and the pilot projects will be identified depending on the priorities
of each country. The single strategy can be constructed from top to
bottom, starting from the idea that there are no set rules or models
in this context.
The Program
With the assistance of the IADB’s Information and
Communication Technology for Development Division (SDS/ICT) and
the Refurbishing Divisions of the State of the Operative Regional
Departments, we have gathered a technical team dedicated to assist
the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, in their
formulation of strategies, and development of solutions based on
the application of ICTs for development.
Our mission consists of identifying and starting up solutions that
can suit the realities of development in each country.
These are the leading principles:
• In the digital era, there are no set rules to development: strategies
are specific to each country.
• Development is local, but must show deep commitment to a
global view.
• This is not an exclusive task for governments. All different
economic and social agents (companies, governments,
universities, civil organisations, financial agents) should
participate.
• It is necessary to generate new management skills.
• All digital strategies must be converted into state policy.
• Strict coordination of public policies must be considered.
• A cultural environment where knowledge is the new goal of
development must be created.
What does the ALDEA Program do?
The ALDEA Program offers technical and financial assistance in
order to answer the question: how can we create the right national
conditions for development in the digital era?
We offer:
• Development of a new public institutional ability for knowledge,
exchange and management.
• The transfer of technical, management and learning skills in the
knowledge economy domain.
• The integration of country’s technical teams with Latin American
professionals and experts of local reality, in order to identify and
formulate the pilot projects that will be able to offer a positive
factor for change.
• An appropriate frame for the definition and management of co-
ordinated policies between several economic and social agents.
How does the ALDEA Program work?
Governments of the countries benefited by the IADB can request
assistance from the ALDEA Program. The request must be directed
to the IADB’s representative in the country, and copied to the
Information and Communication Technology for Development
Division (SDS/ICT), and to the State’s Refurbishing Division of the
Regional Department, and referred to and signed by the Governor
and the Bank.
Once the request is received, it will be appointed to a technical
team in the Bank that will follow it throughout the project. Each
technical team will assist in identifying the ‘type of operation’.
Objectives
The general aim of the program is to contribute in creating the
institutional conditions able to foster knowledge development in
each country, starting from a single national strategy, and to favour
the implementation of pilot initiatives for the starting up of the
chosen strategy.
In each country, the ALDEA Program creates:
• A political level able to identify and coordinate a digital policy with
different economic and social agents.
A technical skill in management (management level) for the public
administration of different projects in the following areas:
• Connectivity projects (Telecentres)
• Online Government projects
• E-commerce projects
• Education and ICT projects
“Our mission consists of identifying
and starting up solutions that can
adapt to the realities of
development in each country”
Identification and start up of pilot projects in the following areas:
• Connectivity projects (Telecentres)
• Online Government projects
• E-commerce projects
• Education and ICT projects
Activities
What kind of activities does the ALDEA Program promote?
• The design of a digital policy, linked to specific action plans, and
built-on in a coordinated way.
• Modernisation of the direction and decision-making systems for
public administration.
• Strengthening or development, according to the case, of the
institutional ability responsible for promoting digital strategies.
• Development of the necessary human resources.
• Improvement in the quality of services.
• Design and start up of mechanisms able to promote community
participation.
What results are expected from the ALDEA Program?
Right solutions for knowledge development.
Results
• Strengthening of the public management ability for a digital
strategy.
• Strengthening of the policies’ definition ability for a digital
strategy, co-ordinating the public and private sectors, citizens and
academic representatives.
• A pilot project to improve and increase citizens’ access to ICTs.
• A pilot project for the creation of e-government abilities.
• A pilot project for the creation of legal and institutional conditions
to support the development of e-commerce.
• A pilot project for the introduction of ICTs in public education
systems. ■
For more information, contact: Pablo Valenti, Information and Communication Technology
for Development, Division SDS/ICT. pablova@iadb.org www.iadb.org/ict4dev
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 59
 From the Inter-American Development Bank to the
World Summit on the Information Society.

A
mong its mandate and activities, of promoting the

Italian Trust Fund introduction, use and application of ICT in the social and
economic development process of the Bank’s borrowing

for Information and member countries in the Latin American and Caribbean Region,
the ICT for Development Division (SDS/ICT) of the Sustainable
Communication Technology Development Department (SDS) promotes effective inter-
institutional collaboration efforts to leverage the reach and impact
for Development of such emerging technologies in the region.
In particular, the Bank’s inter-institutional cooperation and co-
financing strategy in ICT seeks avenues of cooperation with
international organisations, civil society institutions and private
sector enterprises to leverage the technical and financial resources
available to promote the use and implementation of ICT in the
region. Within this context, a number of cooperation agreements
have been reached with, among others, the Information Society
Technologies Programme (IST) of the European Commission for the
establishment of a ‘Pilot Programme for the Diffusion of Information
Technologies in Social Programmes’, and the Government of Italy,
which has provided an effective support to the Bank in various
activities in the area of ICT for development including ‘E-Strategies’,
‘E-Commerce’ and ‘ICT Financial Leverage’.
Of particular importance is the establishment of the ‘Italian
Trust Fund for Information and Communication Technology for
Development’ for US$3 million. Such an initiative will finance a
series of pre-investment studies, project preparation activities,
pilot programmes, and small and medium-sized demonstrative
ICT projects in priority e-government activities in the Latin
American and Caribbean region. Additional bilateral donors will
be invited to join the initiative under individual trust fund
agreements in 2003 and, thereby, be allowed to cover additional
areas in the field of ICT for development (e.g. for social
development, sustainable development, business development,
and national strategies for the information society). ■

For more information, contact: Andres Garret

andresg@iadb.org www.iadb.org/ict4dev

60 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
From the Government of Italy to the World Summit
on the Information Society

