Research papers

This paper, published in Women in Action (2, 2008) by Isis International – Manila, is a critique of the 'People's Communications for Development' (PC4D) framework that has been developed by Isis. PC4D seeks to rightly challenge the tendency of the dominant 'ICT for Development' (ICTD) frameworks to pull all existing development practice into a monolith that is centred on what may be called the 'revolutionary organising power' of the new ICTs, and attempts to put people back into the centre of development practice. Where PC4D is mistaken, this paper argues, is in taking the new ICTs as the main target of its critique.

This research, supported by the National Institute for Smart Government (NISG) and undertaken by IT for Change, seeks to understand how principles promoting women’s inclusion and gender sensitivity can be incorporated into Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICTD) projects through an analysis of five interventions: Abhiyan’s Mahiti Mitra kiosks, DHAN Foundation’s Village Information Centres, the E-Krishi application within the Akshaya project, rural eSeva kiosks and the Community Learning Centres and Trade Facilitation Centres of SEWA.

The 2008 report of the Global Information Society Watch surveys the national deployment of ICT infrastructure and its implications for development. It gives a detailed analysis of steps which need to be taken to improve ICT connectivity in rural areas. IT for Change wrote the chapter on India, which looks at the theme of access, focusing on the physical access to technology and the legal and regulatory framework, with special reference to community radio and ICTs in education policies.

This collection of papers is an attempt to build a body of critical work that offers analytical and conceptual tools to understand and engage with the structural changes that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are bringing about in society.

This publication showcases perspectives that critique the engagement with new technologies in various development sectors such as the media, work and economy and governance.

Prepared for the International Know How Conference (Mexico, 2006), this presentation details innovative directions for the discourse on development and women’s rights.

This paper was a contribution to the deliberations of the Task Force on Financial Mechanisms set up under the process for the World summit on the information society (WSIS). It is a summary of insights emerging from a study of 3 large scale ICT4D initiatives in India. It discusses issues relevant to financial mechanisms from a field level viewpoint, through the analysis of four key areas: (1) ICT-based services networks; (2) ownership issues in multistake holder partnerships; (3) infrastructure, technology and regulation; and (4) ICT funding in core developmental areas.