ICT in Regional Development

Author(s):  
Saundarjya Borbora ◽  
Mrinal Kanti Dutta

Economic development and information and communication technology (ICT) are found to move together in the present day era of globalization. ICT can contribute significantly in economic development of a region by providing adequate information at the minimum of time and cost, thereby enhancing productivity in different sectors of an economy. This fact is substantiated by several studies (Kraemer & Dedrick, 2001; Pohjola, 2001). Some country specific studies like that of Singapore (Wong, 2001) also highlighted similar results. ICT diffusion in the world has been quite rapid since the mid 1990s. While the developed countries have benefited substantially from the ICT growth, the developing countries could not reap similar benefits out of it which has resulted in emergence of a digital divide across the countries (Economist, 2000; Nkrumah, 2000; Norris, 2001). This divide is noticed not only across countries but also within a country and this is more prominent in developing economies like India. ICT diffusion is another area which needs more attention in India as it will lead to ICT access and application of ICT in real sectors to increase productivity and output. During the past one decade India has made rapid advances in ICT growth as reflected in the increase in the number of Internet connections and users. The growth of Internet connections and users in the country is shown in Table 1.

Author(s):  
Saundarjya Borbora ◽  
Mrinal Kanti Dutta

Economic development and information and communication technology (ICT) are found to move together in the present day era of globalization. ICT can contribute significantly in economic development of a region by providing adequate information at the minimum of time and cost, thereby enhancing productivity in different sectors of an economy. This fact is substantiated by several studies (Kraemer & Dedrick, 2001; Pohjola, 2001). Some country specific studies like that of Singapore (Wong, 2001) also highlighted similar results. ICT diffusion in the world has been quite rapid since the mid 1990s. While the developed countries have benefited substantially from the ICT growth, the developing countries could not reap similar benefits out of it which has resulted in emergence of a digital divide across the countries (Economist, 2000; Nkrumah, 2000; Norris, 2001). This divide is noticed not only across countries but also within a country and this is more prominent in developing economies like India. ICT diffusion is another area which needs more attention in India as it will lead to ICT access and application of ICT in real sectors to increase productivity and output. During the past one decade India has made rapid advances in ICT growth as reflected in the increase in the number of Internet connections and users. The growth of Internet connections and users in the country is shown in Table 1.


Author(s):  
Saundarjya Borbora ◽  
Mrinal Kanti Dutta

Economic development and information and communication technology (ICT) are found to move together in the present day era of globalization. ICT can contribute significantly in economic development of a region by providing adequate information at the minimum of time and cost, thereby enhancing productivity in different sectors of an economy. This fact is substantiated by several studies (Kraemer & Dedrick, 2001; Pohjola, 2001). Some country specific studies like that of Singapore (Wong, 2001) also highlighted similar results. ICT diffusion in the world has been quite rapid since the mid 1990s. While the developed countries have benefited substantially from the ICT growth, the developing countries could not reap similar benefits out of it which has resulted in emergence of a digital divide across the countries (Economist, 2000; Nkrumah, 2000; Norris, 2001). This divide is noticed not only across countries but also within a country and this is more prominent in developing economies like India. ICT diffusion is another area which needs more attention in India as it will lead to ICT access and application of ICT in real sectors to increase productivity and output. During the past one decade India has made rapid advances in ICT growth as reflected in the increase in the number of Internet connections and users. The growth of Internet connections and users in the country is shown in Table 1.


Equilibrium ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 79-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewa Lechman

In recent years, enormous changes are noted worldwide during broad  adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). These unique  technologies – often perceived as economic development incentives – have a great  ability to spread at high pace and low cost in countries all over the world, bringing  people opportunities to contribute to economic development and growth. New Technologies  play a special role in developing countries, where their in-country adoption  lies in the centre of development strategies. ICT are treated as tools which bring  people access to information, education and knowledge, offering unlimited possibilities  for wealth-creation.  The paper, purely empirical in nature, reports on the pace of adoption of new Information  and Communication Technologies in developing countries, and – additionally  – investigates country-specific ICT diffusion patterns. We expect to uncover  the S-shape curve in the diffusion process in most of developing countries, as well as  in the whole country sample.  For the analysis purposes, we apply all counties which – according to the World  Bank nomenclature – are classified as low-income and lower-middle-income econ-  omies. Our sample covers 46 countries (upper-middle-income and high-income  economies are excluded from the study purposefully) which are classified as developing  economies. The time framework is set for the period of 2000-2011. All data  necessary for the analysis are derived from World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators  Database 2012 (16th edition).


