The Societal Role of the Internet in Developing Nations

The information and communication technology evolution is aggressively affecting the world as it approaches the 21st century. The waves of change have had implications on academia, the industry and the business community. The magnitude of socioeconomic and business development change has had a global perspective unconstrained with time or distance barriers reaching both developed and developing nations. Egypt, as a developing country with an economy in transition, has been massively investing in building its information technology infrastructure. Therefore, in 1994, the Internet became a priority issue for both the government and the public sector as a tool for socioeconomic and business development. This paper demonstrates the experience of Egypt in introducing the Internet and its evolution from its birth in the academic sector up to its commercial takeoff. The paper addresses the lessons learned in facing infrastructure limitations and the new role of the government, in partnersh...

First Monday, 2004

The Internet in developing nations: Grand challenges by Larry Press This is a call for a "Grand Challenge" project for achieving truly global connectivity. For over a decade, we have hypothesized that the Internet could raise the quality of life in developing nations. We have conducted hundreds of studies of the state of the Internet and "e-readiness," done extensive training of technicians and policy makers, run pilot studies, and held local, regional and global conferences and workshops. After all of this activity, Internet connectivity is nearly non-existent in rural areas of developing nations, and far below that of developed nations in the urban areas of developing nations. This is not to say the activity of the past decade has been a waste. We have demonstrated the value of the Internet and raised awareness. The United Nations and the administrations of nearly all nations have acknowledged the potential of the Internet. The way has been paved, and it is time to act on what we have learned. After outlining the work of the last decade, we explore one possible Grand Challenge: Connecting every village in the rural developing world to the Internet using a strategy similar to that used in building the NSFNet. We speculate on wireless technologies that might play a role in working toward that goal: Terrestrial, high-altitude platform, and satellite. We conclude with a brief discussion of alternative Grand Challenges and a call for action. The time is ripe for an audacious project. What could we achieve with US$15 billion and ten years time? Contents Paving the way A grand challenge Conclusion By September 1991, 79 political units had UUCP connectivity, 52 FidoNet, 47 BITNet, and 33 Internet. Ninety-two had some form of connectivity and 131 had none [6]. Developed nations typically had Internet connections as well as the others. Since that time, the Internet has spread rapidly, and displaced its precursors.

Research Objectives: The purpose of this paper is to sheds new light on the importance of information and communication technology infrastructure and its significant role in establishing an information-based society. It intendeds to focus on the current state of ICT infrastructure in developing countries and discuss its potency and influence on enhancing the competitiveness and productivity that needs to be improved in order to foster the total economy of those countries. It will also concentrate on the digital divide between advanced countries and third world nations. This paper aims to accomplish another goal related directly to Action Plan that might be formulated to lead to an information society in developing countries and the Arabic speaking world. This, in turn, will reflect positively on the economy of developing countries and assist in establishing the targeted knowledge-based society as a forward step. The objective of this paper is to draw an outline for the transition route which should take place in developing countries in order to establish an information-based society as the transition route has become a compulsory corridor and not a matter of choice. It is also essential to point out in this context that this paper will suggest different ways and approaches that might assist the Arab states in the transition course by implementing policies and strategies derived from the recommendations of the World Summit on the Information Society. Methodology / Approach: The design of this paper is based on different tools such as personal readings of intellectual production, literature review, experience, and the insights of other researchers and experts in the scope of ICTs. In addition to that, the paper is also based on the recommendations of the World Summit on the Information Society which was held in two phases. The first phase took place in Geneva during 2003 and the second in Tunis during 2005. The main objective of WSIS was to bridge the digital divide between developing and developed countries and to promote the creation of an equitable and all-inclusive information society. Research Implications: This paper may assist ICT policy makers as well as information policy makers in the third world countries to develop innovative guiding principles that position ICT infrastructures and information technology applications such as E-learning, E-business, E-commerce, E-health, E-government and so on, as a part of a strategic plan. This, in turn, is expecting to assist in solving a lot of problems associated with weakness of access to up-to-date information required for improving the current situation and to encourage the adoption of ICT in those countries. Originality / Value: This paper adds new information and deepens understanding of a significant issue. It is the first of its kind to provide information and considerable insights on the current scenario of ICT infrastructures in developing countries. It indicates also existing obstacles, barriers, difficulties, suggestion, and recommendations for further development. Findings and Conclusion: The paper reveals that effective adoption of ICT in developing countries will accelerate the level of knowledge acquisition and consequently improve national development. The paper also concludes with a proposal for developing and enhancing the current scenario by adopting some programs that can facilitate achieving the targeted goals and highlights important policy considerations relevant to ICTs infrastructure development.

