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Harnessing ICT’s: Cutting-Edge Perspectives

Explore the innovative use of information and communication technologies in Africa, from screens to power systems, and learn about success stories and cautionary tales in ICT4D scholarship. Discover cutting-edge technologies and the roadmap for sustainable development through ICT integration. Join the conversation on sustainable ICT solutions and the impact on economic, social, and political development.

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Harnessing ICT’s: Cutting-Edge Perspectives

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  1. Frontiers of Knowledge in Science and Technology for Africa Cape Town, South Africa November 18, 2006 Harnessing ICT’s:Cutting-Edge Perspectives Michael L. Best Georgia Institute of Technology mikeb@cc.gatech.edu www.cc.gatech.edu/~mikeb

  2. A Cautionary Tale: ICT4D Scholarship 4. Synthetic 3. Self- reflection and self doubt 2. Discourse of success stories 1. Descriptive Time 1980’s 1990’s 2003 2006?

  3. Cutting-Edge ICT4D: Synthetic and Integrated • Founded in theory • Common concepts • Grounded in empirical analysis • Cumulative, comparative, and aware of lessons • Contextualized • Globally aware, locally engaged • Cross-disciplinary • Holistic across technologies, policies, business models, and capacities

  4. Roadmap to Some Cutting-Edge Technologies • Screens • Power systems • Terrestrial wireless • Spectrum exemptions • Micro-operators • Pro-poor case study: E-gov in India

  5. Screens • OLED, photon vacuums • Personal imaging • Ultra-low power consuming, low- cost

  6. Power systems • Non-polluting small biomass based gasifiers that utilize easily produced local plant material • Small diesel-substitute generators utilizing, for instance, seed oils • New solar technologies, for instance dye-sensitized solar cells, which have reduced efficiencies compared to current PV systems but which are much less expensive • Microfuel cells refueled through locally produced materials such as ethanol

  7. Terrestrial wireless • WiFi, WiMAX, 3G, 2.5G…. An alpha-numeric soup! • Convergence of WLAN and 3G to single feature set: • High bit-rates in an all-IP environment including IPv6 support • End-to-end QoS • Multimedia support • Mobility at automobile and train speeds • Seamless session management • Security, security, security • Support for flexible and dynamic spectrum and interference management (including software defined radios) • Advanced authentication, authorization, and accounting protocols

  8. Spectrum Exemptions • WiFi hotspots, and other terrestrial wireless technologies, broadcast on 2.4 and 5 GHz under spectrum license exemptions in many countries.

  9. 2005 Survey of 75 Countries: 2/3rds require some licensing for 2.4 and 5 Public and 5 GHz more regulated thanPrivate and 2.4 GHz.

  10. 2.4 GHz Variation by Region and Economic Level of Development (χ2 = 12.6, p<0.05) (χ2 = 20.78, p < 0.0078 )

  11. Regulations and Internet Penetration Multivariate Analysis

  12. Regulations and Internet Penetration Multivariate Analysis Countries that allow unlicensed use of 2.4 or 5 GHz bands have higher levels of Internet use even when we control for a country’s size, region, and level of economic development.

  13. Micro-operators • Harnessing SMME’s in provision and not just use of ICTs.

  14. Some Background: Indian Rural Telekiosks • I have been closely studying over last four years Internet use at 50 village information centers in rural Tamil Nadu, India • Most village centers ran by local small entrepreneurs (Colin Maclay, Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Jayant Sinha, Joseph Thomas, Rajendra Kumar)

  15. Some Background: Indian Rural Telekiosks • Who uses the net? • Why and for what purpose? • Does the net contribute to economic, social, or political development? • What technologies work and why? • What is sustainable? (Colin Maclay, Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Jayant Sinha, Joseph Thomas, Rajendra Kumar)

  16. Immediate Impacts: Tele-agriculture

  17. Immediate Impacts: Sometimes Just for Fun!

  18. E-gov Types of Services

  19. E-Government Services: Internet vs Non-Internet Villages

  20. Consumer Welfare Results

  21. Political Liberties Model: The Punch Line E-government services lead to an increase of 5 and 3 times the average number of applications received for birth certificates and old age pensions respectively, when compared to that when the village has no Internet kiosk, keeping other factors constant…. . . But project fails to achieve political sustainability and is shut down….

  22. An Invitation to Georgia Tech • Defining the technological university of the 21st century…. • Tech’s programs in engineering hold a position in the elite top five universities in the USA. • ICT4D projects in many parts of Africa: Liberia, Rwanda, Nigeria, Ethiopia…. with university-university collaborations in all these countries.

  23. An Invitation to Georgia Tech • Editorial home of premier ICT4D journal: Information Technologies and International Developmentpublished by MIT Press • mitpress.mit.edu/ITID • First MIT Press open access journal

  24. Frontiers of Knowledge in Science and Technology for Africa Cape Town, South Africa November 18, 2006 Harnessing ICT’s:A Cutting-Edge Perspective Michael L. Best Georgia Institute of Technology mikeb@cc.gatech.edu www.cc.gatech.edu/~mikeb

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