The Commonwealth Secretariat is assisting the Government of Bangladesh's 20 million taka (£153,000) initiative to develop four rural information and communication technology (ICT) access centres in the South Asian nation to promote the use of ICT for community development and commerce.
These centres -- which will be equipped with modern computers and internet facilities to help provide ICT-enabled services to people living in rural areas -- are expected to be set up before the end of the year.
This was announced at a two-day consultative workshop in Dhaka on 'Establishing a Rural ICT Strategy for Bangladesh' which took place from 2 to 3 August 2006. It was organised by the Secretariat's Special Advisory Services Division (SASD).
Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, Bangladesh's Minister for Science and ICT who opened the workshop on 2 August, said: "There is a development divide between the rich and the poor. Intelligent use of ICTs for the poor will lead to job growth in the country. ICT development, if implemented properly, can create digital dividends for millions of people in Bangladesh."
Professor Subbiah Arunachalam, a globally renowned Indian expert in the field of ICTs for development, is the key Commonwealth expert working on the Bangladesh project. Funded by the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation, Dr Arunachalam's duties include helping to formulate an
integrated National ICT Strategy for Rural Development, which includes small and rural businesses in Bangladesh.
"Such a project could have a positive impact on the development of new economic activities and job creation in Bangladesh," stated George Saibel, SASD's Director. "It is also linked to pro-poor growth and rural development in Bangladesh. This project will strengthen the country's capacity to respond to the challenges of globalisation by enhancing its ICT competitiveness."
Ram Venuprasad, SASD Adviser (Enterprise Development), said: "It was promising to see local NGOs and development organisations agreeing to work in partnership to pool their resources to achieve this goal of ICT for enterprise development."
Representatives of more than 50 non-governmental organisations, international development organisations and government agencies attended the workshop.
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