Can mobile Internet help bridge the digital divide?

by P. ANGELINA

THE ever-expanding digital divide between the “haves” and “have-nots” is a growing concern for almost all governments today.

For those who do not already know, “digital divide” refers to the information gap that exists between those with access and those without access to information and communications technologies (ICT), such as technologies needed to access the Internet and engage in electronic commerce.

According to an official of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), this ever widening information gap results from the fact that advances in ICT are being enjoyed by certain quarters of society and not by some others.

“The digital divide is a socio-economic situation that arises when a segment or segments of society have unequal access to contemporary ICT for gaining and contributing information/ knowledge and to derive benefits there from,” said the official who declined to be named.

“This is basically due to one or more of the following factors of accessibility, IT literacy, lack of content and affordability, which may in turn be attributed to geographical conditions, socio-economic status, education levels, economic viability and government priorities,’’ the official said.

“To be precise, the less fortunate side of the digital divide provides less opportunities to take part in the new and globalised information world, in which many windows of opportunity -- particularly in the fields of education, training, business, employment and entertainment -- are made available.

“This includes the less educated, children of single-parent households, the lower-income groups and those who reside in the rural and remote areas.’’

“Today, there is an even greater need to reduce this digital divide,’’ added the official. “We need to bridge this divide to enable societal inclusion in social and economic advancement and to enable risk segments of society to access and utilise information and knowledge through ICT for value creation.’’

Why use ICT?

According to studies conducted by analysts, governments should no longer ignore the need to reduce this ever widening digital divide because of the benefits that ICT has to offer, especially to those living in rural areas.

This is because in addition to providing access to information and communications resources, which is increasingly viewed as critical for economic and social development, ICT is also seen as having the potential to improve the quality of lives of those in rural areas.

ICT has the potential to create earnings opportunities and jobs, improve delivery and access to health and education, facilitate information sharing and knowledge creation, and increase the transparency, accountability and effectiveness of government, businesses and non-profit organisations — all this contributing to an enabling environment for development.

For instance, those living in rural areas will no longer be at a disadvantage in terms of access to information and services due to their geographical location since ICT will allow them to access these very information and services from their homes, schools or workplace.

ICT also offers more opportunities for people, especially women, to work from home and to carry out professional and skilled work when living in rural or isolated areas.

Likewise, ICT also allows people to carry out a variety of jobs in rural areas that may not be possible, or at the least very difficult to perform without the use of such technologies.

There are fewer public points of access to computers and the Internet in rural regions. Therefore, it is more important to have a computer and Internet access at home.

Aside from that, ICT in rural homes also means that household members always have access to information when and if they need it. It is also more convenient, as people are not restricted to library opening hours, for example, when researching a topic.

Additionally, ICT offer access to lots of information that would not be available otherwise. The Internet provides a wealth of information that is not available in small rural libraries.

Moreover, certain services offered on the Internet appear to be more useful and valuable to people living in rural regions. Online shopping for instance, offers those living in rural areas a wider selection of products. It is also more convenient and saves time.

These are very good reasons as to how ICT can help reduce the digital divide in rural areas. But the question we need to ask is this: “How do we go about reducing this divide in a way that is most effective?”

Programmes in place

One organisation that has been actively helping developing countries draw on expertise and best practices from around the world to develop strategies that expand access to ICT and harness it for development, is the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

UNDP is the United Nations' global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build better lives.

Since 1993, the UNDP has been designing and implementing dedicated IT programmes and pilots projects at both the national and regional levels to foster the creation of adequate ICT enabling environments in developing nations and promote sustainable development.

Working in 166 countries, UNDP also relies on ICT solutions to make the most effective use of its own global network.

Given the urgent demands and needs of countries under the programme, for formulating, implementing and monitoring national ICT for development strategies, the UNDP also established a Thematic Trust Fund (TTF) for ICT for development, as a flexible instrument to enhance its response to countries' requests for assistance.

The Trust Fund, which will be used to fund global, regional and national programmes, operates within the framework of UNDP's Global Co-operation Framework (GCF). The GCF provides a range of services to governments, civil society and UN Country Teams in the area of ICT for development, including global advocacy and analysis, partnership building, promotion of strategic frameworks and support for the implementation of comprehensive programmes in ICT for development.

Today, the UNDP is already helping countries gain access to the digital economy in places ranging from Estonia to East Timor. The organisation supports the launching of new networks and helps construct policy frameworks for ICT.