The vital role of e-government

and e-governance

T
he rapid pace of technological development has created The United Nations ICT Task Force has also stated that e-
increasingly more powerful communication and information governance is a priority area of action and has instituted an ICT Policy
technologies that are capable of radically transforming public and Governance Working Group and another group with national and
institutions and private organisations alike. regional e-strategies comprising an e-governance component.
These technologies have proven to be extraordinarily useful The Italian government believes that e-government is a strategic
instruments in enabling governments to enhance the quality, speed of instrument that will enable both the developed and the developing
delivery and reliability of services to the citizens and to business. countries to make a quantum leap forward in terms of enhancing the
International experience and major international programmes efficiency of government services.
that identify ways of ensuring, the digital revolution will benefit the
population of the whole world, have demonstrated that e-
government and e-governance can make an invaluable contribution
to helping to create digital opportunities for all. In the Indian state
of Andhra Pradesh, thanks to the new computerised real estate
registry system, the public can now perform operations locally in a
matter of hours, which formerly involved several days of travelling
to attend the registry offices. Increased efficiency has also helped
to reduce corruption and sharply raise the tax revenues associated
with conveyancing.
In the Brazilian state of Bahia, the introduction of computerised
service kiosks to access government services in shopping malls,
post offices and railway stations provide easy access to such
services as the issuing of passports, registration on unemployment
lists and submitting of police reports. In the Philippines, the
computerisation of the customs system has cut transaction costs,
streamlined procedures and substantially boosted tax revenues.
Both the G8 Digital Opportunity Task Force and UN ICT TF have
identified the vital role that e-government can play in spreading Italy has, therefore, put forward her candidacy to promote an
wider access to information technologies. innovative form of technological cooperation based on the design
In the action plan presented at Genoa in 2001, the DOT Force and implementation of operational projects with measurable
recalled the importance of e-government in so many fields: “For results for the developing countries. Italy’s initiative, E-
internal efficiency and effectiveness within government, as well as of Government for Development, is intended to make an effective
e-governance for institutional capacity building, transparency, and original contribution to disseminating information about e-
accountability and its ability to enhance democratic governance.” government and its programming and implementation in
In addition to adopting the DOT Force Action Plan, the G8 countries which have not, or have only partially, exploited the full
leaders in Genoa, acting on a proposal by Italian Prime Minister, potential of this important tool for narrowing the economic and
Silvio Berlusconi, in the final declaration, encouraged: “The social divide. ■

development of an action plan on how e-government can

strengthen democracy and the rule of law by empowering citizens For more information, contact:
Minister for Innovation and Technologies – Italy
and making the provision of essential government services http://www.palermoconference2002.org/en/egov1.htm
more efficient.”