2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 23-44
Author(s):  
Ruzita Mohd. Amin

The World Trade Organization (WTO), established on 1 January 1995 as a successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), has played an important role in promoting global free trade. The implementation of its agreements, however, has not been smooth and easy. In fact this has been particularly difficult for developing countries, since they are expected to be on a level playing field with the developed countries. After more than a decade of existence, it is worth looking at the WTO’s impact on developing countries, particularly Muslim countries. This paper focuses mainly on the performance of merchandise trade of Muslim countries after they joined the WTO. I first analyze their participation in world merchandise trade and highlight their trade characteristics in general. This is then followed by a short discussion on the implications of WTO agreements on Muslim countries and some recommendations on how to face this challenge.


Author(s):  
Opeyemi Idowu Aluko

Poverty is no longer fashionable even in the less developed countries of the world. The world has deemed poverty-ridden regions of the world as ‘anathema', forbidden, and ignoble. At the same time ways to get out of the menace are regularly strategised over a period of time. The developed countries of the world had been able to nip poverty to the bud significantly, but the developing countries still have a lot to do so as to overcome the menace. Poverty in the developing countries operates in a cycle of repetitions. This makes it difficult to curtail. How can poverty be reduced in the developing countries? This study reveals the reason while poverty has become a domestic phenomenon in developing countries and the way forward. The theory on poverty is evaluated alongside the present economic situation in Africa. The cycle of poverty, which includes the social cycle of poverty (SCP), political cycle of poverty (PCP), and the economic cycle of poverty (ECP), are examined. This study analyses the strategies to break the cycle of poverty in Africa and other developing countries.


The world food and agricultural situation in the 1980s must be looked at, as now, in terms of the division between developed and developing countries. While there will still be problems in the developed countries - such as surpluses - the great crisis will remain in the developing countries. The most obvious feature of the crisis is the balance between the increase in population and the increase in food production. In the 1960s, the balance was extremely precarious and, in the first two years of the 1970s, population actually grew faster than production. Hence, it is imperative to accelerate the increase in production in the developing countries. In order to achieve this, it is important to see to what extent the obstacles are due to lack of knowledge on how to obtain more from natural resources - primarily a technological problem - and to what extent they are due to the weaknesses of human institutions and of the political will for change. In addition, the prospects for a more rational and hopeful world food and agricultural situation in the 1980s will depend very largely on how the national agricultural production and trade policies of both developed and developing countries can be modified by practical steps towards international agricultural adjustment for the benefit of all.


2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 191-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sang-Hyup Shin

Globalization is now well recognized by many as an inescapable feature of the world today. In particular, in the middle of global economic crisis globalization is one of the hot issues drawing much attention from countries around the world. There are contradictory perspectives on globalization. There are many sweeping statements that assert that economic globalization is increasing global poverty and inequality between the rich and the poor in the world. There are also many others who insist that the poverty and inequality issues have been resolved in some sense through globalization. In order to find the answer to the question, firstly the meaning of globalization was fully explained. Based on the understanding of globalization, the questions such as how globalization has contributed to reduce the economic gap between the developed and the developing countries, and to reduce the poverty by analyzing the economic growth, the number of people living below the absolute poverty line and so on were analyzed. The reasons why globalization is a good opportunity for some countries while some other countries get not something from the globalization was also discussed in this research. We found that globalization has contributed to reduce global poverty and to increase the welfare of both the developed and developing countries. However globalization has impacted different groups differently. Some have benefited enormously, while others have borne more of the costs. The developed countries could get more economic benefits from the less developed countries through globalization. This means, inequality between the rich and the poor countries still remained as a serious threat in the global economy. And even among the developing countries globalization has impacted differently. The trends toward faster growth and poverty reduction are strongest in developing economies that have integrated with the global economy most rapidly, which supports the view that integration has been a positive force for improving the lives of people in developing countries There are two main reasons for the inequality existing between the developed and developing countries. The fist one is the difference of economic size and power between the developed countries and the developing countries started to exist from the late 18th century. The second one is the differences in the management skill in taking advantage of the globalization.