At the global level for instance, the UNDP launched a Sustainable Development Networking Programme (www.sndp.undp.org) in 1993 with the goal of addressing connectivity and networking issues, capacity building for national stakeholders, and national content development with an important component for raising ICT and Internet awareness at top decision-making levels.

The programme currently operates in 45 countries in all regions and is piloting tele-centres, e-commerce for development and e-governance initiatives.

The organisation also launched an ICT For Development Programme (www.undp.org/info21) in 1997 to increase awareness and generate ICT strategies at the national level, building national capacities, and deploying Technology Access Community Centres in selected pilot locations. It also manages a substantial portal site that contains state-of-the-art information on ICT and development issues.

As part of its regional initiatives, the UNDP launched the Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme, APDIP (www.apdip.net) in 1996. APDIP provides capacity building on IT and policy issues, supports and backstops IT initiatives, and assists in the design and implementation of IT systems in 42 countries in the region. The programme presently runs out of Kuala Lumpur and operates at both the regional and national levels.

In 1996, UNDP also launched the Internet Initiative for Africa (www.undp.org/rba/menu/welprog.htm), which aims at enhancing national Internet info-structures and promoting the development of national and regional backbones, including a strong component for building national technical capacities and telecom skills in 15 African countries. The programme is based in Accra, Ghana.

The UNDP has also engaged in a number of initiatives at country level in every region of the world.

In Malaysia for instance, the UNDP supports the Mobile Inter-net Units (MIU) project – specially equipped buses that drive from one school to another, providing Inter-net access and computer training to teachers and school children in rural areas.

According to APDIP building capacity and partnerships programme specialist Phet Sayo, Malaysia is advanced when compared to the rest of the Asia Pacific nations in terms of projects such as MIU.

“In March, UNDP and Coca Cola Malaysia launched the E-learning for Life Project with the goal to create an ICT community centre in six schools,’’ he said. “It is hoped this pilot project will produce a working model that will help the government to improve or expand the current Schools as Centres of ICT for the Community projects or to add the community element to other school and ICT projects.’’

But how effective has these developmental projects and programmes been in reducing the digital divide?

An effective solution

One example of how effective developmental programmes can be a solution to reducing the digital divide is MIU. The pilot project was initiated by the UNDP.

The project entails 44-seater buses renovated into cyber learning stations that go round to schools in rural areas to provide ICT training and electronic classroom experience. The goal was to reduce the gap between the information-poor and the information-rich.

Students and teachers (in some cases even communities) were taught how to use computers, multimedia software, basic Internet services and also, how to create software. A computer was given to each school visited by MIU to help build local empowerment.

The main objectives of the MIU included promoting ICT awareness and literacy among the teachers and students in non-mainstream schools; assessing and collecting data on IT potential / capacity of the teachers and students in these schools; providing electronic classroom experiences for these schools; and assessing the impact of ICT on the teaching and learning processes in the new environment.

Non-mainstream schools are schools that are deprived of access to information and opportunity to acquire ICT skills. These schools are not included in the current government Smart Schools Pro-grammes or any other similar ICT initiatives conducted by non-government agencies.

Under the MIU project, 12- and 13-year-old students at the selected rural schools were given eight lessons, after which they had to perform a research project or develop a website.

The MIU project received such an encouraging response from the teachers and students in these schools, that it was later adopted as one of the key projects under the Strategic Thrusts Implementation Committee. The National Information Technology Council (NITC) oversees the committee.

“The MIU has in fact, proven to be very effective in enhancing computer literacy among rural students,’’ said Tengku Datuk Dr Azzman Shariffadeen, NITC secretary. “Computer literacy increased from 5% to 90% after the MIU was introduced to some rural schools.’’

“It has also allowed school children from rural areas to better understand the Internet,’’ he said. “The project also spurred the schools to buy their own computers.’’

In April last year, the project was extended to act as a community outreach programme – again targeting the rural areas.

Today, the success of the MIU pilot project in the Klang Valley has encouraged other states in Malaysia to also introduce the project in their rural schools.

Penang for instance, will soon have its own MIU. The unit would go on a roadshow to schools, rural areas as well as community centres to promote Information Technology literacy, according to the state government.

Government initiatives

The Malaysian government approached the issue of reducing the digital divide in a number of ways, both at the policy level and through several developmental programmes.

“At the policy level, it has been stated that one of the 10 national policy objectives under the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998, is the provision of equitable provision of affordable services over ubiquitous national infrastructure,’’ the MCMC official said.