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 61
 From the International Telecommunication Union to the World Summit
on the Information Society.
Challenges and partnerships
T
he International Telecommunication
Union (ITU) is the United Nations’
specialised agency within which
governments and the private sector work
together to coordinate the operation of
telecommunication networks and services
and to advance the development of
communications technology. Founded in
1865, ITU is based on a unique
public/private partnership, with 189
member states and over 660 sector
members. Every time someone,
somewhere, picks up a telephone and dials
a number, answers a call on a mobile
phone, sends a fax or receives an e-mail,
takes a plane or a ship, listens to the radio,
watches a favourite television programme
or helps a small child to master the latest
radio-controlled toy, they are benefiting
from the work of ITU. The role of ITU is thus
central to the creation of the information
society and the goals of the UN ICT Task
Force, of which ITU was a founder member.
One of the major current undertakings
is the organisation of a World Summit on
the Information Society (WSIS), to be held
in two phases, in Geneva (December 2003)
and in Tunis (2005). In line with UN General
Assembly Resolution 56/183, ITU has
assumed the leading managerial role in the
executive secretariat of the Summit and its
preparatory process.
The work of the Union is implemented
through three Sectors:
The Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R),
Telecommunication Standardisation Sector
(ITU-T) and Telecommunication
62 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
Development Sector (ITU-D). The mission of
the latter is to achieve its objectives, based
on the right to communicate of all the
inhabitants of the world, through access to
infrastructure and information and
communications services. The major
programmes of ITU-D are the six strands of
the Istanbul Action Plan (see side bar),
which charts a course for developing
countries to transform the digital divide into
digital opportunities.
In addition, there are a number of other
ITU activities that are directly relevant to the
work of the UN ICT Task Force. These
include:
• The ITU New Initiatives Programme,
launched in 1999, which provides high-
quality research and strategic workshops
on issues of high current policy and
regulatory relevance for ITU members.
Recent topics covered include
competition policy, creating trust in critical
network infrastructures, internet diffusion,
multilingual domain names, 3G licensing,
broadband, etc.
• A programme of information-sharing,
notably through the publication of the
World Telecommunication Development
Report, Trends in Telecom Reform, and
other publications and databases.
• A proposal, taken up by Working Group 5
of the UN ICT Task Force, on enhancing IP
connectivity in the least developed
countries using low-cost VSATs (very small
aperture terminals), which provide access
to remote and rural areas by satellite.
The Istanbul Action Plan
Bridging the digital divide means providing
access to telecommunications and ICT and
promoting their use so that all segments of
society can harness the opportunities of the
information society. Digital opportunities not
only serve as an engine for economic growth,
they enable social, educational and medical
progress. These goals hinge upon the rollout of
ICT networks and services.
The Istanbul Action Plan is a
comprehensive package that will enable
developing countries to promote the equitable
and sustainable deployment of affordable ICT
networks and services. The core of the plan is
a series of six programmes:
• Regulatory reform
• Technologies and telecommunication
network development
• E-strategies and e-services/applications
• Economics and finance
• Human capacity building
• Special programme for the least developed
countries
The unique structure of ITU, as a
public/private partnership, provides
valuable experience in bringing together the
different stakeholders to work together
towards common goals. ITU is not just
talking about creating the information
society, it is doing it. ■
For more information, visit: www.itu.int
The rationale for shared access
Since 1998, the International Telecommunication
Union has been developing multipurpose community
telecentre (MCT) projects to bring telephone, fax,
internet, e-mail and, in some cases, distance learning
and telemedicine to remote villages around the world.
Timbuktu (Mali), with its legendary past, is home to the
first major multipurpose community telecentre in
Africa. Located East of Lake Faguibine and near the
Niger River, Timbuktu remains an important trade
centre on the Saharan camel caravan routes. But like
most isolated areas, the once prosperous commercial
and cultural town needs a helping hand to join the
digital economy and participate in an increasingly
knowledge-based society.
Multipurpose community telecentres make it
possible for people of a village to learn how to use
computers and the internet. Students and teachers can
run educational software on personal computers in
telecentres or obtain access to world leading online
libraries and distance instructors through the internet.
Local administrators and society leaders can access
information on basic social services such as water
supply or infrastructure. Farmers can form joint buying
and selling groups and monitor market prices. Small
entrepreneurs can find larger markets, secure
business and use the telecentre for basic office
services such as fax, e-mail or document production.
Facilities providing access to ICTs, and the
applications they support, vary considerably. In their
simplest form, they may be limited to providing public
telephone and fax services and be run, for example, by
a local shopkeeper. Telecentres of this type, sometimes
referred to as ‘telekiosks’, tend to be located in more
densely populated areas and have an important social
and economic role.
At the other end of the scale are telecentres with
(shared) offices open to small local businesses and
‘teleworkers’, which are equipped with computers,
printers and photocopiers. Centres of this type generally
provide access to data networks (e.g. internet) for e-
mail and file transfer, to electronic libraries and
databases, government and community information
systems, market and price information databases,
environmental monitoring systems and so on. They may
also offer facilities and equipment for distance learning
and telemedicine, and some may provide the facilities,
equipment and training needed to produce (and
receive) local radio and television programmes.
Typically, MCTs are a collaborative effort of
multilateral agencies and national partners, including
non-governmental organisations, who pool expertise in
different areas to serve communities. The expertise
could range from basic health to small-scale industry.
The focus is on the development and adaptation to the
local context of applications and ‘content’ relevant to
their field of activity, and in the training of support staff
and end-users.
In Latin America, telecentre pilot projects at Valle
de Angeles and Santa Lucía in Honduras offer a good
example of appropriate technologies and institutional
arrangements at work. The Valle de Angeles MCT
recently became a rural internet service provider. Both
the Santa Lucía and Valle de Angeles telecentres link
five other ‘mini’ telecentres each with narrow-band
packet radio and spread spectrum technologies. These
low cost, low maintenance telecentres are located in
the neighbouring villages.
In Asia, Bhutan Telecom established a telecentre
at Jakar in central Bhutan with ITU assistance in 1998.
The telecentre has been particularly successful in
providing basic information technology training to over
450 people. As part of the next phase of operations,
UNESCO is assisting Bhutan to convert the Jakar
telecentre into a community multimedia centre in
which access to the internet and the broadcasting
programme production are integrated to maximise the
information services accessible to the local
community.
The media production centre will take advantage
of telecommunication facilities available at the MCT to
deliver locally produced content for daily radio and
television broadcast offered by the Bhutan
Broadcasting Service (BBS). Combining the media
production centre and the MCT would enable BBS to
offer more participatory programmes, besides using
content based on the regular field visits conducted in
central Bhutan. The media production centre is
expected to eventually introduce local broadcasts
through its own transmitter. Such broadcasts would
include regular ‘Radio Browsing’ programmes to
promote rural access to the internet through the Jakar
multipurpose community telecentre.
Another pilot project in Tanzania addresses the
needs of the refugee community, relief workers and the
local community. The project is implemented in
collaboration with the Tanzanian government, UNESCO,
UNHCR, WorldSpace Corporation and VITASAT.
According to the business plan, telecentres are to be
sustainable enterprises. The project responds to an ITU
resolution titled ‘Training of Refugees’ which calls on
The ITU to continue its efforts towards the application
of the United Nations’ resolutions relevant to assistance
to refugees. ITU is also to collaborate fully with the
organisations concerned with the training of refugees,
both within and outside the United Nations system.
Furthermore, the resolution invites ITU Members ‘to do
even more to receive certain selected refugees and to
arrange for their training in telecommunications in
professional centres and schools’.
The project comprises a network of three
telecentres:
• The first telecentre is located in the district
headquarters town of Ngara, which houses the
local administration as well as UNHCR and
UNICEF offices;
• The second is at ‘K9’, about 17 kilometres from
Ngara, where seven relief organisations and a
secondary school for girls are based;
• The third is some 8 km from K9 where two
refugee camps are located: Lukole A and B, which
currently have no telecommunication facilities.
VITA will provide satellite support and
information services through its VITA-Connect
network, including the contribution of a ground
station, antenna and software for basic electronic
mail-based connectivity. WorldSpace Corporation has
committed to providing, at each site, a container
incorporating radio equipment, satellite receiver and
data terminal to download web-based multimedia
educational and entertainment content in Kiswahili
(the local language). The centre, planned as an
educational centre for refugee children and for
teacher training, will also provide medical information
and will be run by refugees.
Projects currently in an advanced stage of
planning include: in Niger, establishment of four
telecentres around the capital Niamey, to be run by
women’s cooperatives and in the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea, establishing a telecentre
in Hyangsan County.
All MCT pilot projects are subject to continuous
assessment by the partners involved in their
implementation. Current assessments point to the fact
that the projects have considerable social impact.
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 63
 From MIT to the World Summit on the Information Society
Media Lab Asia:
Innovating for the next Five Billion
F
or the first time in human history your
location no longer limits your ability to
communicate. From anywhere in the
world – mountain, jungle or city – you can
now telephone, e-mail and browse the
internet using a pocket-sized, battery-
powered wireless communicator. The UN
ICT Task Force has been established to
better understand and utilise these
revolutionary new possibilities.
However, current information and
communication products are engineered for
developed nations and are often too
expensive or inappropriate for developing
nations. Only by focusing research and
development efforts on making the technology
affordable, useful and universally accessible,
will we be able to provide every family on
earth with access to first-class educational
material, medical advice, business
communications and entertainment. Media
Lab Asia’s role within the UN ICT Task Force is
to coordinate Asian industry and academia to
achieve this goal.
With core participation from MIT’s
renowned Media Laboratory, seed-funding
from the government of India, and
industrial funding from corporations such
as Tata Consulting Services and Microsoft,
Media Lab Asia is inventing technologies
that respond to the needs of the vast
number of individuals living in Asia, Africa
and Latin America.
Media Lab Asia’s research and
development efforts facilitate the invention,
refinement and dissemination of innovations
that benefit the greatest number of people.
Working though our industrial partners,
NGOs and governments, we are bringing
64 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
innovation to villages throughout the world,
combining the creativity of entrepreneurs
with the technical know-how of universities.
Particular challenges in cultivating these
solutions will include the need to operate in
many different languages and to support
local culture and tradition.
Media Lab Asia’s research programme
Our research projects may be divided
into three technical initiatives:
Bits for All – focusing on viral,
terrestrial wireless systems for rural
connectivity. We are exploring new, cost-
effective methods of connecting every
person on earth.
Tomorrow’s Tools – connecting the
disembodied world of bits to the real world
through novel sensors, effectors and
fabrication tools. Translating the vision of
fine-grain, pervasive computing to rural
communities.
World Computer – a computer for the
illiterate, for communities, for everyone. We
are creating computers that transcend these
barriers to bring digital services to everyone.
The design goal of the world computer is a
localised, grassroots interface.
These three technical themes come
together in a fourth initiative that seeks to
find a synergetic combination of technology
with societal need:
Digital Village – realising Gandhi’s vision
of a sustainable village through culturally
appropriate use of new technologies. Our
goal is to create a sustainable digital
ecology that maintains traditional values and
community while opening economic and
expressive opportunities.
These ideas are developed in two ways:
through research laboratories that generate
and prototype new concepts, and through
field projects that develop, test and evaluate
these laboratory prototypes.
Example research projects
Sustainable access in rural India (SARI)
Working with some 50 villages in the
Madurai district in south-eastern India,
Media Lab Asia is collaborating with the
Harvard Centre for International
Development, IIT-Madras and the I-Gyan
Foundation to help villagers obtain economic
self-sustainability throughout the region. They
are doing this by providing villages with
internet-ready telekiosks that provide much-
needed communication and information
services. Each kiosk is equipped with a PC
(whose interfaces are in the local language,
Tamil), battery-backup power supply,
telephone and wireless internet connection.
After just four months of operation, the
kiosks have already been used for
telemedicine and have helped villagers
process hundreds of e-government
applications. But perhaps the most dramatic
result was the rescue of a key crop for the
village of Ulagapichanpatti, when a picture of
the diseased crop, sent to the agricultural
centre, immediately identified the problem
and provided the formula for a remedy.

