ETHICAL AND SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF ICT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

ETHICAL AND SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF ICT - Essay Example Radio, television, and print media like newspapers and magazines were the main source of information and communication in the earlier days in the developing countries. However the recent decades witness the increased use of mobile phones, internet, and other new technological applications like VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol - implying the transmission of telephonic conversation over the internet) being the advanced utility of ICT. The usage of such improved applications has been found to exist in large numbers in the developing countries. The mobile phone usage can be identified as the most rapid and voluminous in the ICT growth in the developing countries. For examples the total access to telephone connection including the fixed land line and mobile connections in the developing countries has shown an increase from 2 percent in the year 1991 to about 31 percent in the year 2004. Similarly the internet usage in the developing countries has increased from a meager 0.03 percent in the year 1994 to over 6.7 percent in the year 2004. (Parliamentary POST Note) There are certain ICT ... Examples of the Contribution of ICT to the Economies of Developing Countries There are certain ICT projects undertaken in the developing countries that involve the role and contribution of international community, the Non-Government Organizations, education department, rural governments, and the industry. These projects have the objective of extending the benefits of ICT to a wide range of sectors like health, education, trade and commerce, scientific research and development capabilities, human right awareness and empowerment of women - all are closely related to the social causes of the community in general in the developing countries. However it must be noted that the benefits of ICT are not fully utilized by the developing countries for the growth and development of their economies due to inadequate infrastructural facilities and also due to lack of required human capital to support the growth of ICT. Some of the examples of ICT projects in the developing countries towards social causes are: Health Sector: The telemedicine project in Kenya has the objective of providing an online network of medical consultations for all the hospitals and health centers in Mali. The website is being used solely by the physicians while the other health care staff is also encouraged to contribute to the functioning of the telemedicine project. Women Empowerment: The Grameen Bank a non-government project in Bangladesh provides low cost loans to the ladies to set up mobile phone exchanges. With the income from the mobile exchanges the ladies are able to improve the standards of their living and educate their children. (Parliamentary POST Note) Development in Human Rights: In Zimbabwe the Kubatana Trust using Email and internet provides the human rights and civic