CATALYZING ACCESS THROUGH SOCIAL AND TECHNICAL INNOVATION

John-Harmen Valk, Frank Tulus, Raymond Hyma and Florencio Ceballos

The main goal of the International Development Research Centre's (IDRC's) "Information and Communications Technologies for Development" (ICT4D) program was to harness information and communications technologies (ICTs) for the benefit of all citizens of developing countries. Increased access to ICTs was recognized as a means to a greater end – building an inclusive knowledge society and economy in the developing world. Yet it was also recognized that a non-uniform spread of ICTs was contributing to a persisting and, in some cases, widening gap between the information "haves" in more developed countries and the information "have nots" in less developed regions of the world (Sciadas 2005).

IDRC's ICT4D program aimed to mitigate the persisting inequality in access to ICTs. It first addressed connectivity to ICTs, or the so-called "first order digital divide" (Riggins and Dewan 2005). Second, it tackled access from the standpoint of the ability to use ICTs and to contribute content, the so-called "second order digital divide" (Brotcorne et al. 2010; Hargittai 2002). (See Box 1.1.) This chapter describes the work of IDRC and its partners in overcoming the first order digital divide by way of social and technical innovation.

For the first order digital divide, the driving idea behind the program was to demonstrate how social and technical innovations could be adopted and adapted in the developing world so as to catalyze access and therefore bring about socioeconomic dividends for disadvantaged populations. Throughout its history, IDRC's ICT4D program sponsored an extensive range of research on numerous ways to increase access to ICTs in the less developed regions of the world. Action research projects focused on Internet service providers (ISPs), Internet exchange points (IXPs), very small aperture terminal (VSAT) satellite connectivity, bandwidth consortiums, as well as telecenters and community wireless networks.

IDRC's funding related to overcoming first order digital divide issues generally evolved from a main focus on social and technical innovation to a focus on policy and egulatory environments. However, this shift in thinking does not mean that it eventually ignored the former focus in favor of the latter in working toward increased access. The research findings and lessons learned through partners funded by IDRC reveal that concurrent attention to social and technical innovation and to policy and regulatory environments is needed to increase access to ICTs. This chapter and the following provide a two-part story about how IDRC sought to catalyze access to overcome the first order digital divide in two distinct, but interrelated ways.

Part I: Demonstrating the Feasibility of and Demandfor ICTs (ISPs, IXPs, VSATs and Bandwidth Consortiums)

IDRC recognized that it had to direct its programming toward implementing basic Internet backbone connectivity infrastructure before the benefits of ICTs as a driver of socioeconomic development could be realized. In certain regions, this meant showing that establishing national-evel connectivity infrastructure was feasible. In other regions, it meant extending connectivity infrastructure to rural or underserved areas. These latter areas are often referred to as the "last mile" because governments and telecommunication companies often delay or avoid rollout in these areas due to the high cost and challenge of managing those parts of a network.

IDRC's early programming focused on supporting partners in a limited number of countries that were chosen because they had little or no connectivity infrastructure. Later programming expanded beyond these target countries to focus on underserved populations in the developing world generally. IDRC funded research on the creation of ISPs, on the effectiveness of local peering points such as IXPs and on the possibilities for overcoming the high cost of international satellite services by using VSATs. It also supported bandwidth consortiums to reduce connectivity costs. Most notable was the interaction with African universities – key research recipients of IDRC grants – to initiate discussions about more effective and efficient access to Internet connectivity.

Internet service providers (ISPs)

Early ICT4D programming at IDRC, begun in the late 1990s, funded a series of partners in Asia that sought to establish national Internet connectivity via the creation of ISPs to try to determine how developing countries in Asia could best achieve national and local connectivity. IDRC took on the high-risk role of investor for the establishment of ISPs when no other investors existed in order to demonstrate the utility of Internet connectivity and to stimulate demand. In four of the countries targeted, IDRC-funded ISPs were the first to provide stable Internet connectivity. In those countries that already enjoyed stable, albeit limited connectivity, IDRC-funded ISPs expanded networks and initiated significant reductions in connectivity prices (Graham and Harfoush 1999, 9). This funding of ISPs in Asia was highly significant, as it showed that creating national Internet connectivity in countries with poor Internet infrastructure was possible. The "demonstration effect" became apparent as a private ICT sector quickly emerged in those countries where IDRC had helped to establish ISPs – countries that continue to experience sustainable Internet...