Of course I agree with Adite. This appears to be the standard problem with the developing world and ICT (TIC) - where the adaptation of technology is done in ways that don't really improve the quality of life of the citizens of a country. There are numerous examples throughout the world.
What technology should be used for is to address the quality of life issues that Adite points out. Cleaner drinking water could be made possible with proper use of technology. Health centres could benefit from better technology - not just for therapeutic measures but for the patient histories. Oddly enough, this is one of the things that I have pushed on myself - but funding is always an issue. Medical records, while a norm for some in the more government/insurance regulated medicine countries (a better term than 'developed' in this context) - is not being done in many other countries. Funding, of course, is an issue - and one that I did try to address through applying for funding for such an endeavour. Sadly, since it benefits too many regions, it's difficult for foundations such as the Soros foundation to even consider it - which leads to the funding issue of developing software, to designing an open standard for medical records that does not revolve around insurance companies and instead on patient care itself, and so on. OpenEMR did come about, and is a very nice package developed by private industry: http://www.openemr.net/ So perhaps the lesson here is that private industry needs to fill in the gaps that governments, NGOs, non-profits and (probably most importantly) funding agencies falter on. Power outages are a very big issue, especially since they affect other important things such as water processing and health - not to mention telecommunications itself. It amazes me on how so many countries that are behind in infrastructure for power are not 'leaping forward' with more versatile solutions. Last night, I was reading a business magazine in Panama - and was happy to see that hydroelectric power initiatives appear to be a priority. But a priority for who? Mention solar power, or other alternative energy sources and in some circles one is not taken seriously. There is an initiative for solar power kits which I am aware of, run through by Graham Knight in the U.K., which sends the parts such that people can provide their own labour - and labour costs - within the scope of their region. But, again, few are using this. It annoys me to no end to see good ideas lie dormant. It takes tsunamis and volunteers from around the world to develop systems in 72 hours when they have been lieing dormant in paperwork for almost a decade, untouched by people actually willing to do something. The people who are *paid* to do these things are not doing them - and yet people continue to pay them. Maybe another aspect of the problem is paying the right people. After staying in Nicaragua, and meeting Peter Abrahamsen who is volunteering his time, money and energy to create solutions - and getting food and lodging on a coffee farm for his trouble - I know that there are people out there who are doing good things with no funding from agencies, and yet... we continue to give funding to people who are *supposed* to be doing these things. Band aid development, round 2. Adite Chatterjee wrote: >Interesting story and not very new.. > >There are a few issues though: one's not disputing that computers are >if not as necessary as clean drinking water and health centres, >important as well....but what after the novelty factor of the computer >has gone down. What happens after power outages, irregular maintenance >and simply the daily grind of making a living makes the computer just >another unused item. Journalists rarely go back to write stories about >that...There are other stories that are not being covered by the world >media. For instance how the Internet is being used to make women >self-sufficient in villages in Tamil Nadu... It's not just about >technology for the sake of it, but using it to benefit people to make >a living. Ultimately that's the model that needs to be developed to >bridge the digital divide. > >Adite Chatterjee > > > -- Taran Rampersad Presently in: Panama City, Panama [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.linuxgazette.com http://www.a42.com http://www.knowprose.com http://www.easylum.net "Criticize by creating." — Michelangelo _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
