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World youth report 2003 : the global situation of young people

UNITED NATIONS. Department for Economic and Social Affairs
Ed
2004

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Overall, young people today are better off than previous generations, but many are still severely hindered by a lack of education, poverty, health risks, unemployment and the impact of conflict. The World Youth Report 2003 provides an overview of the global situation of young people. The first ten chapters focus on the priority areas of education, employment, extreme poverty, health issues, the environment, drugs, delinquency, leisure time, the situation of girls and young women, and youth participation in decision-making as identified by the World Programme of Action for Youth (WPAY) adopted by the General Assembly in 1995. The remaining five chapters address some of the newer issues that were later identified as additional priorities for youth and were adopted by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in 2003

A review of good practice in ICT and special educational needs for Africa

IMFUNDO PARTNERSHIP FOR IT IN EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (DFID)
2004

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This study focuses on the use of ICT in education and in particular to support special education needs in Africa. Assistive technology can do much to help hearing and vision impaired and children with general learning disabilities. The study includes some non-African approaches that could be easily applied to the African context and looks into the African experience in some detail

Appropriating the internet for social change : towards the strategic use of networked technologies by transnational civil society organizations

SURMAN, Mark
REILLY, Katherine
November 2003

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This research report argues that analysis of the Internet focuses too much on technology and on overcoming a "digital divide" in access to the Internet. The report looks at examples of how people in international civil society organisations have used e-mail, websites and databases to help them collaborate, publish information, mobilise people in their networks, and access information for research. The report does not cover local or national civil society organisations

Building inclusive information societies : Dutch perspectives for the WSIS

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR COMMUNICATION AND DEVELOPMENT (IICD)
ONEWORLD NEDERLAND
HUMANIST INSTITUTE FOR CO-OPERATION WITH DEVELOPING COUNTRIES (HIVOS)
August 2003

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This document brings together recommendations for the Dutch delegation to the 2003 'World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)'. Themes identified are: cyber rights: property, privacy and freedom of expression; ICT and education; civil society and empowerment; and trade and entrepreneurship

Comunicación sin fronteras : un proyecto de universalización de las tecnologías de información y comunicación en Costa Rica

CAMACHO, Kemly
HIDALGO, Christian
April 2003

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The document analyses the 'Communication Without Borders' programme - a proposal developed in the Republic of Costa Rica in 2003 to incorporate new technologies into the life of the citizens. It examines the programme as it works in reality, showing the difference between the ideal model and the one executed. It makes recommendations around policy issues, institutional change and infrastructure development

Case study : the SATELLIFE PDA Project

March 2003

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The article describes the SATELLIFE Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Project that explored questions related to the selection and design of appropriate, affordable technology and locally relevant content for use in African healthcare environment. The project was specifically targeted at assessing the usefulness of the PDA for (1) data collection and (2) information dissemination. This report describes a number of valuable lessons leaned from the project that can be applied to further deployment of PDAs in developing countries. A number of obstacles to technology use have also been identified, which will need to be overcome in order to promote the widespread adoption of the technology in this context

Cultural and political factors in the design of ICT projects in developing countries

ROZENDAL, Rutger
March 2003

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This research report argues that the project environment should be divided into a political and a cultural dimension. Both dimensions are difficult to direct, but by analysing them it is possible to foresee problems between the project organisation and its environment. Instead of directing the political and cultural forces, the art of management lies in anticipating them in advance. [Publisher's abstract]

Case study : BusyInternet Accra

BRIDGES.ORG
January 2003

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BI Accra, implemented by BusyInternet International, is an incubator for ICT companies that gives local businesses and the general public affordable and reliable access to ICT. BusyInternet revamped an old two-storey building and created Internet access halls that house 100 flat-screen personal computers and 15 wired offices. The building has a VSAT Internet connection and 1 megabyte of bandwidth -- which costs US$8,000 a month, plus a yearly licence fee to the government of US$2,000 -- a back-up power system, and an internal network. The centre is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and gets about 1800 visitors per day. It provides affordable service that makes it sustainable and also offers social services at low or no cost to those visiting the centre for HIV/AIDS and "Internet-for-Beginners" workshops. It's skill building programme on use of ICTs to local people is crucial in enabling people to use ICTs for communication. It is a good case study of private sector enterprise involvement with social and health programmes.