Author(s):  
RK. Gorea

Forensic nursing science is a developing at a fast pace in the developed countries of the world and the forensic nurses have gained valuable roles in the different departments. Mortuary services are often in a state of neglect in the developing countries especially the postmortem examination. Mainly this is due to lack of assistance to forensic physicians by educated and trained professionals. Forensic nurses can do a variety of roles to improve the functioning of the mortuaries. Role of forensic nurses in the postmortem examination and upkeep of the mortuaries is essential and it is emphasized that forensic nurses can play a very pivotal role in the functioning of the mortuaries.


Author(s):  
RamMohan R. Yallapragada ◽  
Ron M. Sardessai ◽  
Madhu R. Paruchuri

In July 2004, 147 World Trade Organization (WTO) member countries met in Geneva where the developed countries agreed to cut back and eventually eliminate an estimated $350 billion of their farm and export subsidies. The accord was hammered out by five WTO members including India and Brazil and submitted to the WTOs plenary session where it was finally ratified on July 31, 2004. The Fifth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization held in Cancun in September 2003 collapsed from inside as internal squabbles and irreconcilable philosophical differences developed between the developed countries and the developing countries. The WTO, which started with noble objectives of raising the global standards of living through international trade agreements and cooperation among the WTO member countries, appeared to be teetering on the verge of a complete collapse. Over the past decade, through five ministerial conferences, the WTO member countries gradually got polarized into two main blocks, the haves and the have nots, the developed countries and the still developing countries respectively. One of the important items of contention was the issue of reduction and elimination of the huge farm subsidies in the European Union (EU) and the United States (US). At the 2003 WTO conference in Cancun, 21 of the developing countries formed a group, known as G-21 initiated under the leadership of Brazil and India, and insisted on discussions for elimination of the farm subsidies of the EU-US combine. The EU and US governments give billions of dollars worth of agricultural and export subsidies annually to their farmers that allow them to have a competitive advantage in international markets in effect preventing agricultural producers in developing countries from having access to global markets. The EU delegates insisted that the four Singapore issues must be dealt with first before including any discussions on the issues of farm subsidies on the agenda. The G-21 over night swelled into G-70. The developing countries refused to be pushed into a corner and have proved that they are now a force to reckon with. The WTO Cancun conference came to a dramatic end without any agreement, leaving the negotiations in a deadlock. At the historic July 2004 WTO negotiations in Geneva, an accord has been reached under which the developed countries agreed to reduce and eventually eliminate their export and farm subsidies. The developing countries also agreed to lower their tariffs on imports from EU-US and other developed countries. The accord is expected to pave the way for the resumption of the WTO Doha Round of multilateral negotiations to liberalize world trade.


Author(s):  
M. A. Emakoji ◽  
K. N. Otah

The world is so dynamic and fast growing, things keep changing on a daily basis and as such, has experienced different phases of industrial revolution. Consequent to this, many countries have had their names listed among the developed countries of the world based on their economic development, while others are listed among the developing countries of the world. The secret of the developed countries no doubt, is rooted in the quality of research being carried out. However, one begins to wonder, are the developing countries not actually involved in research? This paper seeks to identify the challenges of conducting research and to suggest possible solutions in overcoming these challenges with a view to making Nigeria enlisted among the developed countries of the world. Difficulty in Accessing Funds, Absence of a Clear Cut Philosophy of National Development, Frequent disruption of Academic Calendar of our Tertiary Institutions, Reduced Rate of Mentoring Junior Researchers by Experienced and Senior Researchers, Braindrain, Lack of Motivation and Incentives for Researchers, Insecurity, Unsatisfactory Mode of Functioning Libraries.


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