Social Dimensions Of Information And Communication Technology Policy

Since its launching in 1974, the Human Choice and Computers (HCC) series of conferences of the IFIP Technical Committee 9 (TC9)1 has provided a forum for the study of the multiple facets of the dynamics of social change associated with information and communication technologies (ICTs). These conferences have captured the unfolding hopes and concerns about the interplay between the technologies we construct and our personal lives, organisations, and social institutions. Whether the message voiced by individual authors is optimistic and positive about the emerging socio-technical arrangements or worrying and critical, the “human choice” concept has always been pivotal in the discussions of the HCC conferences.

In this presentation my aim is to set out a forward looking research agenda which I will argue can be further developed in a way that may contribute to a partial resolution of ongoing conundrums that confront those seeking to ensure that information and communication technologies (ICT) are put into service in ways that are enabling, rather than disabling. ICT-related policies and strategies are being developed by their stakeholders to support a range of important goals and aspirations associated with the wider policy agendas of low income countries. In such countries, there will inevitably be trade-offs among the competing claims of stakeholders for scarce resources of all kinds whether these are associated with investment in ICTs themselves or in the capabilities to design or use them in ways that are compatible with development aspirations, locally, nationally, or regionally.

Policy, including technology policy, is made of language. Politicians, bureaucrats, and consultants use language to shape action and ways of thinking by fabricating rules that enable individuals to deal with unresolvable contradictions of everyday life. The evolution of geospatial ICT policy can be best understood through the language of spatial data infrastructure (SDI) initiatives and the analysis of their argumentative structure. We focus on how SDI has been rhetorically crafted over almost two decades and how the rhetoric (“myth”) unfolds as SDI myths move from one context (North America) to the other (Africa). We conclude that despite apparent similarities, there are durable differences. In the American myth, there is a clamour for “metrics” which can demonstrate progress and knowledge generation through research. In the African context, a rhetorical move is made by aligning the SDI concept with overarching Information Society concepts as promoted by the African Information Society Initiative (AISI). We suggest further research directions to explore how ICT policy talk interacts with the context in which it takes shape as it travels in space and time.

Keywords: Spatial data infrastructure, rhetoric, ICTs in developing countries

This chapter explores ICT policy as a domain that emerges out of the interplay of national and supra-national efforts. Against this backdrop, the chapter investigates the case study of Greek ICT policy, under the important influences of the European Commission. Foucault’s concept of governmentality is constructively used as a theoretical lens to inform the analysis of the empirical data. I argue that ICT policy in Greece has been constituted as a governable domain. An array of techniques which embody the rationale of the Commission’s outlook of ICT policy are regulating the conduct of Greek administrators, who, in turn, willingly self-regulate their behaviour in order to keep the relationship going. In effect, the empirical investigation and theoretical analysis of the research presented in this chapter challenge the way ICT policy is traditionally viewed as the product of rational deliberation of a country.

Keywords: ICT policy, Greece, European Commission, governmentality

Identifying an empirical gap in the examination and analysis of the information society (IS) in semi-peripheral and middle income countries, the paper seeks to address the evolving characteristics and forms of the “Greek case” of the IS, stressing the dialectic between European policy and the national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, the weaknesses encountered, and the role of the state in articulating the global and the national through rhetoric and policy. Drawing on historical sociology, I propose that the historically developed relationship between the state, and the national economy and society will interact with global IS processes, creating differentiated national IS outcomes. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2006, which includes the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece and provides the opportunity to assess preliminary results of the policies adopted.

Keywords: Information society, IT policy, state, implementation politics

The purpose of this chapter is to introduce global ICT programmes, defined as new and universal modes of organising mediated by technology and enacted through a novel mix of policy instruments, international institutions, business interests, and techno/managerial concepts. Largely unexplored in various fields, including information systems as well as many other social sciences studying innovation and digital technologies, such programmes are interesting, not least because of their projected ability to promote innovation and achieve new mechanisms of governance. The chapter argues that a new theoretical understanding for the study of such programmes is needed in order to explore them as a means of technology transfer and to better understand systems of innovation in the developing world.

Keywords: Globalisation, governance, networks, e-government.

