HOW CAN THE DIGITAL DIVIDE BE BRIDGED?
Technology can improve the lives of millions of the world's poorest people,
Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the UN, said at the opening of the World
Summit on Information Society. Annan was attacking the issue of the digital
divide between rich and poor countries. He also criticized the Internet's
heavy reliance on the English language, commenting that local voices and
needs are being evaded. The BBC poses several questions to readers,
including, "What do you think should be done to bridge the digital divide;
how have computers, the Internet and mobile phones changed your life; and
should information technology be available to all?" The article presents
comments that reflect the balance of views the BBC received on this issue.
Talking Point, a global phone-in program, will discuss the information
society on Sunday, Dec. 14. The program will be joined by Internet pioneer
Vint Cerf and Indian Information Minister, Arun Shourie. To sign up to
participate in this phone discussion, visit the site listed below.
SOURCE: BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/3257256.stm
MUGABE SLAMS 'GLOBAL INEQUALITY'
[Commentary] Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe used his platform at the
WSIS to attack global inequality and what he described as the imperious
attitudes of the United States and Britain. Mr. Mugabe said there could be
no just information society without more social equality. He added that
there was no point in providing poor people with computers unless they were
also given electricity and a phone network to run them. BBC correspondent
Mark Doyle writes that Mr. Mugabe's speech stood out from the "mostly bland
interventions of other world leaders at this Internet summit." They
generalized about the great potential of Internet technology and the need to
spread these advantages to the developing world, Doyle explains. "Opposition
leaders in Zimbabwe may condemn Mr. Mugabe for acting oppressively at home;
but here in Geneva, many delegates - whether they agreed with him or not -
were impressed by a lively speech," he concludes.
SOURCE: BBC News; AUTHOR: Mark Doyle
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3303129.stm
AFRICANS EXHIBIT AT WSIS
The Information Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D) exhibition,
running parallel to the WSIS, is showcasing innovative projects and
technologies in order to document the potential for information
communication technology (ICT) development in Africa. The exhibition has
more than 200 stands representing governments, non-government organizations
and companies from 80 countries worldwide. Countries like South Africa,
Mali, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Egypt, Nigeria, Ghana, Mozambique, Togo, Uganda,
and Tunisia, which will host the second phase of WSIS in 2005, are
represented at the exhibition. The African Media Village, consisting of five
Southern African non-governmental organizations (NGOs), is committed to
spreading ICT knowledge and skills amongst poor people in Southern Africa.
These NGOs have come to the WSIS with an advocacy statement, says Tracey
Naughton, the African Media Village Partnership Manager. "We have recorded
stories of the rural people who have never seen a passport, and we must make
sure that their voices are heard," she says. The overall aim of ICT4D is to
attract interest and sponsorship, thus providing better ICT access.
SOURCE: AllAfrica.com; AUTHOR: Angella Nabwowe, Highway Africa News Agency
http://allafrica.com/stories/200312090820.html
