Rural ICTs: Scaling up the Successes'

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Rural ICTs Scaling up the Successes.

• A Study of ICT Projects in India

Shahid Akhtar Chief Technical Advisor and
Programme Co-ordinator
Roger Harris Consultant
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UNDP Asia Pacific Development Information
Programme

• PROGRAMME STRATEGY
• Mobilize Awareness and Support
• Develop a Strategic Vision
• Assist Implementation Plans
• DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES
• To raise awareness
• To promote equity
• Enhance regional and national public-private
  partnerships

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The problem

• Economic growth in Asian countries with widening
  income disparities
• Indias ICT leadership
• Software outsourcing boom
• Wealth of pro-poor ICT initiatives
• Low impact of ICTs nationally
• Absence of scaling of promising pilots

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The study
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Method Project selection criteria

• Use ICTs substantially for poverty alleviation
  and/or governance
• Geographical and cultural spread
• Making use of newer technologies Internet,
  community radio, satellite phones, wireless
  technology....
• Different models of financing private, public
  and public-private

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The projects
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(No Transcript)
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Method Data Collection

• Site visits
• User Questionnaire 2,156 respondents
• Interviews and observations
• Data analysis

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Roger Harris Associates

• To bring the benefits of information and
  communication technologies to rural communities
  in Asia by-
• Influencing governments and aid agencies to
  sponsor the provision of ICTs to rural
  communities.
• Researching the new knowledge required to make
  ICTs fully capable of improving rural life.
• Building educational resources to accelerate the
  application of ICTs towards solving the problems
  of rural life.

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The Respondents
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The Respondents
Typical respondent was a 30-something Other
Backward ( lowest) caste, male farm worker
with some schooling, earning close to US2 per
day, and living at about the same standard as
his neighbours.
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Results
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Findings - overall
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Findings by project
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Findings by project
o
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Findings by project
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Categorising Rural ICTs
High
10
9
8
Experimental Research Telecentres
Mature Development Telecentres
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6
Development Outcomes
5
4
3
Cyber Cafés
Subsidized Access Points
2
1
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
High
Low
Sustainability
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Categorising Rural ICTs
High
10
9
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VISP Tamilnadu
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Janmitra
Warana
CIC Sikkim
Tarahaat
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Akshaya
India Agriland
FRIENDS
E-SEVA
E-Choupal
CARD
Anand
SEWA
Development Outcomes
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N-Logue
Gyandoot
Tamil Nadu Touch Screen
Bhoomi
Gramdoot
Mahitishakti
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3
2
1
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
High
Low
Sustainability
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Findings Significant Relationships between

• Satisfaction and
• equality in benefits
• community acceptance
• service delivery
• staff capability
• Leadership and equality in decision making
• Equality in benefits and
• technology awareness
• influence on project management
• Sustainability and usefulness

• Community acceptance and
• sustainability
• policy environment
• Staff capability and
• community acceptance
• service delivery
• Empowerment and
• usage
• technology awareness
• influence on project management
• Social environment and
• community acceptance
• policy environment

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Findings

• Strong results for user satisfaction, usefulness
  and sustainability, even with only moderate usage
  
• Despite unfavourable policy and social
  environments
• High levels of staff capability and community
  acceptance
• Moderate degree of technology awareness
• Service delivery shows room for improvement
• Community participation is low (yet community
  acceptance is high)
• Low indicators for equality in decision making,
  leadership development, influence on project
  management and management of expectations
• Low scores for empowering users and moderate
  equality in the enjoyment of benefits

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Conclusions

• High usage, community acceptance and satisfaction
• Government interactions are desirable
• Followed closely by information on
• prices
• farming practices
• business contacts
• Usefulness and community acceptance affect
  sustainability
• Satisfaction and staff capability affect
  community acceptance
• Community acceptance is the strongest influence
  on the social and policy environment

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Conclusions the Scaling Question

• Project results are generally positive, but could
  be better
• Individual projects can thrive within
  unfavourable political and social environments,
  but widescale implementations cannot
• Mostly, the political and social environments are
  unfavourable
• Improving community acceptance fosters improved
  political and social environments
• Widespread scaling up requires widespread
  community acceptance by targeting user
  satisfaction through high levels of staff
  capability

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Thank you
Roger Harris
Shahid Akhtar