Project Leader: Rohan Samarajiva 

Institution: LIRNEasia

Region: Asia

Areas of Impact: 100% Asia

Start Date: June 28, 2010

 

 Project Details

 

The global "digital divide" separating the “haves” from “have-nots” is widely recognized as a challenge affecting many developing countries.

 

Evidence shows that the benefits attained in areas of health, education, livelihoods and social empowerment through knowledge are restricted in their reach and impact to those who have access – excluding a great majority. This is especially true in Asia, where in spite of strong growth in connectivity, particularly in the mobile sector, millions of people have poor or no connectivity. Much of the growth can be attributed to regulatory reforms and the partial liberalization of telecommunications markets that attracted investments in the sector. It is safe to assume that appropriate telecommunications policy environments and regulatory reform are amongst the most influential levers to ensuring greater access to information and communication technologies (ICTs), particularly amongst the poorer segments of Asian society.

 

Moreover, to date, knowledge intensive activities such as the use of ICTs have been sparsely applied to the agricultural sector. This has stalled productivity gains and has likely been a cause of growing food security concerns. It also tends to be the least productive sector in many developing economies, employing a large number of people living in poverty. Therefore, there is great potential to achieve efficiency gains in the sector through the use of ICTs, which in turn could help reduce poverty. As such, Phase III of LIRNEasia will continue to focus on capacity building, advocacy and dissemination activities to ensure greater participation in ICTs. However, an added focus will be placed on agriculture.

 

 

LIRNEasia’s overall mission of actionable research seeks to identify the institutional constraints to effective use of ICTs to improve the lives of the people of Asia, and to catalyze the changes conducive to greater participation by users and suppliers. Likewise, LIRNEasia also contributes to building capacity for evidence-based intervention in the public-policy process by in-situ experts.

 

They will continue to study the demand for mobile and internet access in Asia (Teleuse@BOP4), as well as further examine the supply of telecommunications, through sector performance reviews. This continuity should ensure LIRNEasia has sustained success in effecting change in important policy and practice areas. The Teleuse@BOP4 survey will however pose new questions on the innovative uses of ICTs for productive purposes, especially in agriculture.

 

They will further seek to increase the efficiency of agricultural value chains and their inclusiveness by developing actionable proposals for policy changes by government, strategy changes by firms, and innovations by stakeholders. The project will specifically focus on recommendations on the private provision of "infrastructural" facilities to agricultural producers. As with previous cycles, the project will include an important emphasis on dissemination and advocacy. This will include a rapid response component and conference participation by researchers.

 

 

The overall objective of the research, dissemination and advocacy program is to advance evidence-based policymaking and regulation in the emerging Asia-Pacific. This is to ensure greater participation in ICTs in the context of a more integrated world economy.

 

 

 

Outputs: All publications and materials related to this project will be listed here as they become available.