DakNet
DakNet provides a creative, low-cost
‘drive-by’ solution for distributing the
bandwidth necessary to make connectivity
possible even in the poorest countries. A
hand-held PDA, equipped with a wireless
card, is attached to the back of any vehicle
that travels through rural villages. Villagers
queue their internet messages at local kiosks
and when the vehicle gets within range
(approximately 500 meters) it automatically
senses a wireless radio link – picking up the
queued messages and dropping off files
addressed to users of that kiosk.
DakNet is a hybrid of physical and
digital wireless transport. Using long-
distance wireless links would be more
expensive to maintain and using physical
Although the data transport provided by
DakNet is not real-time, a large amount of
data can be moved at once and, as a result, it
provides a higher data throughput than other
low-bandwidth technologies. DakNet also
provides a seamless method of upgrading to
universal broadband connectivity.
Kaash
Focused on improving health care in
rural India, Kaash is a pilot project
conducted in collaboration with the All-
India Institute of Medical Sciences. It
introduces the use of handheld PDAs into
the public health system, providing them
care. To ensure that the handhelds would be
used, we worked with the ANMs to design a
system that incorporates the local
terminology. Each PDA has a pull-down
menu, so you just have to recognise terms
rather than write them.
The system can also provide feedback
on diagnoses and treatment to the ANMs in
the field, and reminders that particular
patients are due for inoculation. In the long
term, the PDA will not only be a useful tool
for collecting and storing health data, but
also for helping public health officials see
trends, leading to improved health care for
the Indian population as a whole. ■

transportation alone would be too labour to some of the approximately 350,000

intensive. The short-distance wireless link
also has the advantage of being able to run
on batteries. DakNet is scalable and, most
auxiliary nurses and midwives (ANMs) now
working throughout India.
Kaash’s goal is to make the ANMs more
For more information, contact:
Prof. Alex (Sandy) Pentland,
Founding Director, Media Lab Asia
E-mail: pentland@media.mit.edu