The national security issues most impacted upon by globalisation are generally found to fall into three categories: the nature of security threats in a globalised world, the effects of the phenomenon of globalisation on the pursuit of national security, and the erosion of the exclusivity of the state as a provider of national security. In this chapter I examine the security risks associated with ICT, and in particular the Internet which is not constrained by territorial boundaries traditionally defining states and their sovereignty. Also, I point out the need for developing and implementing agile security related ICT policies to remain on the national security research agenda of all states.

Keywords: Globalisation, national security, information and communications technologies, national ICT policies, security threats

This chapter discusses the critical link between human development and information and communications technology (ICT) policy in South Africa. Through a review of relevant literature, the status of human development and ICT growth in South Africa was investigated. The findings showed that South Africa is lagging behind many similar developing countries in terms of both ICT growth and human development. The South African ICT policy environment was analysed and found to lack a strong emphasis on human development. A human development-based ICT policy is advocated, and recommendations for achieving this are made.

Keywords: Human development, ICT policy, Next Generation Networks

It is alleged that rural people in South Africa are being excluded from the rest of the world in terms of communication and exchange of information due to lack of appropriate ICT policies. This research used grounded theory method to study the local authority of Dr S.J. Moroka in order to understand the limitations of the South African ICT policy for poor rural communities. It found lack of leadership for integrating multiple policy initiatives and evidence of a culture of non-compliance with policies. These are major challenges that need to be addressed. This chapter makes several practical suggestions for the integration of isolated, disadvantaged, and poverty-stricken rural communities into the rest of the world, enabling them to benefit from ICT-related services on a sustainable basis.

Keywords: Traditional leadership, grounded theory method, ICT Policies, rural communities, South Africa

This chapter aims to answer the research question: what is the role of internet policy and regulation in digital divides in Greece? I argue that Internet policy and regulation account significantly for the persistence of digital divides in Greece. The chapter draws on literature that views the role of policy and regulation in digital inclusion as problematic and proposes a more dialectical view of the interactions between politics and technology, so that the democratic and participatory potential of the Information Society can be approached more critically. The chapter explores the research question empirically through in-depth individual interviews with elite actors in the Greek Information Society. Elite actors who are involved in various areas of policy and regulation in the Greek Information Society are in the position to account for the role of internet policy and regulation in aspects of digital exclusion from more than one perspective. Thus, the chapter argues about the significant role of decision-making in the Greek case of digital divides, providing the grounding upon which research outside Greece could rely on to look at other cases of digital divides and at the role of policy and regulation accordingly.

Keywords: Digital divides, Greece, policy, regulation, interviews

ICT is often promoted as a solution to a range of social ills. This is particularly true for the use of ICT in developing countries. ICT deployment can address numerous issues but its overall aim is the empowerment and emancipation of individuals with the aim of improving society. This chapter takes a critical approach to such discourses and asks which claims to emancipation are raised and how they are underpinned. Using a Habermasian framework, the chapter undertakes a critical discourse analysis of the Egyptian ICT policy. This important document, which has inspired much African ICT policy, is analysed to identify the validity claims it raises. These claims, many of which are explicitly aimed at emancipation and empowerment, are then contrasted with social realities as well as the overall structure of the policy document. This comparison shows that empowerment is not only not achieved, but arguably not a primary aim of the policy in the first place. Instead, claims to empowerment are used to legitimise particular aims which conflict with empowerment. The chapter concludes with a critical reflection of the chosen approach and findings.

Keywords: Information society, policy, ICT, social movements, institutions

Handicrafts are an income generating activity for many women in Egypt, though as producers these women are often receiving the lowest return in the trading chain. This research analyses the potential for Egyptian craftswomen to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve their earnings. The research shows that while ICTs could be a useful tool for marketing and selling their products, there are various structural challenges to trading via micro- ICT outlets like websites to the international market. Though online sales of crafts are possible, the use of ICTs as a marketing outlet by the average craftswoman is not viable in today’s Egypt. The findings show that in the case of handicraft trade the generic “export is best” attitude is not the solution. In fact, the global craft market is too competitive for the typical Egyptian craftswoman as they are generally not equipped to handle the global handicrafts business environment. If the purpose is to empower artisan women then it would be better to enhance the demands for Egyptian handicrafts among the average Egyptian and thus create a domestic market for these products.

