civil society & ICT

28.11.2004 UNESCO has brough out an Arabic version of its popular community radio manual to expand the reach of community media in the Arab region. The original version of this guide, 'How to do community radio', narrates the experience of its author Mr. Louie Tabing who was the project officer of 'Tambuli', one of the first community radio stations in Phillipines.

26.11.2004 Representatives at the Seventh UNICT Task Force meeting have envisioned the creation of a global alliance that will spur investment in ICT in the world’s poorest countries. The global alliance, as an operational organization, will continue to work in post-WSIS phase, bringing key people to discuss policy issues to build an inclusive information society.

26.11.2004 Against the backdrop of the EU’s ICT strategy Lisbon framework, the report examines the relationship between social capital and ICT. It identifies the future research areas on this aspects in the European context.

25.11.2004 Participants at the first Round Table on Community Media and Sustainable Development held in Marrakesh have recommended a development fund for community radio in Africa. The Declaration of Marrakesh proposes a stronger partnership between civil society and donor agencies to support community media initiatives.

25.11.2004 In the governmental and civil society declarations at the 2003 phase of WSIS, the word “should” is used equal number of times. But “must” is used over 70 times in the civil society documents compared to only four times in official ones. This points out the distance between the today’s realities and tomorrow’s expectations surrounding the development of an inclusive information society.

24.11.2004 As treatment of numerous HIV/AIDs patients in South Africa becomes unmanageable, an AIDS treatment program called Sizophila Project has started experimenting with cell phones to build an easy communication system between doctors and patients. The project implementing a database software and cellphones to track patient records and call medical attendants, has been successful in providing timely medical assistance to the patients.

24.11.2004 Malta-based DiploFoundation will represent the Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP) in the UN Working Group on Internet Governance. GKP is a coalition of organisations involved in ICT for development.

24.11.2004 The Australian Communications Authority (ACA) seeks comments on its proposal on the universal service obligation (USO) mechanism as it prepares to submit its advice to the Australian government. ACA’s advice to the government will form the basis of its USO provision for the next two financial years.

22.11.2004 The WSIS 2005 Fundraising Campaign has reached about 30 per cent of its goal of raising at least CHF 5 million to support preparatory activities of the Tunis phase. With help from various countries, the contributions have reached CHF 1.4 million.

17.11.2004 How can recent advances in science and technology be harnessed so that the poor of the world can overcome the problems of drought and desertification? ICRISAT is harnessing the ICTs to enhance food security.

17.11.2004 Andhra Pradesh is in the midst of an agrarian emergency. The tragic farmers’ suicides are, finally, an extreme symptom of a much deeper rural distress. The result of a decade-long onslaught on the livelihoods of millions. The crisis now goes way beyond the families ravaged by the suicides. And beyond the farming community itself. There is an urgent need to end the suicides. But doing so without addressing the larger distress is to try and mop the floor dry with the taps open.

17.11.2004 In an interview with Rahul Kumar of OneWorld South Asia, Prabhu Pingali stresses on the need to encourage modern agricultural methods so that food production can be increased even as the environment is preserved.

17.11.2004 “So much information can reach villages through broadband, which cannot reach there through any other media. And the villages, which have no roads and other forms of communication, have a huge hunger for information...”, says Pradip Baijal in an interview to Manish Kumar of OneWorld South Asia.

17.11.2004 The success of ICT initiatives like info-kiosks offers an opportunity to improve our food security network. It is important to integrate fair price shops with the kiosks to ensure food security and transparency in food administration.

17.11.2004 Community radio stations across Timor-Leste can now produce their own live talk shows after a week-long training by Internews. Fourteen journalists from 10 stations around the country learnt how to research, produce and host shows.

17.11.2004 Zambia faces several socio-economic challenges but its community radios are helping people fight these problems better. Though the country has no clear legal definition, the stations are informing people and fostering development.

10.11.2004 This is a comprehensive guide that lays down for Africa proven methods of using second-hand computers to break the digital divide. The guide describes the steps towards starting a computer refurbishment centre and managing it.

10.11.2004 With about 11 million new subscribers in the last seven months, the number of mobile phone users in India has crossed that of landlines, said the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. There is more good news: A survey by an international research group has shown that India recorded the highest annual mobile subscriber growth from the second quarter of 2003.

10.11.2004 IICD and the Ghana Information Network for Knowledge Sharing have helped an artiste produce a CD Rom that aims to educate students about HIV/AIDS through comics. The CD Rom titled “AIDS The Ultimate Killer” tells the story of two friends who learn about the disease and share it with others.

09.11.2004 If a record number of voters turned up at polling stations for the presidential elections in Afghanistan, the credit should go to the small radio stations that kept the people informed. But the role of radio in Afghanistan goes far beyond. Independent stations are helping set up a democratic and popular media network in the country.