Case study : the Tygerberg Children's Hospital and Rotary Telemedicine Project

2003

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The article describes the Tygerberg Children's Hospital and Rotary Telemedicine Project in South Africa which links specialists from Tygerberg Hospital to doctors at regional community or district hospitals to improve healthcare in rural areas. The initiative has assembled its own telemedicine system using off-the-shelf computer equipment and software that is more affordable than commercial telemedicine systems. It describes the local context, how the system was set up and how it works. It outlines the challenges faced by the project

Providing low-cost ICT access to low-income communities in developing countries : what works? what pays?

CASPREY, G
O'CONNOR, D
2003

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This Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development report discusses the potential of and need for telecommunications development in rural areas of low-income countries. It outlines the main challenges, and describes sustainable options. The report also reviews low-cost options and summarizes policies that would support the more rapid diffusion especially telecommunications reform

Integrating intellectual property rights and development policy : report of the commission on intellectual property rights

COMMISSION ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS (CIPR)
September 2002

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This detailed and thorough report considers whether and how intellectual property rights (IPRs) can play a role in achieving the Millenium Development Goals. It explores the potential benefits of IPRs in stimulating economic growth, and the associated benefits in terms of productivity and reduced poverty. It considers also the barriers that IPRs may present to developing economies, including discouraging invention, research, technology transfer, domestic production and driving up the costs of medicines and agricultural inputs. Key issues covered in successive chapters include: current evidence about the impact of IPRs in developing countries; development of and access to medicines; protection of plants and genetic resources; the Convention on Biological Diversity, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions and geographic indicators; copyright and patents; IPR legislation for developing countries; international and national institutional framework for IPRs

Sustaining ICT-enabled development : practice makes perfect?

FERGUSON, Julie
BALLANTYNE, Peter
August 2002

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Report of a workshop that explored the sustainability of ICT-enabled development interventions. The discussion centred around the 'classic' or organisational and developmental factors, indicating that ICTs are not inherently more or less sustainable than other instruments. It also focused on some of the specific characteristics of ICTs - such as their fast pace and the effect of this acceleration on business processes and decision-making, and the illusion of the 'quick fix'. The report also pulls out the impact of basic infrastructure on the impact of ICTs in addressing poverty. It concludes with eight 'steps' or guides to enhancing the sustainability of ICT-enabled interventions

Collecting and propagating local development content : synthesis and conclusions

BALLANTYNE, Peter
May 2002

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Drawing from a consultation process to examine how local content in developing countries is created, adapted, and exchanged, this report provides some answers to these questions. It is a synthesis of lessons; the case stories which are reproduced in an accompanying report provide details on actual experienses and lessons from the ground

Harnessing ICTs for community health : the AfriAfya initiative

NYAMAI, Caroline
April 2002

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A number of health NGOs in Kenya, interested individuals and the Ministry of Health came together for a workshop in April 2000 to explore how they might harness ICT for community health, recognising that individually none had adequate solutions. A consortium, later called AfriAfya, was established to explore means of turning good ideas into practical realities. The consortium consisted of seven of the large health NGOs in Kenya - Aga Khan Health Services, Kenya; African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF); CARE Kenya; Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK); SatelLife HealthNet Kenya; PLAN International; and World Vision International, Kenya - along with the Ministry of Health. This report explains the initiative and explores its results, lessons and impacts

ICT opportunities and challenges for development in the Arab world

NOUR, Samia Satti OM
2002

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This paper examines the status of ICT in the Arab world and the potential opportunities and challenges for this region. There is limited growth within the region with higher GNP countries having the most penetration. While ICT has the potential to increase development, it also may introduce competitive challenges, inequality in the region and the loss of unskilled jobs

Digital opportunities for all : meeting the challenge

DIGITAL OPPORTUNITY TASK FORCE
May 2001

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This report examines in depth how ICT can be utilized to bridge the digital gap. It analyzes the causes of the gap, potential for bridging the divide, and a mix of strategies, policies and actions to take advantage of the digital opportunities, charting the roles of various players. The report is based on a mix of plenary meetings, informal consultations, meetings with stakeholders, and electronic outreach. It concludes that, when wisely applied, ICT oportunities can narrow the social and economic inequities and impact on development

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