importantly, sustainable. efficient and to allow them to provide better

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 65
 From the United Nations Conference on Trade
and Development to the World Summit on the
Information Society
UNCTAD and e-commerce
strategies for development
T
he main initiative undertaken by
UNCTAD in 2002 with regard to the
activities of the Task Force
concerns the organisation of a series of
meetings, held at both the expert and the
policy-making levels, on the issue of e-
commerce strategies for development. The
purpose of these events was, firstly, to
raise awareness about the key role of e-
commerce in ICT-enabled strategies to fight
poverty and social exclusion. Secondly, the
events aimed to identify policy areas and
specific measures (national and
international) that can be conducive to the
creation of an enabling environment for e-
commerce in developing countries. The
third purpose of the events was to support
national capacity building in e-strategy
making, and lastly, the events aimed to
exchange information about national and
regional experiences and to provide
opportunities for networking among e-
commerce experts of developing countries.
The Expert Meeting on E-commerce
Strategies for Development (Geneva, 10-12
July) brought together experts from 59
countries and 19 international organisations
and NGOs, including representatives of the
UN ICT Task Force. The experts discussed
the links and interactions between e-
commerce strategies and other aspects of
national development strategies.
Specific policy areas that were
addressed included human resources
development, gender aspects of e-
commerce, access and infrastructure and
the legal and regulatory aspects of e-
commerce strategies. Experts from all of the
developing regions presented a number of
66 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
national e-commerce national strategies.
Particular attention was paid to the issue of
The Trade Point Programme
developing a participatory approach to
The Trade Point Programme was created by
national e-commerce strategy making, as
UNCTAD in 1992, as part of its Trade Efficiency
well as to regional and global initiatives in
Initiative. Its objectives are to increase the
support of developing countries interested
participation of small and medium-sized
in putting in place their own national e-
enterprises (SMEs), in particular those located in
commerce strategies. The participation of
developing countries, in international trade;
representatives of both the G-8’s DOT Force
reduce transaction costs; and provide them with
and of the UN ICT Task Force was
access to the latest information technologies.
particularly relevant in this regard.
In 2000, UNCTAD launched the
The work of the experts and policy-
establishment of the World Trade Point
makers participating in the events organised
Federation (WTPF), which has taken over the
by UNCTAD was supported by an analysis
management of the programme. Through a
undertaken by the UNCTAD secretariat of
network of 122 trade information and
the experience available so far of national e-
facilitation centres, known as Trade Points, the
commerce strategies. The issues paper that
WTPF assists SMEs in 80 countries worldwide
summarises the findings of this work, as
to trade internationally through the use of
well as a number of presentations by the
electronic commerce technologies.
participating experts, is available online at
The Federation’s website (www.wtpfed.org)
UNCTAD’s e-commerce website.
offers well-known services, for example the
Two regional level events have been
Electronic Trading Opportunities system,
held in 2002 and another two are scheduled
including its Electronic Investment
for 2003. The 2002 events were the High-
Opportunities and a world company directory.
level Regional Workshop on E-commerce
These services are offered by the Federation
and ICT for Central America and the
and its Trade Points, or through strategic
Caribbean (Curaçao, 25-27 June) and the
partnerships with international organisations
High-level Regional Meeting on E-
and the civil society.
commerce Strategies for Development, in
WTPF is an ideal physical and virtual
cooperation with UN/ESCAP (Bangkok, 20-
platform that is complementary to the work
22 November). Both events also provided
undertaken by intergovernmental organisations
the opportunity for informal meetings among
dealing with e-commerce, trade and
members of the respective regional
development. It has a direct access to the local
networks of the UN ICT Task Force.
business communities and works closely with,
The conclusions of both meetings
among others UNCTAD, ITC, UN/ECE, the World
concerning the priority objectives for the
Bank and WTO, as well as leading ICT firms in
promotion of e-commerce in these countries
the international market through partnerships.
and the instruments to be used to attain
them are available online. Also available
“Experts from all of
the developing
regions presented a
number of national
e-commerce
national strategies

online is the Bangkok Declaration on E-

commerce for Development, which was
”
adopted as an expression of the political
will of the participating governments to
promote e-commerce as an instrument for
development in the Asia Pacific region.
In a separate effort, UNCTAD’s other
major undertaking in this area was the
preparation of the annual E-commerce and
Development Report, which was released
on 18 November. The report provides
factual information and analysis about the
implications of e-commerce for developing
countries, identifies policy and business
options available to developing countries in
several sectors, and makes some practical
proposals for maximising the contribution of
e-commerce to economic and social
development. Both the 2002 and the 2001
reports are available online. ■

For more information, visit: www.unctad.org

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 67
 From the United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe to the World Summit on the
Information Society
The Information Society
in Europe and North America
2
003 is the year of the Geneva session of the
WSIS. Work at the UNECE has focused,
therefore, on the follow-up to the Bucharest
Pan-European Regional Conference, held in
November 2002, and on preparations for the
December Summit. The Bucharest Conference has
provided substantive inputs to the WSIS preparatory
process. The UNECE played a key role in the
preparation for Bucharest and will continue
supporting the preparation for the WSIS in Geneva
and Tunis, both in terms of intergovernmental
processes and substantive contributions.
The Bucharest declaration
The Member States of the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe met in Bucharest at the Pan-
European Conference on the Information Society (7-9
November 2002) and agreed on the following set of
principles and priorities:
Principle 1. Securing access to information and
knowledge
Individuals and organisations should benefit from
access to information, knowledge and ideas. Notably,
information in the public domain should be easily
accessible. Information is the basis of a well-functioning
and transparent decision-making process and a
prerequisite for any democracy. Knowledge is the key
agent for transforming both our global society and local
communities. Public policy should broaden
opportunities in providing information for all, including
disabled, inter alia by creating content, and thereby
redressing inequalities.
ICTs have the potential not only to strengthen the
effectiveness of public service delivery, but also to
involve individuals in shaping government policies.
Moreover, communications technology is not an end
in itself, but a means of supplying quality content in
the information society. In this regard, mass media –
68 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
in their various forms – are recognised as important
means of fostering public information, societal
development and social cohesion.
Principle 2. Promoting universal access at
affordable cost
An adequately developed infrastructure is the
precondition for secure, reliable and affordable access to
information by all stakeholders, and for the upgrading of
relevant services. Improving connectivity is of special
importance in this respect, and should be undertaken by
the public and private sectors, acting in partnership.
Community-led development is a critical element in the
strategy for achieving universal access to information
and knowledge. Community access centres and public
services (such as post offices, libraries, schools) can
provide an effective means for promoting universal
access, in particular in remote areas, as an important
factor of their development. Moreover, in order to ensure
greater affordability, policy action should aim at setting
up an appropriate open and competitive environment
Principle 3. Promoting linguistic diversity and
cultural identity
The information society is founded on respect for,
and enjoyment of, cultural expression. New ICTs
should stimulate cultural diversity and plurilinguism
and enhance the capacity of governments to develop
active policies to that end. Access and contribution to
knowledge and information broaden the contents of
the public domain and foster mutual understanding
and respect for diversity
Principle 4. Developing human capacity through
education, training and skills
It is important for governments to develop
comprehensive and forward-looking education
strategies. People should be enabled to acquire the
necessary skills in order to actively participate in and
 “To realise fully the benefits of ICTs, networks
and information systems should be
sufficiently robust to prevent, detect and
respond appropriately to security incidents

