INTERNET AND DEVELOPMENT

Internet and Development How the Internet can foster democratization, nation-building, and economic development Introduction One of the defining characteristics of the Internet is its global scope, being the appropriate medium for today.s globalizing world. However, ongoing discussions about the digital divide and the one-directional flow of information from North to South suggest that this global information society is still imperfect. These problems also occur in politics, where global institutions are dominated by the interests of industrialized countries, in global economy, where Western companies exploit free trade and open markets, in cultural affairs, where smaller countries fear Western (or American) cultural imperialism, and in the media, where Anglo-American media conglomerates decide about what is global news. 1 Many research has been conducted about how different types of media can help underprivileged countries in their development in order to reduce these patterns of injustice and inequality. The Internet is the latest of these technologies, and this paper wants to give a brief overview of what the Internet can achieve in this context in comparison to other media technologies. Therefore, the three most important fields of development for advancing countries are analyzed in the following: politics (Democratization), society (Nation Building), and economy (Economic Development). 1 See William A. Hachten and James F. Scotton, The World News Prism. Global Media in an Era of 3 Terrorism, 6th edition (Ames, IA: Iowa State Press, 2002). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development The Role of Information Technology in Building Public Administration Theory Information technology, that assortment of technology that enables the conversion of data into information, has had an enormous impact on the field of public administration and its theoretical foundation. This article explores five of them. It begins with a discussion of one of the primary impacts of information technology on public administration theory: the development of systems theory and its descendants including the study of complex systems, chaos, and complexity theory. The importance of information technology in decision-making is explored next. Does information technology free us from the limits of bounded rationality or are we simply overwhelmed by the volume of information available via new sources, such as the Internet and the World Wide Web? The third role examined is the use of information technology as a research tool to make previously intractable problems solvable. Computer capability has enormously advanced the theoretical underpinnings of public administration. Fourth, the significance of information technology as a change agent that calls for revision of other theoretical postulates is investigated. As information technology has diffused into public organizations, how has it called into question what we previously thought about the foundation of bureaucracy? Finally, learning by doing and the manner through which practice informs theory is considered. Introduction Information technology is that collection of devices that can be used to turn data into information and to transmit it across vast distances. Computers and telecommunications networks are the physical devices most often identified as information technology and the network that is probably the most famous is called the Internet. From its humble beginnings in the 1970s, when its predecessor tied together only a handful of computers, the Internet has grown to the point where it now links millions of computers and tens of millions of computer users all over the world (Kahn, 1995). It is the Internet which provides access to the World Wide Web Democratization Democratization is a manifold term. Basically, it means the introduction of democracy in an authoritarian or otherwise undemocratic nation, as well as the promotion of further democratic elements in already democratic nations in order to enhance the inclusion of the people in the process of political decision-making. 2 Depending on the point of departure, the role of the media can be very different. In undemocratic regimes, media are normally controlled by the government to prevent any unwanted challenges to the regime and thereby have little agency to promote democratic changes. However, still the media can play an important role in the process towards a more democratic society as the peaceful transition of Eastern European countries in the early 1990s illustrates.3 On the other hand, (mainly economic) development can also be achieved within undemocratic systems as the example of the South East Asian so-called .tiger states. demonstrates. Siebert et al define one of their four theories of the press as the .Social Responsibility Concept., in which the government controls and manages the media in order to achieve the common goal of development. 4 In already democratic countries with guaranteed freedom of the press it is not that difficult for media to support campaigns for more (direct) democratic elements. The Internet plays an important role as a driving force in movements for more democratic elements. Especially in undemocratic regimes, it has an advantage over 2 See .Demokratisierung,. in Brockhaus. Die Enzyklopädie in 24 Bänden, 20th edition (Leipzig, Mannheim: F.A. Brockhaus, 1999), http://www.xipolis.net (November 30, 2003). 3 See David L. Paletz, Karol Jakubowicz and Pavao Novosel, Glasnost and After. Media and Change in Central and Eastern Europe (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 1995). 4 See Fred S. Siebert, Theodore Peterson, and Wilbur Schramm, Four Theories of the Press (Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1956). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 4 conventional media, since the Internet has the power to overcome censorship and government restrictions of free speech. It is controversial how effective the Internet can Overcome these restrictions and how successful governments efforts to control the virtual Space can be but in most cases the Internet can perform at least as well as newspapers or broadcasting media which are under much tighter control and do not have the open Network structure of the Internet: In addition, the Internet can also be used by the Government to modernize the public administration and make the country ready to Participate in the global economy. Kenny mentions a case in India where the use of Networked computer systems in developing country government operations .reduced the Time needed to register property and reduced corruption in the process, making the Security of registration much more accessible to the poor...6 further steps in the direction Of electronic democracy that would allow citizens to participate in the political decision Making process by using modern communication technology is not very realistic Scenarios for developing countries. The access to the information and telecommunication Infrastructure is distributed highly uneven and concentrated in urban areas and among the Upper class, as well as insufficient literacy and computer skills poses further problems. Nation Building Nation building is a crucial part of the path of modernization and development of a Nation. Democratic and economic stability can only be maintained when the citizens have 5 See Shanthi Kalathil and Taylor C. Boas, .The Internet and State Control in Authoritarian Regimes: China, Cuba, and the Counterrevolution, Carnegie Endowment Working Papers, Information Revolution and World Politics Project, Global Policy Program, number 21 (2001). 