This publication is the first in a series of reports covering the state of the information society on an annual basis, and focuses on the theme of participation. The report has three interrelated goals: surveying the state of the field of ICT policy at the local and global levels; encouraging critical debate; and…
Advocacy
2007
The information society phenomenon presents a paradigmatic shift in redefining political, social and institutional systems. However, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) which constitute a vital component of this phenomenon are mostly guided by neo-liberal principles and are nested in technical domains, resulting in the absence of…
2007
This paper was written for the second IGF – Access Plenary Panel (Rio de Janeiro, 2007). It posits that ICTD models for poor people cannot be driven by financial considerations, and neither can they be demand-driven. Access to ICTs for the information poor has a very direct impact on their development status; consequently, ICTs cannot be…
2007
In this piece written for the South Centre Bulletin (issue 5, December 2007), Parminder Jeet Singh and Gurumurthy Kasinathan highlight Internet governance issues that are important from a development perspective. The World Summit on Information Society was the first step towards debating issues of Internet governance and its…
2006
This article was published in the EgovOnline.net magazine in August 2006. The challenge for the 'Right to Information' is that while such rights may have been translated into laws, the practice of enforcing such rights is one which in many contexts is out of reach for those without considerable access to legal or financial resources. However, it…
2005
This presentation was made at the DataQuest Seminar on 'Making e-governance happen' on 3 March, 2005, in Chennai (India). It focuses on the governance reform mandate of e-governance, and highlights the dangers in vesting decision making powers on national e-governance with technology departments. An assessment is made on processes and…
2005
IT for Change was closely associated with the drafting of the Civil Society Statement for the second phase of WSIS held in Tunis (Tunisia) in 2005. The broad mandate for WSIS was to address the long-standing issues in economic and social development from the newly emerging perspectives of the opportunities and risks posed by the revolution in…
2005
This paper argues for a public goods approach to ICTs, education and sustainable development. The author discusses the inadequacies of the current engagement of ICTs in education. Shifts from classroom-based learning to pupil-centered learning have occurred, but by and large the manner in which the ICT opportunity has been employed in the…
2005
This paper was presented at the Femme Globale (Berlin, 2005). It briefly traces the development of the information society from the Beijing Conference in 1995 to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) 2003 and 2005, and women’s situated roles in this development. The engagements at WSIS point to the ground reality of the changing…
In November 2015, IT for Change submitted a position paper on critical concerns for women farmers' rights in the digital age to MAKAAM's meeting to deepen its Charter of Demands for Women Farmers. This note discusses 2 aspects of this shift pertinent to women farmers:
'E-agriculture' initiatives New challenges to women's citizenship…