The Government introduced a more liberalised licensing regime. It had to intervene so as to ensure equitable access to all, because profit maximisation as a result of market liberalisation had caused telecommunications companies to concentrate on profitable segments.

“Prior to market liberalisation, state-run telecommunications service providers financed all telecommunications infrastructure developments,’’ said the official, adding that the Government also looked at leveraging on new technologies as a means of reducing the digital divide.

“New technologies can provide for cheaper and more effective rollout of infrastructure and information technologies both in terms of software and hardware,’’ the official said. “Open source software is one example whereby set-up costs can be minimised and innovations can be introduced.’’

“We have also recently announced Komnas2020, which is a PC using Linux as the operating system thus bringing down the TCO (total cost of ownership),’’ the official said, citing an example.

“The Government also set-up a Universal Service Provision (USP) Fund with contributions from all licensees to finance infrastructure roll-out to underserved areas, and allocated a budget of RM1bil under the Eighth Malaysia Plan (2000-2005) to complement and supplement the USP Fund,’’ said the official. “For both funds, priority is given to schools and other government agencies in rural areas that have yet to have basic communications connection.’’

Other initiatives include:

1. Extending the infrastructure required to enable access in rural and underserved areas, and deploying appropriate methods of communications based on availability, cost and practicality. This is because there is unequal telephony development between states and the disparity of Internet users between the states (almost 70% in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Pulau Pinang and Johor). Also, out of 8,859 schools, only 34.8% own PCs and 14.6% have Internet access;

2. Introducing awareness and training programmes via community colleges, smart schools, rural community IT centres, and community-specific projects such as hardcore poor, children’s homes, e-Bario, etc. The lack of awareness on the importance of IT makes it difficult, especially for those living in the rural areas, to leverage on the Internet; and,

3. Developing local applications and content. English is the language of the Internet for both applications software and content. This, however, cannot cater for the 70% of the total readership population in Malaysia who use Bahasa Malaysia. The Government is making efforts, therefore, to develop Bahasa Malaysia-based local content and a directory of all such content in the country. In fact, the Government has allocated a sum of RM10mil just for such content development.

“The MSC Flagship Application also provides for applications where the users are the general public,’’ the official said. “These applications include tele-health, the government multipurpose card (GMPC) and the B2B and B2C electronic government applications. This should provide a wide base of applications which should in turn upgrade the IT literacy levels of the society.’’

“There is also the issue of affordability. Statistics show that only 17% of the rural population and about 40% of the urban population can afford to own PCs with Internet capabilities. The penetration of the Internet in the country is only about 8.9% as at the end of last year.

“Also, 83% of rural and 63% of urban households may find it difficult to afford basic Internet PCs. The average amount of money spent in cybercafes is about RM18 per week or RM75 to RM80 per month; while 62% of cybercafes are located in urban areas and users are largely white collar and average income earners of more than RM3,000 per month. Internet usage therefore is more pervasive among those with a monthly income of more than RM5,000 a month and to a lesser extent the RM3,000 – RM5,000 monthly wage earners.’’

To provide for digital equity, the Government has set up Internet Community Centres for the under-served, the official said. “The rural society is made up of the local community, the small- and medium-scale industries and the local government.”

Programmes such as the Rural Internet Programme (MECM), InfoDesa Project (MRD), e-Community Projects (NITC/MECM), SMEs (MITI/SMIDEC) and Rural Libraries (State Projects) aim at serving the requirements of one or more of these groups.

“Such programmes should enable more equitable access to the under-served in making available e-learning, tele-working, virtual collaborations and information that are normally the privilege of the urban population,’’ the official added.

Challenges to address

According to UNDP Access & Partnerships Development programme specialist Isa Seow, there are several other challenges which need to be addressed, one of which is the issue of access and use.

“Although many developing countries already have the basic infrastructure to connect to the global information network, affordable and equitable access is still a critical issue,’’ he said.

“Recent estimates indicate that less than 15% of the total number of users of the Internet and ICT live in developing countries. While in many instances market processes have helped to reduce cost and extend access, market failures are still pervasive, especially in many of the least developed countries.’’

“So, there has to be access to the information as well as proper usage in order for the Internet to be useful,’’ said Seow. “Setting up computers alone is not enough to reduce the digital divide,’’ he said.

