ABSTRACT
In the context of the worldwide information revolution, development agencies and policymakers have sought ways to help low-income nations take advantage of the benefits of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in order to overcome their historical disadvantages (e.g. Accenture et al., 2001;World Bank, 1998).As the industrialized world widens its development lead with the help of global markets and the Internet, a significant proportion of the world’s population continues to lack adequate food, housing, sanitation, education, income, or human rights (UNDP, 2001). Many influential opinions hold that the lack of digital technology is crucial in maintaining these “digital divides,” and that therefore digitally focused strategies can lead the way toward their eventual mitigation (e.g. Analysys Consulting, 2000).Although it may be true that the failure to adopt information and communication technologies (ICT) is likely to worsen a nation’s development prospects (Mansell and Wehn, 1998), no systematic, reliable evidence exists to explain how introducing ICT will in fact help bridge existing divides (Heeks, 1999; Menou, 1999). In addressing this challenge, it may be more useful to shift attention from ICT-led analyses and strategies to a broader development perspective that seeks to leverage the digital potential within each context:
The central point in the debate about the digital divide should not be what is the best way to bring ICT to the poor, but what is the best way for the poor to take advantage of ICT in order to improve their lot.