Keywords: E-commerce, Egypt, artisans, ICTs

The development of “Health Information Systems” (HIS) in lowincome countries have been on the agenda for the last three decades. Despite significant mobilization, however, little progress has been made in realizing improved systems. One among the popular reasons for such progress concerns the lack or unwillingness of some relevant groups of actors to participate in HIS initiatives. Such explanations often delimit participants to a project or organisation level, and scant attention has been paid to the institutional environment, web of values, norms, rules, beliefs, and taken-for-granted assumptions that has long been recognized to influence the day to day realities of organisational life. This chapter, drawing on an institutional theory of membership, and based on discursive data of more than a decade and half from a low-income county’s HIS development endeavors, reveals institutional processes and pressures that constrain participation of relevant actors.

Keywords: Information systems, institutional perspective, participation, Africa

Keywords: ICT Policy; ICT for socio-economic development; ICT adoption and diffusion; ICT implementation context; human environmental model

This chapter explores ICT interventions, the role of universities in socio-economic development, knowledge creation and dissemination literature before taking a look at a university intervention in ICT for development in a small rural community in Yola, Northeastern Nigeria. The African Center for ICT Innovation and Training1, an American University of Nigeria community engagement initiative is used as a case study to gauge its importance as an ICT resource center for the community and for small businesses and whether applied skills in information technology for university faculty and staff taught at the Center is leading to more productivity. The Yola and Jimeta Communities are also surveyed to find out whether the activities of the Centre and its interventions on developing ICT competencies and capacity building is helping to bridge the digital divide and empowering the community, especially women.

Keywords: ICT and Development, ICT social-economic development, ICT and women, Universities and Development

Developing competent human resources is of crucial importance to policy makers aiming to move towards an information society. Universities are often designated the task of training Information Technology/Systems (IT/S) professionals for the economy of the future. This chapter critically reflects upon a dropped ICT curriculum design project which was to be used in ten Iranian universities. It aims to draw the attention of policy makers to the importance of practical considerations in issuing human resource development policies. The chapter focuses on the challenges of IT/S professionals’ training to the centralised higher education system, as well as the challenge of providing social skills for IT/S professionals and the importance of national language. An analysis is given of the implicit assumptions behind Iran’s national ICT policies and the deficiencies of those policies with regard to these challenges. Some practical recommendations and summary conclude the chapter.

Keywords: Developing countries, higher education, curriculum design, IT/S professionals’ training, national ICT development policy

The “National Information Infrastructure: Agenda for Action” of the US Department of Commerce (National Telecommunications and Information Administration, NTIA) goes back to fifteen years (1993); the “3rd Internet Governance Forum” (IGF) will be held in Hyderabad (India) on December 3-6, 2008. Between those two dates, several events, documents, programmes, etc., may be regarded as signposts of Internet policy and governance: the European “Bangemann Report”, followed quickly by similar proposals by different countries, the G7’s “Global Information Infrastructure: Agenda for Cooperation”, the two phases of the World Summit on the Information Society (Geneva, December 10-12, 2003 and Tunis November 16-18, 2005), and its subsequent Internet Governance Forums (Athens 2006, Rio de Janeiro 2007, and Hyderabad at the end of 2008), as well as the 2000 eEurope programme updated in eEurope 2002, and eEurope 2005 and the i2010 Initiative, “i2010 - A European Information Society for growth and employment.” Although those documents are not always per se “policy documents” - they are called from time to time objectives, visions, framework, policy guidelines, programmes, etc. The goal of this paper is to derive some of the main social and political issues on Internet Governance that emerge from those programmes and documents. Our perspective and methodology are both historicocritical and thematic.

Keywords: Governance, World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), Internet Governance Forum (IGF), NII, Bangemann, eEurope, i2010, deliberative and participative democracy

This empirical investigation focuses on environmental-education virtual communities and points out how the Brazilian government, through specific legislation, has increased the legitimacy of some of their members in relation to others in decision-making processes in the studied collectives. In demanding that some anchor organisations assume the formal responsibility for funded projects that aimed to diffuse Internet communication channels among environmental educators, the Brazilian government affected how community members perceived the power distribution in online collectives. Although other forces were behind the construction of legitimacy of community leaders, members broadly recognized that the law was an important factor in the construction of a common understanding on who had power in decision making. Drawing upon institutional theory, this chapter analyses how the specific legislation influenced the way community members perceived the legitimacy of their leaders. The chapter claims that policies for spreading the use of ICTs among grassroots movements and civil society organisations have direct effects in relation to their governance structures, and thus these policies should be under broader scrutiny.