6 Charles Kenny, .Information and Communication Technologies for Direct Poverty Alleviation: Costs And Benefits, Development Policy Review 20, issue 2 (2002): 153. Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 5 Positive feelings towards their nation and support the basic political decisions of their Government. Once again this is a very manifold term, but for the use in this paper it Should serve mainly as the cultural component in the all-encompassing development Process. The cultural component of development is where the media plays the most obvious role.7 Most societies are so big that people get most of their knowledge about the state of the nation they are living in from the media. While print media like newspapers are most influential in farther developed countries with a good communication and transportation infrastructure and an higher level of literacy, broadcasting. and here for cost reasons mainly radio broadcasting. plays a crucial role in many poor African countries. Media can be used for good or for bad ends, but when the media are generally supporting the political system, they can create legitimacy for and identification with the nation among the citizens. However, the functionality of most conventional media limits its possible positive effects. The one-directional top-down communication often fails in addressing the real needs and anxieties of the audience, especially when the program is controlled by government agencies. Since there is little interaction, there is the danger that the media are seen as instruments of propaganda for the government and thereby loose their possibility to positively act as change agents. These problems can partially be solved by the Internet. This open and principally more democratic and pluralistic space can provide information, but also the opportunity to 7 See United Writers. Association, Proceedings of National Seminar on Role of Mass Communications in Nation Building Process 1990 (Madras, India: United Writers. Association, 1990). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 6 engage in ongoing discussions and to become politically involved. However, as already noted above, the countries that could profit from these advantages the most also have the biggest problems using the Internet, namely in the fields of infrastructure and technology and of education and literacy. It might be very difficult to overcome these challenges for political use of the Internet, but for nation building purposes there are more chances to profit from the possibilities of the Internet by finding ways to work around the obstacles. Traditional media can serve as intermediates between the Internet and individual people. For example, radio stations can air shows in which the moderators browse the Internet at the request of listeners, comment, translate, and interpret the information and make it thereby accessible to their listenership. 8 In addition, the Internet can provide local media with more information to use in their products so that in the end the audience will be informed better. The Internet can also help to preserve and shape the national identity of a nation in positive ways. For the case of India, for example, .imagined cybercommunities allow diasporic Indians to overcome the compulsion if downplaying their Indian identities in the real world..9 Knowledge and other resources from citizens living abroad . often part of the intellectual elite of their country . can be utilized as they engage in online discussions. It is even possible that they establish a closer relationship with their own country and become active by investing in their home country or even coming back. .Nation nets. exist for many African countries.10 These are online communities, mostly 8 See Charles Kenny, .Information and Communication Technologies for Direct Poverty Alleviation: Costs and Benefits,. Development Policy Review 20, issue 2 (2002): 154. 9 Rohitashya Chattopadhyay, .The internet and postcolonial development: India’s transnational reality,. Contemporary South Asia 12, issue 1 (2003): 32. 10 See Alan McCluskey, .Nation Nets,. Interview with Alex R. Tindimubona (1997), 7 http://www.connected.org/develop/alex.html (November 23, 2003) and Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development email lists or electronic bulletin boards, where citizens of a country from all over the world can come together and discuss current affairs, stay informed about news of their home region, and develop possible scenarios for the future. Economic Development Economic development finally is the most highlighted part of the development process. Often developing countries mainly focus on economic efforts in order to compete on the global market and postpone substantial changes in other areas. Depending on the strength of government influence this strategy can be successful, even without far reaching democratic or cultural reforms. The economic success of China despite of its relatively authoritarian political system exemplifies this. The economic definition of development is an increasing GDP or per-capita-income at maximum utilization of resources, so that in a second step the material and social standard of living increases, measured by the Human Development Index, for example. 11 The traditional media.s role in the economic development process is less central than in the other fields discussed above. They contribute towards a positive business climate by backing a stable political and cultural environment. But unlike the Internet, traditional media can be used only in a very limited way to be used for business purposes. Advertisements do not reach beyond the country.s borders, and business information can be more up to date and in depth on the Internet. Alex Tindimubona, .Nation Building in the Age of the Internet: The Phenomenon of .Nation Nets.,. (1997), http://www.isoc.org/inet97/ans97/alex.htm (November 23, 2003). 11 See .Entwicklung,. in Brockhaus. Die Enzyklopädie in 24 Bänden, 20th edition (Leipzig, Mannheim: F.A. Brockhaus, 1999), http://www.xipolis.net (November 30, 2003). