ICT4D and the Human Development and Capabilities approach: The Potentials of Informationand Communication Technology

Human Development
Research Paper
2010/37

Jean-Yves Hame

Abstract

This study frames a review of information and communication technology for development (ICT4D) within the human development and capabilities approach. Looking at the basic dimensions of human development, which make up the core measurement of its achievements: health, education  and a income, and additionally at the dimensions of participation and empowerment, a survey of research and evidence seeks to evaluate whether or not ICTs have demonstrated positive outcomes for these dimensions of human development and more broadly to the practice of its approach. The paper reviews the literature and research conducted in these dimensions in order to establish a sense of the scope and potential that ICTs have for human development. By doing so, the paper seeks to assess whether or not the use of ICTs is pertinent to the human development of the poor, and if so, which are documented cases and outcomes that can perhaps be replicated in differing development contexts. The paper also seeks to answer questions on the role of government policy and investment in ICTs as keys to their success in development and whether or not ICTs should be emphasized at all in poor countries. The paper concludes with the important realisation that ICTs alone cannot improve peoples’ lives; the use of ICTs needs to occur within broader strategies that are tailored to make the most use of these tools and techniques in order to reap their potential benefits for human development.

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ICT for Development

In our complex and globalized society, the application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become a crucial success factor in achieving the Millennium Development Goals. The key role of ICT lies in its ability to handle and communicate information whereas information is an indispensable ingredient in decision making and empowerment for improving the livelihood of people, communication the format and packaging of information and technology the enabler of connecting people and the means to distribute information rapidly. However, the benefits of ICT do not only come from an increase in connectivity or broader access to ICT network infrastructure per se. As a driver and accelerator both established ICT (radio, television and video) and new ICT ( Computers, Internet, Mobile) have converged into single powerful communication devices with global reach to give voice to the voiceless and power to the powerless.

The most dramatic growth in the history of ICT has been witnessed in the Asia-Pacific region with impressive growth figures for mobile users and Internet connectivity. However, these new technologies have yet to reach into rural and mountainous life. Asia has now 39.5 (Sep 4, 2008) percent of the world’s Internet users, inspite that only 15.3 percent of its population is connected to the Internet, and many of them fall in rural and mountainous life. This figure, according to Internet World Stats, a market research organization that tracks Internet usage by region and also by countries, includes all of ICIMOD member countries (RMCs) as well. At this junction, ICT for development is at a critical turning point and holding great promise for shaping rural and mountain life in different ways and accelerating the achievements of equitable and inclusive development.

Rural people in the mountainous areas of the HKH region have lived traditionally in much lower levels of economic incomes and general well being than their counterparts, are more marginalized from digital opportunities despite ICT as an effective tool to address these longstanding problems of inequality. In addition, negative perceptions on rural ICT use are prevalent: rural people are considered to have little demand for so-called e-services maybe partly infused by the notion of higher illiteracy, absence of electricity to feed electronic equipment and the returns on investment are low because rural people are not productive but consumptive users of ICT. Reducing the information cost and building ICT capacity are of central importance for the rural and mountain poor and most RMC’s have developed frameworks to improve accessibility. It is however extremely important that after the provision of infrastructure, connectivity, complemented by capacity building, providing useful content is crucial to people living in rural areas and often in the form they can absorb or understand (local language. Access to education and training through e-learning, will be important in most sectors, particularly to improve the participation of woman in development and bridge the gender gap. Appropriate ICT solutions for improving the efficiency of health service, governance, disaster preparedness, market information services enables rural poor to meet basic needs and encourages greater public voice in decision making and above all, empowers rural people.

Non-Formal Education and ICT's

Learning is not restricted to the time spent in school. It begins at birth and continues all your life. 

The present pattern in which we have education at the beginning of our lives, then work in one field until an extended retirement period, is changing. Lifelong learning is becoming part of modern life. This is because rapid technological change and growth in information require ongoing learning. 

Given the importance of learning foundations, currently those who miss out on basic education suffer exclusion. However, ongoing learning throughout life enables people to take advantage of new opportunities that arise as society changes. It also provides opportunities for those who are unemployed to re-enter the workforce.

Every kind of learning that happens outside the traditional school setting can be called non-formal. However, defining non-formal education is not easy, it has been described variously as an educational movement, a setting, a process and a system. 

The projects and programmes implemented under the label of 'non-formal education' are very diverse in scope. What they usually have in common is an organised, systematic, educational activity, carried on outside the framework of the formal education system, to provide different types of learning to particular groups in the population, both adults and children. 

Thus non-formal education is different from the institutionalised, chronologically graded and hierarchically structured nature of the formal education system However, the boundaries between formal and non-formal education can sometimes be blurred, especially when certification enters into a non-formal education programme. 

Radio, television, computers and the Internet are modern delivery tools for education. However, in low-income communities the cost of these tools and the need for skills in installing, using and maintaining these tools poses obstacles to widespread adoption of computers and the Internet. 

One solution has been the establishment of Community Learning Centres (CLCs) and Multimedia Community Telecentres. These centres, many of which are run by the communities themselves, aim to enhance basic education, train teachers, develop local businesses, strengthen municipal administration and civil society organisations, and provide health care information for populations in small villages