international stability and security and may adversely

affect the integrity of the infrastructure within States, to
the detriment of their security in both civil and military
fields, as well as in relation to the functioning of their
economies. It is also necessary to prevent the use of
information resources or technologies for criminal or
terrorist purposes.
In order to build confidence and security in the use
of ICTs, governments should promote awareness in
their societies of cyber security risks and seek to
strengthen international cooperation, including the
private sector.
Principle 7. Addressing global issues
International policy dialogue on the Information
Society at global, regional and sub-regional levels
should promote the exchange of experience, the
identification and application of compatible norms and
standards, the transfer of know-how and the provision
of technical assistance with a view to bridging
capacity gaps and setting up international cooperation
programmes, in particular in the field of creation of
content. Sharing success stories and best practice
experiences will also pave the way for new forms of
international cooperation.
Priority Theme. E-government: More efficient and
accountable
ICT tools will make policies more accountable and
transparent and will enable better monitoring, evaluation
and control of public services and allow for greater
efficiency in their delivery. Public administration can make
use of ICT tools to enhance transparency, accountability
and efficiency in the delivery of public services to citizens
(education, health, transportation, etc.) and to enterprises. ■
Did you know that…? ”
Estonia’s internet host penetration is the highest amongst
Baltic, Central and Eastern European Countries.
90 percent of children between the ages of 5-17 now use
computers in the United States, and the rate of growth of internet
use is currently two million new internet users per month.
Information technology is a formidable tool to achieve
sustainable development as it produces huge environmental
benefits through use of video conferencing and e-mail.
However, experts estimate that in Canada alone, 351 million
computers will become obsolete by 2044.
Intelligent transport systems promise safer roads and
lower emissions
Only a third of the EU countries’ workforce has ever had
computer training for professional use. Half of this workforce
uses computers at their workplace.
The Hungarian Government has created a consortium of
public and private actors to help provide PCs and internet at a
discounted rate to 1400 underprivileged families. The
programme began in September 2000 and is funded by
Compaq, Matav and Postabank.
Only 37 percent of small companies in September 2002
declared plans to buy either an office computer or a laptop
within the next 12 months.
Spain plans to increase the present 5 percent rate of
hotels using the internet, to 75 percent by 2058.

For more information, contact: Romi Chopra,

Assistant to the UNECE Information Society Team
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
E-mail: romi.chopra@unece.org

70 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
understand the information society and fully benefit from
the possibilities it offers. Individuals should be engaged
in defining their own needs and in the development of
programmes to meet those needs.
These skills integrate ICT-related specific notions
with broader knowledge, and are generally obtained
through primary, secondary and higher education,
on-the-job training, but also increasingly through
distance learning. Technological change will
progressively require life-long learning and
continuous training by all. Public policy should take
into account inequalities in access to quality
education and training, particularly in the case of
vulnerable groups and underserved or remote areas.
Specific attention has to be paid to the training of
trainers. ICTs open completely new opportunities for
e-learning. New forms of partnership between public
and private sectors are needed in this field.
Principle 5. Setting up an enabling environment,
including legal, regulatory and policy frameworks
To maximise the economic and social benefits of the
information society, governments need to create a
trustworthy, transparent, and non-discriminatory legal,
regulatory and policy environment, capable of promoting
technological innovation and competition, thus favouring
the necessary investments, mainly from the private
sector, in the deployment of infrastructures and
development of new services.
The information society is, by nature, a global
phenomenon and issues such as privacy protection,
consumer trust, management of domain names,
facilitation of e-commerce, protection of intellectual
property rights, open source solutions, etc. should be
addressed with the active participation of all
stakeholders.
Principle 6. Building confidence and security in the
use of ICTs
To realise fully the benefits of ICTs, networks and
information systems should be sufficiently robust to
prevent, detect and respond appropriately to security
incidents. However, effective security of information
systems is not merely a matter of government and law
enforcement practices, nor of technology. A global
culture of cyber-security needs to be developed –
security must be addressed through prevention and
supported throughout society, and be consistent with
the need to preserve free flow of information.
ICTs can potentially be used for purposes that are
inconsistent with the objectives of maintaining
Global standards for the global information society
UNECE, IEC, ISO, ITU-T side event at the Pan-European Preparatory Ministerial Conference
for the World Summit on the Information Society
How can international standards foster the global policy dialogue on the Information Society
and the development of a harmonised and stable framework of technologies, best practices and
agreements, recognised worldwide? This was the crux of the question tackled by Mr Ollie
Smoot, ISO President elect, and Mr U. Hartmann, Director, Information/Communications,
Siemens, at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Pan-European Regional
Conference in Bucharest on 8 November 2002.
The World Summit on the Information Society has set out, as its objective, to address the
broad range of questions concerning the information society and to draw up an action plan to
layout a roadmap to bridge the digital divide.
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO), the International Telecommunication Union – Standardization Department
(ITU-T), and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), will work together to
ensure that WSIS will raise awareness on the contribution that international standards can make
in addressing global issues in the information society. The four organisations have committed
themselves through a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to avoiding divergent and
competitive approaches, to eliminating duplication of efforts, to providing a clear roadmap for
users and to ensuring coherence.
By highlighting the role that international standards can play to foster this international
policy dialogue on the Information Society, the four organisations hope to promote the
development of an inclusive information society that provides access and participation for all,
bypassing all borders, gender considerations and social distinctions.
International standards have an ever-greater place in helping to maximise the benefits of
information and communication technologies for developing countries. Standards simplify the
use of existing and new technologies; focus on interfaces and interoperability; reduce costs and
complexity; open markets and foster broader access to products and services; and favour the
emergence of rules and agreements on best practices.
“
Public policy should take into
account inequalities in access
to quality education and
training, particularly in the case
of vulnerable groups and
underserved or remote areas
”
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 69
From the United Nations Information Technology Service to
the World Summit on the Information Society
UNITeS:
In partnership with universities
T
he United Nations Information Technology
Service (UNITeS) is working to build a Global
Network of Universities in support of UNITeS
and ICT4D (Information Communication Technologies
for Development). The creation of this network
provides expanded volunteer human resources and
knowledge resources for developing countries.
In December 2002, UNITeS received a Global
Junior Challenge 2002 award for its University
Volunteer Network. In addition, item 10 of the UN ICT
Task Force action plan focuses on the need for
partnerships between leading training institutions and
universities and community-level ICT4D programmes,
and cites UNITeS as a key avenue for involvement of
university volunteers by such organisations.
The common thread among all UNITeS
collaborating universities is that they are interested in
taking action to narrow the digital divide. Collectively,
and using the UNITeS mechanism, they endeavour to
allow the maximum possible number of qualified
volunteers – students, faculty and staff – to be
productive in serving ICT capacity-building needs
expressed in developing countries, under a well-
managed initiative.
University ICT volunteers, through UNITeS, have
already served in Botswana, Bosnia & Herzegovina,
Ecuador, Honduras, India, Jordan and Kosovo on a
variety of capacity-building ICT projects. Read more
about their activities on the UNITeS web site
(http://www.unites.org/html/projects/completed.htm).
The partnership with universities through UNITeS
involves:
• The partnering universities launching or having
already created credit-bearing service learning
courses for students involved in UNITeS ICT4D
initiatives.
• The partnering universities creating or having
already created a sabbatical programme for
professors and researchers to undertake
assignments in developing countries through
UNITeS related to thematic applications of ICT.
• The generation and identification of volunteering
opportunities by UN Volunteers Programme Officers
(in more than 70 countries and more than 140
UNDP Country Offices), as well as other partners in
the field, that could involve students, professors,
researchers and faculty from partnering
Universities, to be coordinated by UNITeS.
• The creation of an online environment for delivery
of the online training/learning packages for ICT
volunteers offered by the universities, in
coordination with UNITeS. The delivery of these
packages can take place within the Spanish
network of universities within Universitat Oberta de
Catalunya (UOC), one of the leading online
universities and a collaborating institute with
UNITeS.
• The development and contribution of course
material in ICT4D (Information Communication
Technologies for Development).
Students, faculty and staff at partnering
universities are also encouraged to engage in online
volunteering activities to support organisations
working in and for developing countries, as part of the
NetAid Online Volunteering service managed by UN
Volunteers.
University volunteers through UNITeS should:
• Be engaged in the last year of undergraduate
degree, or engaged in post graduate and/or PhD in
any field of study, or have completed such.
• Have strong ICT-related skills, particularly in
applying these skills to project management,
capacity building, health, education, agriculture,
community support, HIV/AIDS, or another area of
human development.
C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 71
 • Have a strong commitment to see tasks completed
and documented, and to report regularly on
progress and activities.
• Have an excellent written and spoken command of
English, as well as Spanish and/or French.
• Have experience working in a multi-cultural
environment, and have excellent interpersonal
communication and presentation skills, with cultural
sensitivity and tact.
• Have volunteer experience at any level, particularly
with high-poverty or low-literacy populations, and a

