Resources search

ICT and MDGs : a World Bank Group perspective

WORLD BANK GROUP
December 2003

Expand view

A 2003 policy paper from the World Bank on the relationship between ICT and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The main objectives of this report are: (i) to illustrate the opportunities ICT offers policy makers and practitioners in their efforts to achieve the MDGs, with the assumption that the appropriate policies and institutions exist or will be forthcoming; and (ii) to highlight selected World Bank Group funded projects with an ICT component which have contributed to the intended development outcomes. "The report does not aim to establish proven empirical links between ICT and the achievement of the MDGs, but to illustrate the positive impact ICT can make as an enabling tool for development." Includes a section on ICT and health MDGs

ICT and health [chapter] | ICT and MDGs : a World Bank Group perspective

WORLD BANK GROUP
December 2003

Expand view

This article explores the impact of ICTs on health care within developing countries. Topics covered include research and training of health-care workers, achieving health-related MDGs, and storing and disseminating health information. Details are also provided of selected World Bank-funded projects

Tools for development : using information and communications technology to achieve the Millennium Development Goals

UNITED NATIONS ICT TASK FORCE SECRETARIAT
December 2003

Expand view

Sponsored by the UN ICT Task Force, this paper represents an attempt to define more precisely how ICTs can be used to further the achievement of basic development objectives. Using the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as a baseline for analysis, the paper conducts a mapping exercise, which links the application of ICTs to broader development goals as expressed in the MDGs. The mapping of ICT tools to the attainment of the millennium goals in specific development areas leads to a series of ICT-specific targets and suggests possible indicators for measuring progress

The wireless internet opportunity for developing countries

WIRELESS INTERNET INSTITUTE
Ed
November 2003

Expand view

The expansion and transfer of information and communication technology is crucial to the economic growth of developing countries. Connectivity through the Internet, in particular, is essential in a global and increasingly expanding knowledge economy, but it is also important for the improvement of national services and government (e-health, e-education, e-government). This book focuses on Internet technologies and opportunities and argues that for resource-constrained countries the deployment of broadband wireless Internet may be the only viable and the most cost/effective option. Chapters address technology, regulatory issues, vendor resources, and country guidelines. The second part of the book contains 12 case studies, covering a broad range of areas, from sustainability to education, remote regions, WISPs, shared access, adaptive technologies, and rebuilding nations, and includes useful lists of key things to remember

Appropriating the internet for social change : towards the strategic use of networked technologies by transnational civil society organizations

SURMAN, Mark
REILLY, Katherine
November 2003

Expand view

This research report argues that analysis of the Internet focuses too much on technology and on overcoming a "digital divide" in access to the Internet. The report looks at examples of how people in international civil society organisations have used e-mail, websites and databases to help them collaborate, publish information, mobilise people in their networks, and access information for research. The report does not cover local or national civil society organisations

The Ptolemy project : a scalable model for delivering health information in Africa

BEVERIDGE, M
HOWARD, A
BURTON, K
HOLDER, W
October 2003

Expand view

This article describes the Ptolmey project. This project is a new model for electronic access to medical literature for doctors in developing countries. Surgeons in east Africa become research affiliates of the University of Toronto and have access to the full-text resources of the university library via a secure Internet system that monitors and verifies use. Ptolemy is a small project but it has potential for being widely and economically reproduced

ICT, PRSPs, and MDGs

BANURI, Tariq
October 2003

Expand view

This paper considers the dissemination of ICT within various conceptual frameworks, calling for approaches that start with the needs and desires of poor people for information. It is strongly illustrated with examples from India and Pakistan. Banuri then turns to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and to the potential of ICT to support progress in meeting these goals. Finally, he criticises governments for lack of a coherent, human development-based ICT policy emphasizing the MDGs, while suggesting that civil society has done better

Open Source in Africa : towards informed decision-making

BRUGGINK, Martin
August 2003

Expand view

Open Source solutions became a real alternative in western and northern countries as well as in Asian countries. In Africa, Open Source initiatives have not yet been discussed thoroughly. This brief summarizes research carried out in Tanzania, Uganda and Burkina Faso, asking how and if Open Source is used

Building inclusive information societies : Dutch perspectives for the WSIS

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR COMMUNICATION AND DEVELOPMENT (IICD)
ONEWORLD NEDERLAND
HUMANIST INSTITUTE FOR CO-OPERATION WITH DEVELOPING COUNTRIES (HIVOS)
August 2003

Expand view

This document brings together recommendations for the Dutch delegation to the 2003 'World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)'. Themes identified are: cyber rights: property, privacy and freedom of expression; ICT and education; civil society and empowerment; and trade and entrepreneurship

Implementing a new health management information system in Uganda

GLADWIN, J
DIXON, R A
WILSON, T D
June 2003

Expand view

The paper reviews the installation of a new health management system in Uganda. The authors noted that technological issues, rather than wider organisational issues, dominated the planning of the change. The need to consider the organisational context when changing information systems arises because the process is more complex than some practitioners have realised. It is a useful case study of the implementation of information and communication technology

Comunicación sin fronteras : un proyecto de universalización de las tecnologías de información y comunicación en Costa Rica

CAMACHO, Kemly
HIDALGO, Christian
April 2003

Expand view

The document analyses the 'Communication Without Borders' programme - a proposal developed in the Republic of Costa Rica in 2003 to incorporate new technologies into the life of the citizens. It examines the programme as it works in reality, showing the difference between the ideal model and the one executed. It makes recommendations around policy issues, institutional change and infrastructure development

Greenstone digital library software

UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANISATION (UNESCO)
NEW ZEALAND DIGITAL LIBRARY PROJECT(NZDL)
HUMAN INFO NGO
March 2003

Expand view

Greenstone is a suite of software for building and distributing digital library collections. It provides a new way of organising information and publishing it on the Internet or on CD-ROM. This CD-ROM contains the open source software as well as supporting documentation

Learning to share learning : an exploration of methods to improve and share learning

CHETLEY, Andrew
VINCENT, Robin
March 2003

Expand view

This is a report, commissioned by the UK Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) in March 2003, which provides a literature review looking at the sharing of learning in different sectors. A key aim of CHI’s approach is to encourage NHS organisations to embed learning in their work to help them improve their practice. The report draws on studies in the fields of education, psychology, organisational learning, personal learning, and participatory approaches to explore understanding of good learning practice. It includes more than 15 case studies that illustrate methodologies and approaches used to share learning in the business, public, and voluntary sectors, paying particular attention to the types of processes that encourage engagement with diverse communities of interest or multiple stakeholders

Case study : the SATELLIFE PDA Project

March 2003

Expand view

The article describes the SATELLIFE Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Project that explored questions related to the selection and design of appropriate, affordable technology and locally relevant content for use in African healthcare environment. The project was specifically targeted at assessing the usefulness of the PDA for (1) data collection and (2) information dissemination. This report describes a number of valuable lessons leaned from the project that can be applied to further deployment of PDAs in developing countries. A number of obstacles to technology use have also been identified, which will need to be overcome in order to promote the widespread adoption of the technology in this context

Cultural and political factors in the design of ICT projects in developing countries

ROZENDAL, Rutger
March 2003

Expand view

This research report argues that the project environment should be divided into a political and a cultural dimension. Both dimensions are difficult to direct, but by analysing them it is possible to foresee problems between the project organisation and its environment. Instead of directing the political and cultural forces, the art of management lies in anticipating them in advance. [Publisher's abstract]

Pages

E-bulletin