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 8 Concerning economic development many people assume that the respective country has to go through the whole process of industrialization in order to establish a functioning and stable economy, and then to make the switch towards a service and information based economy. But there is no reason not to try to establish high tech businesses in developing countries. Successful examples are the software industry in India or, although these are less qualified jobs, customer call centers moving out of many first world countries. Developing countries can offer unrivaled cheap workforce, and cheap and reliable telecommunication networks make global division of work possible. 12 Outsourcing movements from industrialized countries can bring the necessary investments in infrastructure and education and build up trust in the work done by developing countries. The acquired knowledge and capital can then be used to establish own enterprises to compete with Western information companies. The crash of the high tech boom has some negative effects on developing country.s chances in this sector, too, but in the long run there are many chances for these countries to become a more active player in the global economy. However, the biggest part of a developing country.s economy is made up by the production and often export of agricultural or low-end industrial products. In this context, the Internet offers the same advantages to companies in developing countries as to every other business. For example, farmers have the possibility to get up to date information about crop prices and thereby are able to adjust their land use plans and 12 See United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, .E-Commerce and Development Report 2003,. Executive Summary (United Nations: New York, Geneva, 2003), http://r0.unctad.org/ecommerce/ecommerce_en/edr03_en.htm (November 23, 2003). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 9 perform better in negotiations with buyers. 13 Another way the Internet can stimulate the economy in developing countries is the effect mentioned above that corruption can be reduced when elements of electronic government are introduced. On a very local level, .telecenters. (a kind of Internet café in rural areas, often run by the community itself) can be opened as local owned businesses to stimulate economic growth and offer Internet services to other local businesses.14 Such community centers with Internet access can also be used for communication and education purposes and thereby help to create a more skilled workforce ready for the upcoming information age. 15 Conclusions The glances at these three fields of development, politics (Democratization), society (Nation Building), and economy (Economic Development), give insights into the chances the Internet has to offer for developing countries. However, the manifold nature of the Internet and the diversity of problems Third World countries are facing make it very difficult to come to a general conclusion about the overall possibilities of the Internet as a development tool. The examples of some uses of the Internet in these three areas only present a scratch on the top of all possibilities this new medium has to offer . however, these are the ones with most potential to be applied in the near future. The fast growing 13 See Charles Kenny, .Information and Communication Technologies for Direct Poverty Alleviation: Costs and Benefits,. Development Policy Review 20, issue 2 (2002): 151. 14 See Jo Rhodes, .The Development of an Integrated E-Commerce Marketing Framework to Enhance Trading Activities for Rural African Communities,. Perspectives on Global Development and Technology 1, issue 3-4 (2002): 269-293. 15 See Alan McCluskey, .The telecentre: a community place for communication and learning,. Interview with Mohammed-Sani Abdulai (1997), http://www.connected.org/develop/mohammed-s.html (November 23, 2003). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 10 development of the Internet makes it nearly impossible to make predictions about its use in some years. Some critics also warn that the use of modern technology for developing ends increases the dependency of developing countries on the West.16 When Lawrence J. Lang from Cisco commits that Cisco.s involvement in helping developing countries is fueled by the outlook that .those people stop needing help and start being customers. 17, on the first sight this reaffirms these concerns. But on the other hand, when this strategy really works, developing countries would be more dependent on Western information technology providers, like most other countries are, too, but they would profit from increased productivity and could concentrate the acquired profits to fight the really big problems people in developing countries face in their everyday life. It is important to keep in mind that the Internet is a very powerful medium for development . despite all of the problems, but it is not the ultimate new tool that replaces all the others, it can only show its full strength when it is combined with appropriate other media. Especially in developing countries, the potential application for the Internet is restricted by many factors, mainly related to language, education, technology, infrastructure and access problems. These problems will not be solved in the near future. The analysis of comparative advantages of the Internet over other media technologies 16 See Ali A. Mazrui and Robert L. Ostergard Jr., .Technology Transfer in the Computer Age,. in Technology, Development, and Democracy. International Conflict and Cooperation in the Information Age, edited by Juliann Emmons Allison (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2002), 213235. 17 Alan McCluskey, .The telecentre: a community place for communication and learning,. Interview with Lawrence J. Lang, Vice President Service Provider Marketing, Cisco, http://www.connected.org/develop/cisco.html (November 23, 2003). Wolfgang Kurz: Internet and Development 11 revealed some fields where the Internet can be used: in the government, in combination with other media, or to support businesses. In rural areas, community access in .telecenters. will be the maximum of connectivity that can be achieved. The thoughts about the political role for the Internet show that access is the biggest obstacle in this field, but for economic development the prospects of Internet use are much more promising. The use of the Internet for development purposes will increase gradually, but for some cases other media are much better. Kenny.s comparison of the cost per hour of local radio (1 cent), telephone ($1.15), and Internet ($2.69) access reveals this once more.18 Therefore, policy recommendations for local governments as well as for foreign aid programs and other investors are to enhance the Internet infrastructure and education . basically no big difference to Internet policies in developed countries, but on another level.19 The Internet should be used in fields where this is appropriate, but other forms of development tools should not be neglected. When these rules are applied, the Internet can play a valuable role in concert with other tools and contribute to the development process of Third World countries in many aspects.