“
strong belief in volunteer ideals and volunteerism as
a fundamental element of community projects.
• Possess maturity to face sometimes difficult
situations during field assignments in developing
countries.
In December 2002,
UNITeS received a Global
No university volunteer should apply directly to
Junior Challenge 2002
UNITeS. To be a volunteer within the University
framework, UNITeS must already partner with the award for its University
University where the candidate is based. We Volunteer Network
encourage students, faculty and staff at universities,
particularly those in developing countries, to let their
offices of international studies or career development
know about the UNITeS initiative, and to view the
UNITeS partnerships and collaboration guidelines
(visit http://www.unites.org/html/unites/partner.htm).
Universities partnering (or in the process of):
”
• George Mason University
(Pioneer university in this innovative initiative)
• Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Spain
(with 19 Spanish universities, members of the
Spanish network of universities in support of UNITeS)
• Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Spain
(advanced process)
• Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
(advanced process)
• Universitat Bonn (advanced process)
• Kwansei Gakuin University of Japan
(advanced process)
• University of Benin, Nigeria (first contact) ■

For more information, visit:

http://www.unites.org/html/projects/Universities.htm

72 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
From UNESCO to the World Summit on the
Information Society

UNESCO’s international initiative

for community multimedia centres

U
NESCO’s international initiative for community
multimedia centres (CMCs) promotes
community empowerment and addresses the
digital divide by combining community broadcasting
with the internet and related technologies.
The CMC programme offers a global strategy for
addressing the digital divide in the poorest
communities of the developing world and also
among countries in transition. The CMC opens a
gateway to active membership of the global
knowledge society by making information and
communication the basic tools of the poor in
improving their own lives.
In order to avoid the trap of seeking a
technological fix that overlooks the need for well-
adapted implementation, community radio can be an
invaluable relay for ongoing efforts to ensure that
ICT provision is responsive to local needs, such as At its most basic, the CMC offers the simplest
education and health. portable radio station, a single computer for internet
The current development paradigm, which has a browsing wherever possible, e-mail and basic office,
framework of reference that is built on the concepts library and learning applications. At its most
of sustainable, endogenous and human developed, the CMC is a major infrastructure, offering
development, has been emphasising the importance a full range of multimedia facilities, functioning as a
of community-driven development programmes. The distance learning, training and informal education
community multimedia centre can be used as a centre, linking up to the local hospital for telemedicine
vehicle for taking this process one step further, by applications, downloading and printing national
enabling the members of a community to become newspapers for local circulation, and so forth.
recognised actors in the process of developing A CMC gives radio listeners access to online
knowledge. The metaphor of ‘giving the poor a information by the use of:
voice’ becomes a concrete reality when the poor
have a public voice quite literally, on-air and online. Radio browsing of the internet
This participation in both medium and message, A programme in which the radio presenters gather
pivotal to both individual and community information in response to listeners’ needs and
empowerment, fills a link often missing in the queries from reliable sites on the internet, and put it
development process. The combination of a on CD-ROMs or other digital resources. During the
grassroots public platform with access to programme, the presenter visits these pages of
information highways promotes the public debate information on the internet with a local expert (for
and public accountability that are essential for example, a doctor for a health question). Together,
strengthening democracy and good governance. they describe, explain and discuss the information

