Assessment tool: ICT & development - help or hindrance?
Feb 20 2004
Issues that donors and developing countries will confront in making effective use of ICT.
This section of the Australian Development Gateway highlights some of the main issues that donors and developing countries will confront in making effective use of ICT - which can range from the use of radios to sophisticated computer software.
Discussed below is how to plan for two sorts of projects using ICT. The first set of questions apply to an ICT-driven project. This refers to a project where some aspect of information and communication technology is in the lead. The second set of questions apply to development projects where some aspect of ICT could be used as a means to an end - however, the use of ICT is not the main purpose of the project.
A background paper, ICT and development - Help or Hindrance? Jan 2004 (PDF 540K), on the need for these two assessment tools has been prepared by Richard Curtain. Richard is a public policy consultant with a substantial background of research in developing countries.
The paper and the web version of the assessment tools were commissioned by AusAID's Virtual Colombo Plan but the views expressed are the author's alone.
1. ICT-driven projects
If you are planning to set up a project in a developing country using
information and communication technologies (ICT) as a lead feature, the
following checklist of 10 questions will help you to assess its value
as a tool for contributing to the development process.
The questions are based on Why? Who? How? What? How long? How well? And What risks? A feature of the checklist is reference to examples of actual ICT-led projects which illustrate the points being made.
2. ICT-supported mainstream development projects
If you are planning a mainstream development project and want to work
out whether there is value in incorporating an ICT component, these 11
Steps will help you plan out how best to approach the task.
The purpose of these eleven steps is to 'unpack' what it means to integrate information and communication technologies into development projects. Poverty reduction is chosen as a focus to illustrate the proposed steps for two reasons:
- poverty reduction is likely to be the objective of many mainstream
development projects.
- a focus on poverty reduction highlights the value of not to be considering ICTs as ends in themselves but as a means to an end.
ICT & development- help or hindrance?