Keywords: Information society, policy, ICT, social movements, institutions

This chapter examines how trust can emerge and be sustained in the context of mobile transactions. It focuses on M-PESA, a mobile banking system in Kenya, using data from an ethnographic study that was deployed in Kibera—one of Africa’s largest slums. We present research in progress and discuss two main findings. Firstly, interpersonal trust relations between the customers and agents are weak. Customers do not trust the agents with their money. Secondly, the institutional trust relations between the customer and Safaricom, the mobile service provider offering M-PESA, are strong. This means that customers use the M-PESA service because they believe that their money will be kept safe by Safaricom. After providing empirical evidence to substantiate these claims, this study concludes by suggesting questions for future research.

Keywords: Mobile banking, M-PESA, trust, Kibera.

This chapter investigates the growth of the Internet in Iran, the effect of Internet filtering, and the impact on marginalized groups including NGOs, female activists, religious minorities, the younger generation and the increase of the digital divide. Using secondary data from multiple sources, the chapter presents the current use of the Internet in Iran and makes comparisons with other countries in the Persian Gulf region. The chapter argues that Internet filtering and severe restrictions on SMS messaging negatively affect not only ICT expansion, but also civil liberties— thus increasing the digital divide regionally, as well as on a global scale.

Keywords: ICT, digital divide, filtering, weblogging, gender digital divide, NGO, civil liberties, democracy

This work in progress paper argues that a reason why reuse of software components in information systems development is not more common and why users do not and cannot understand the systems they use partly depends on the implementation of the current IPR1 system and the repercussions it has for the proprietary software model. A full blown anti-IPR system, modified from the GNU GPL and CC Attribution-ShareAlike licenses, is offered in its place. Furthermore, reasons why both reuse of software components and understanding of software would be enhanced are given. Also, some business models viable in that environment are tentatively suggested. Finally, how to—at least partially—implement this in the current IPR environment is explored.

Keywords: Information systems, information systems development, social informatics, work informatics, IPRs, free source software, GNU GPL, object-oriented development

In this chapter, I use critical theory to explore the underlying philosophy of the infostate framework for measuring information societies in developing countries. I find the hallmarks of instrumental reason when examining the framework and argue that this risks giving policymakers a false sense of clarity when shaping poverty reduction policies in developing countries. Given the influence of the infostate framework on the shaping of policy, this could have serious negative consequences for international efforts. I suggest a thorough critical study of a wider set of frameworks used for policymaking. The study could form the basis for the development of alternative frameworks for the measurement of information societies in developing countries.

Keywords: Information society indicators, measuring ICT for development, infostate framework, critical theory, instrumental reason

ICT has provided the infrastructure to enable easy access to scientific information. Despite this, libraries are suffering from the rising of journal subscriptions. Additionally, the structure of scholarly publications is creating a wasteful situation where publicly funded research is being paid for several times over. University libraries are struggling to deal with these new realities at the same time as they provide a level of service with acceptable access to publications. The work of librarians is being heavily affected by the influence of copyright and licensing which together are creating barriers to open access. The work in this chapter draws from an action research in progress undertaken by Lund’s University in order to explore the barriers to open access to scientific research output in Sweden.

Keywords: Open access, action research, scholarly publication

Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is becoming an increasingly important element in strategies for development and implementation of information and communication technologies (ICT) in low-income countries (LICs). Such initiatives often have strong public sector orientation, as government ICT policies are expected to shape and support further socio-economical development. The usual mismatch between bureaucracies and trajectories of development initiatives (mostly run by international agencies) provides a promising field for empirical research.

Around the world the implementation of information and communication technology (ICT) is proposed as a way of transforming healthcare, making it “better” (e.g., safer, more accessible, and patient-centred) and more efficient by facilitating the management of healthcare organisations and processes. The implementation of ICT has been a vital component of UK government strategy for the National Health Service (NHS) for at least a decade, most recently expressed in the National Programme for IT (NPfIT) for England, considered to be the biggest non-military initiative of IT implementation in the world and now subsumed in the wider institutional structure of “Connecting for Health” [2].