International Information & Library Review, 1999

The Internet has caught the public in its expanding web. It is beginning to reshape other media and is now making its way into countries all over the world including developing countries.Yemen, as a developing country, introduced Internet services in September 1996. The present study attempts to evaluate Internet services in Yemen from inception up to the end of 1998. The study also hopes to ¢nd, among other things, how well and how widely the Internet is used in Yemen and to what extent Yemen can bene¢t from it, and howYemen participates in the information highway. A questionnaire was used as a tool for collecting data. The homepages hosted at theTele-Yemen (ISP) Server were scanned and certain criteria were used for their evaluation. The study was able to pinpoint the problems faced by Yemeni users of the Internet, the constraints confronting its di¡usion in Yemen and the pro¢ts gained by subscribers. The study came up with several suggestions and recommendations that the two authors hope will provide a basis for assessing the prospects for the future of the Internet in Yemen.

A networked research for a world networked by the Internet The World Internet Project (WIP) was born out of a group of researchers that believed we had lost a great opportunity by not starting research in the early years of television diffusion and that no similar mistake should be made with the study of the Internet. Building research on the uses of a global network, influence also the very own design of such a research. So, the World Internet Project (WIP) was designed having in mind the need to cover different geographies and not just the most familiar, or more central, to the world of academic research. Out of such understanding the WIP was founded, a project designed to understand the economic, political and social impact of digital technologies and with the aim to develop new hypotheses regarding the role of the Internet in changing our lives and societies today and tomorrow. Fostering collaboration among dozens of countries around the globe, the WIP has produced analyses that address the comparative dimensions tapping cross-national and crosscultural similarities and differences in the uses of the Internet.

International Education Journal, 2006

The internet has become an indispensable tool in the twenty first century. However, the development may be slowed by a lack of appropriate facilities in less developed nations. A study of existing facilities in Burkina Faso was undertaken to answer five questions on the participants' perspectives on internet usage: (a) how do the participants perceive internet utilisation; (b) what factors encourage the use of the internet; (c) what factors discourage internet usage; (d) is the internet a tool for enhancing learning and (e) how can improved management of available technology lead to greater internet usage in the Humanities Faculty at Ouagadougou University? Participants were selected because of their interest and involvement with technology, their computer knowledge and their prior experience with the internet. The current status of internet knowledge and utilisation were examined and factors that influenced internet usage were considered. Six recommendations for improved practice at the post-secondary level were discussed.

The basic requirement for meaningful use of any web-based tool is to be able to have hassle free access to the Internet. Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) can only serve as effective tools of broad-based development and opportunity for all, if all people in the Third World can afford access to them. This paper x-rayed the various challenges faced by the third world in a bid to harness the ubiquitous virtues inherent in the Internet. Solutions to some of these bottlenecks were proffered and it concludes with an argument; that if internet accessibility were to match availability of mobile telephony in third world nations, then accessing internet should be convenient, appropriate and reasonably cheap.

2013

The world of the Internet is shaping the future of many industries around the world, from the airline industry to the production of music. The Internet is changing how we communicate and exchange ideas and thoughts. Many countries are now eager to setup master plans and policies to develop their Internet infrastructure. This paper examines the essential factors that are affecting the development and usage of the Internet in the developed and the developing world and shed light on the need to view the development and usage of the Internet on a more holistic view than atomistic view. The results show that urbanization, electrical usage, and the usage of mobile cellular have a positive relationship with Internet usage. In case of the least developed countries, GNI per capita has a positive relation of Internet usage.

2010

In spite of the frenzy regarding the benefits and blessings of globalisation and information technology, it is premature to assume that there is equality in access to technology and attendant opportunities. It is equally premature to pretend that all countries are beneficiaries and, therefore, there are no victims of the globalisation. This is particularly true of developing world which is largely lagging behind in the so-called "digital divide". In this paper and the articles presented in the present Volume of Information, Society and Justice, it is argued that a number of challenges bedevil the desire by developing countries to enjoy equal access to the opportunities of globalisation and information technology. It is also argued that both globalisation and information technology reproduce and reinforce global inequality and hierarchy dominated by specific parts of the world.