“Providing useful and relevant content and applications is just as important as well. There is also the issue of language. Without the proper language, the Internet will not be as useful as it is claimed to be. It has to be relevant to the people in order for it to work.’’

According to Seow, the second challenge is creating an enabling environment.

Most developing nations do not have legal frameworks and institutional capacities to foster widespread adoption and absorption of ICT or to attract the relevant national and international investment for infrastructure, enterprise, services and capacity development, he said.

“Recent estimates indicate that fewer than 25 developing nations have started the process of planning and creating such an enabling environment.’’

These are not the only issues that need to be addressed, Seow pointed out. “There is also the need to address global and national governance issues.’’

“Currently, very few developing countries directly participate in ongoing global dialogues related to ICT governance. Critical issues, which impact their position in the global economy, such as domain names, privacy, security, intellectual property, e-commerce legislation and standards, are defined and decided upon without their knowledge and involvement.

“Moreover, most developing countries lack the human and institutional capacity to rapidly adapt and absorb new policy frameworks related to issues and to make use of ICT to enhance democratic governance and citizen participation in development processes,’’ Seow said.

UNDP human development programme manager Anis Yusal Yusoff said the human capacity is another factor that governments have to take into consideration.

“New global and local competitive opportunities for ICT put a premium on skills development,’’ he said. “Developing countries need to address the capacity gap to secure not only a critical number of technically qualified people but also to acquire the expertise to access, design and implement national ICT for development strategies.’’

It is not just about providing hardware to people without access to ICT, Anis said. “We are talking not about just providing access in terms of hardware but also in terms of human resource, training and maintenance.’’

Governments also need to look at training, human resource and maintenance as a whole in order to be able to bridge this information gap.

“And that is not all, he said. “Developing countries also need to evaluate the impact of ICT on existing sectors, identify the potential for ICT to create new economic opportunities and improve competitive advantage in both old and new sectors, and investigate ways in which ICT can be used to address rather than accentuate existing forms of inequality and social exclusion, especially those faced by women and minorities.’’

Wireless solutions

Is the mobile Internet the solution to these problems then?

Mobile wireless Internet access refers to Internet access over devices with no wires attached, specifically cellphones, pagers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other handheld devices.

Today, the demand for mobile Internet access, and the ability to send and receive data over these portable devices, is exploding. This is because the wireless Internet access offers users a lot of advantages. These primary advantages include:

a) Lower infrastructure costs associated with building out a wireless system, which translate to lower cost for the end-user,

b) The ability to provide high-speed Internet access to areas where digital subscriber line (DSL) and/or high-speed cable access is not available, and

c) For mobile workers, the ability to be in touch without having to be plugged into a telephone line.

However, there are a number of issues that arise from accessing the Internet over a mobile handset for instance, such as smaller screens, lower resolution, a limited keypad for data entry and, far lower processing power and memory than desktop or laptop computers.

Also, mobile Internet access looks and functions differently from fixed wireless access, in that mobile Internet access providers are forced to simplify the presentation and limit the features offered to the user to those that are most valued.

There is also the issue of security, “glitches” with service reliability as compared with telephone line delivered service, and depending on the type of wireless Internet access desired, coverage can be very limited -- usually to just major metropolitan or urban areas.

Nevertheless, some countries are already looking to wireless solutions as a means to bridge the digital divide.

In Namibia for instance, the SchoolNet Namibia organisation is currently looking at various wireless communications solutions as a means of making Internet access available in schools throughout the country irrespective of its current infrastructure.

According to Seow, APDIP was now looking into bringing broadband to schools in rural areas. “We realise that wireless is one of the ways to reach really far away places,’’ he said. “Besides, it is generally a cheaper alternative to infrastructure.’’

UNDP’s Yusoff, however, was quick to point out that the concept of the projects were not so important as the cost efficiency of implementing such projects in the first place.

“The MIU project for instance, was an effective yet affordable project to implement,’’ he said. “Using a bus was an effective yet affordable idea because the bus could go into really rural areas. The cost-efficiency of the project then made it easier to carry out.’’

“We feel that this is important because we realise that implementing such technologies would be a great way to reduce the digital divide, but at the same time we feel that there is a need to ask ourselves these questions: ‘Do people in rural areas need such technologies in the first place?’ and ‘Will these technologies be relevant, useful and affordable to them?’ ’’ he said.

“At the end of the day, there is no point providing all the hardware and access to technology if the people don’t see a need for it. ICT is only a tool and it is only useful when used properly.’’