"Recent developments in the fields of communications and information technology are indeed revolutionary in nature. Information and knowledge are expanding in quantity and accessibility. In many fields future decision-makers will be presented with unprecedented new tools for development. In such fields as agriculture, health, education, human resources and environmental management, or transport and business development, the consequences could be really quite revolutionary. Communications and information technology have enormous potential, especially for developing countries, and in furthering sustainable development."
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan (1997:1)

OVERVIEW

These words of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan underline in no uncertain terms the critical role that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) can play in furthering and enhancing sustainable development. Everywhere in the developing world, especially in Asia, governments are launching ambitious ICT infrastructure initiatives, radically changing their communications policy frameworks and situating ICT at the heart of their development programmes and strategy.

ICT has become an indispensable tool in the fight against world poverty. ICT provides developing nations with an unprecedented opportunity to meet vital development goals such as poverty reduction, basic healthcare, and education, far more effectively than before. Those nations that succeed in harnessing the potential of ICT can look forward to greatly expanded economic growth, dramatically improved human welfare and stronger forms of democratic governance.

Many developing countries, businesses and citizens' groups are touting ICT as a means to transcend structural and historical weaknesses of developing nations in the economic, political, and social spheres. They argue that ICTs offer the developing world the opportunity to 'leapfrog' several stages of their development and join the industrialized nations in the information age. The term 'leapfrogging' essentially implies a quantum leap from the traditional stages and cycles of progress to the information society: 'The entire development process which encompassed three centuries in the industrial nations must be telescoped into a few decades. The gains achieved through an evolutionary process elsewhere must be obtained within one generation, and there are several stages to planning' (Reddi, 1986:85).

In this regard, however, government may sometimes veer out of the foundational basis of ICTs: i.e. knowledge and information as key ingredients to this process as opposed to the tools, infrastructure and other more physical aspects. 'Information Communications Technologies,' (here with a particular emphasis on the 'information' dimension) will require that governments reassess preconditions: regulations (direct or indirect), levels of democracy, idea formulation and other aspects that will develop the process of knowledge and information exchange.

ICTs have therefore brought about a new hope for the developing world. Many of these countries continue to labour in the agricultural age and their economic development is thus restricted and unable to move on and catch up with the developed world. Most developing nations have also been unable to industrialize their economies leading to greater impoverishment and dependence. In this context, the very prospect of 'leapfrogging' the traditional stages and cycles of progress, is seen as revolutionary. Telemedicine, distance education, wireless applications, the use of the Internet for a wide variety of critical information dissemination tasks hold the promise of overcoming fundamental barriers of infrastructure which have plagued the developing world.

A dissemination event took place at the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunis. Details are as follows:

Event Title: Key Findings of a Regional Human Development Report on Promoting ICT for Human Development in Asia: Realising the Millennium Development Goals

Date: 17 November 2005

Time: 12:00 – 13:00

Venue: Partnership Point (Meeting Room), UNDP Sharing the Future Pavilion (Stand No. 1307.1)

Organizers: UNDP-APRI, UNDP-APDIP

For more information, please contact :

James George Chacko
Programme Specialist
Access and Partnerships Development
Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme
Email: james@apdip.net