Social Effects of Internet in Sri Lanka

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Social Effects of Internet in Sri Lanka

• By
• Sagarika Wickramasekara
• Sri Lanka
• Presented at
• 6th APNG Camp

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Sri Lanka
3
Overview

• Internet history of Sri Lanka in brief
• Where are we now?
• Social effects
• Male female distribution
• Age group barriers
• New culture

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Brief History of Internet in Sri Lanka

• 1960 - introduce computers to Sri Lanka
• 1984 few selected academics were given Internet
  and e-mail facilities
• 1990 Lanka Educational Academic and Research
  Network LEARN
• 1995 - Internet access on commercial basis
  started by Lanka Internet Services Limited (LISL)
• Sri Lanka is the first country to have
  unrestricted commercial Internet access

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Indication 1 - Telephone Infrastructure
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Indication 2 - Computer Usage
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Where are we now?

• Approx. 23 ISPs
• 2 Major (SL Telecom and LankaCom)
• Approx. 324 Mbps aggregate bandwidth
• to Japan, U.S., Singapore, UK etc.
• Number of web site in National Language 500
• Number of web sites in English 25,000
• Total number of internet account 61,532
• (Year 2004 statistics)

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Social Effects Gender Distribution in Internet
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Sri Lanka Labor Force
Source Department of Census and Statistics,
2001, Quarterly Report of the Labour Force
Survey, fourth quarter 2001
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Female representation in ICT top positions
CENWOR REPORT 2002
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Age Group Barriers
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Age Group Barriers

• Less than 18 years (6) Lack of resources in
  school level
• Over 56 years (8) Difficulties of access and
  fear of new technologies
• 19 25 years (19) Lack of opportunities
  training
• 26 35 years (23) Well established user group
• 36 45 years (21) Matured management tier of
  organizations

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New culture

• Marriage proposals through internet
• Breaking Language barriers by using native
  Language
• To meet new people
• Chat communities- teenage
• ICT Initiatives
• E-Government
• E- Society
• www.itambalama.com

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Thank you

• QA