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 73
 directly in the languages used by the community.
Radio browsing is already used in Sri Lanka, Bhutan
and Nepal. It has demonstrated radio’s potential for
overcoming language barriers to access, discuss,
select and assimilate information available in a limited
number of languages on the internet. Moreover, being
a participatory radio programme, ‘Radio browsing of
the internet’ has taken into account the desires of
“
The CMC programme
offers a global strategy
for addressing the digital
rural communities to assimilate knowledge divide in the poorest
collectively, as opposed to the prevailing modality of communities of the
individual access to internet.
developing world and
Community databases for development also among countries in
These utilise the capacity of the community transition

”
collectively to produce knowledge and to package
and disseminate it in an appropriate manner to meet
the immediate needs and priorities of the community.
The first CMC project was the pioneering
Kothmale Internet Project in Sri Lanka. Its pilot radio
browsing programmes have been replicated in Nepal
and Bhutan. CMC projects are now also being
developed in the Caribbean and Africa (for example,
Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, Niger, Mali, Burkina
Faso, Benin, Senegal). A network of CMCs is now
being developed in Sri Lanka and two more CMCs
are planned in Bhutan.
UNESCO is the designated champion agency for
the worldwide global knowledge partnership (GKP)
component in this area, which involves UN agencies
such as ECA, FAO, the ITU, UNDP, UNFPA and the
World Bank as well as bilateral development agencies
and international NGOs. ■

For more information, contact:

Stella Hughes, UNESCO
The Communication Development Division,
Communication and Information Sector
E-mail: s.hughes@unesco.org

74 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
From the United Nations fund for International partnership (UNFIP)
to the World Summit on the Information Society

UNFIP:
Facilitating the Millennium Development Goals

A
cting as a facilitator between the
UN system and corporate and
foundation partners, UNFIP assists
in the development of innovative
programmes and projects to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals, with
special attention to Target 18, which
states: “In cooperation with the private
sector, to make available the benefits of
new technologies, especially information
and communication technologies.”
UNFIP has played a facilitating role in
bringing Cisco Systems Inc. into a strategic
partnership with the United Nations. Since
the announcement of the partnership, Cisco
Systems, UNDP, the United Nations
Volunteer programme (UNV), the United
Nations Information Technology Service
(UNITeS) and the United States Agency for Part of a government-supported project to teach women non-traditional skills, a woman learns to operate a computer in
a secretarial training programme in Nouakchott.
International Development have been
Rapid desertification and continuing drought has exacerbated the rural exodus of nomads and peasants in Mauritania.
working together to train students for the
The result, ‘kebbas’ or shanty towns with inadequate health, school and water-supply infrastructures and infant
internet economy. This has been achieved mortality rates as high as 257/1000 live births, twice the national average. UNICEF cooperation includes programmes to
reduce infant, child and maternal mortality, improve health and nutrition, and promote family food production, education
by establishing the Cisco Networking and the advancement of women.
Academy Programme in countries that
suffer from poverty as well as from weak

“
human resources and economic
institutions. The Cisco Networking
Academies Programme has expanded to
33 of the 49 least developed countries UNFIP has also served as a close partner to
and has established 100 academies. In
UNIFEM for the development of the Global
2002, 5500 students – 25 percent of
which were female – had access to the Advisory Committee, which is comprised
cutting-edge IT curriculum. mainly of African IT entrepreneurs who
UNFIP also facilitated the Digital Bridge
to Africa meeting that was organised with
advise on strategic partnerships to bridge
the UN ICT Task Force, Digital Partners, the gender digital divide

”
Gruppo Cerfe and UNIFEM on 12 July 2002
at the United Nations. Over 100 participants
attended including leading members of the

C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S 75

African diaspora and representatives from
technology corporations, foundations and
non-profit organisations. The meeting
explored ways in which the combined
knowledge, experiences and resources of
the public and private sectors could be
harnessed to effect positive and sustainable
change in Africa. Results included the
official launch of the Digital Diaspora
Network – Africa (DDN-A), a non-profit
organisation that seeks to promote
development in Africa. In addition,
AfricShare was established as a resource
and knowledge-sharing facility to match
innovative projects with mentors from the
DDN-A network, and the Social Fund for
Africa was inaugurated to provide financial
support for ICT entrepreneurial activities in
the region.
UNFIP is currently facilitating a similar
meeting for the Caribbean diaspora in order
to contribute to the promotion of digital
opportunities in the region. Led by the ICT
Task Force and UNDP, the meeting on
‘Bridging the Digital Divide for the
Caribbean’ will be held at the United
Nations on 24 January 2003. The meeting
has been organised with the support of the
CARICOM Permanent Missions to the
United Nations and the CARICOM
Secretariat, and facilitated by the Caribbean
American Chamber of Commerce.
UNFIP has also served as a close
partner to UNIFEM for the development of
the Global Advisory Committee, which is
comprised mainly of African IT
entrepreneurs who advise on strategic
partnerships to bridge the gender digital
divide. The programme seeks to empower
76 C H A L L E N G E S A N D PA RT N E R S H I P S
“
UNFIP has been instrumental in raising
awareness about the role of Wi-Fi as an
avenue for bridging the digital divide
”
African women through innovative uses of
information and communications
technologies. The partnerships build on
existing experiences and successful IT
ventures undertaken in Africa by African
women from the diaspora.
The next meeting of the UNIFEM Global
Advisory Committee will include the ICT
Task Force, UNFIP and UNDP
representatives. It will convene in Kampala,
Uganda in March 2003 with the
representation of Ugandan government
officials and non-governmental
organisations (NGOs).
In addition, UNFIP has been
instrumental in raising awareness about the
role of Wi-Fi as an avenue for bridging the
digital divide. UNFIP’s contribution has
included articles and speeches, developed
in cooperation with the Office of the
Secretary-General, to provide a better
understanding and appreciation of how Wi-
Fi could be used to provide fast, and maybe
free, access to the internet. ■
For more information, visit: www.un.org/unfip
Challenges and Partnerships

Secretariat of the UN ICT Task Force

One UN Plaza
10017 New York, New York

www.unicttaskforce.org