What followed was a series of discussions about how countries in Asia and the Pacific are using ICT and the potential that exists for developing knowledge economies. Keynote speaker, Narayana Murthy, Chairman and CEO of Infosys Technologies, addressed the seminar from ADB headquarters in Manila. Murthy is the father of the Indian software revolution. Despite the early hour of 4:30 a.m., Mr. Murthy spoke enthusiastically about this topic. He felt strongly that it is the poor who can benefit most from ICT. In the hour-long videoconference, he argued that the standard reasons for applying IT to increase productivity or growth opportunities provide little to the poor: "The productivity loss for poor people due to delay and corruption in governmental services is where there is great productivity benefit to the masses." He encouraged efforts to promote e-governance because it "helps to bring transparency to the work flow and the approval chain in government, thus discouraging delay tactics of bureaucrats."Computer industry competitors Bill Gates of Microsoft and Steve Jobs of Apple have one thing in common: they have both said that information technology cannot solve the world's poverty problems. But is that really true?
That was the question put forth at a seminar held at ADB's Annual Meeting on the information and communication technology (ICT) revolution. Four leaders from the private sector, government, and nongovernment organizations (NGOs) discussed the potential, practicalities, and pitfalls of using ICT to alleviate poverty. Moderator Lorraine Hahn kept the proceedings on track.
The ICT seminar applied the information technology resources to bring the message to the Honolulu participants. The seminar opened with the premiere of "Digital Dividends," a video produced by ADB’s Office of External Relations that presents three ICT case studies in Cambodia, Bangladesh, and India—all in areas with little or no electricity and few, if any, telephone lines. The video's theme was summed up best by Sugata Mitra of India's National Institute of Information Technology. In describing the premise of his computer-in-the-wall experiment with urban and rural poor children in India, he said, "Groups of children can teach each other irrespective of where they are, what language they speak, what social strata they belong to and how much money they have." ICT can level the playing field and empower people. Information and knowledge will help Asia leapfrog poverty barriers.
Points of View
What followed was a series of discussions about how countries in Asia and the Pacific are using ICT and the potential that exists for developing knowledge economies. Keynote speaker, Narayana Murthy, Chairman and CEO of Infosys Technologies, addressed the seminar from ADB headquarters in Manila. Murthy is the father of the Indian software revolution. Despite the early hour of 4:30 a.m., Mr. Murthy spoke enthusiastically about this topic. He felt strongly that it is the poor who can benefit most from ICT. In the hour-long videoconference, he argued that the standard reasons for applying IT to increase productivity or growth opportunities provide little to the poor: "The productivity loss for poor people due to delay and corruption in governmental services is where there is great productivity benefit to the masses." He encouraged efforts to promote e-governance because it "helps to bring transparency to the work flow and the approval chain in government, thus discouraging delay tactics of bureaucrats."
Infosys Technologies practices what the CEO preaches. Infosys has been named one of the best practitioners of corporate good governance in Asia, according to the most recent survey conducted by Credit Lyonnais Securities.
Derek Williams, Executive Vice President for Oracle Asia-Pacific, offered another point of view. He expressed his belief that it is in the interest of the private sector to invest in technical education and infrastructure. He outlined a five-point plan consisting of a national needs assessment, community infrastructure development, community information access, e-skills training, and community-based content development with the goal of increasing commerce and economic growth.
Malaysia is undergoing a transformation from an agricultural economy to a service economy. Its Vision 2020 plan has invested heavily in IT infrastructure and education. Dr. K.J. John, the Vice President of the MIMOS Berhad Technology Park and National Information Technology Council directorate, described how Malaysia has tried to overcome the key challenge for a developing country: how to build the digital bridge when the ground on the two ends is neither level nor even.
Malaysia's approach uses ICT as a social and economic enabler. Its social goal is to provide more access to information and foster a culture of lifelong learning and innovation. Its economic goal is to develop information as a commodity, along with knowledge products and services. This smart partnership policy brings together people, information infrastructure, and content and applications. He calls this the "Prosper Thy Neighbor Philosophy."
Gabriel Accascina has seen the application of ICT at the community, government, and international levels. He brought the Internet to East Timor immediately after independence and has installed Bhutan's first Internet service. Having learned from practical experience, he says, "The technology is easy; the legal framework and government support are hard. Much depends on government's openness and willingness or resistance to change." The greatest challenge today is not the debate about whether ICT can be an effective tool in poverty reduction, but whether ICT programs can be sustained. This requires creating the supply or IT infrastructure as well as fostering a demand-driven information environment by creating opportunities through education, e-government, and e-commerce.
In the questions that followed the sessions, some common themes emerged, namely that quick, proactive action is needed to demonstrate the benefits of ICT to others. All agreed that there are limited opportunities for organizations like ADB to make a difference. When asked what kinds of projects ADB could best support, the panel suggested investing in physical high-speed data backbones within and across countries and regions, investing in wireless and satellite networks for rural areas, and encouraging some amount of deregulation and market liberalization.
As ADB considers its strategic approach to ICT, the interest generated from the ICT Revolution seminar may provide some possible directions to pursue.
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