ICT & Poverty Reduction

INFORMATION and Communication Technology (ICT) has been a major driving force for development and economic transformation in the world at present. Many countries have pinned their hopes on information and communication technology for accelerated pace of economic and social development. In fact, the revolution in the field of information and communication sector has also brought about revolutionary changes and development in other social and economic sectors as well. The information technology has made the entire planet a small global village. Those countries, which have invested more on the ICT sector, have been able to reap good results in the economic and social sector. From creating employment opportunities to poverty reduction, ICT has played a catalyst role in the present day world. In view of the growing importance of information communication technology, Nepal, of late, has accorded due priority to the development of ICT. The ICT sector is slowly growing in Nepal. The government has invested a lot in telecommunication sector. It has now adopted the policy of encouraging private sector to invest in the communication field. As a result, private sector’s participation has been slowly growing. In the Internet business, it was the monopoly of the private sector until last year. In fact, it is the private sector that introduced Internet in Nepal and started providing Internet service to people and also the government. The government-owned Nepal Telecommunication Corporation started providing Internet service only last year. This tells the fact that the private sector has made significant contribution in the development of information technology in Nepal. However, there has not been desirable progress in the field of information technology in Nepal. Nepal is now facing the problems of mass poverty, unemployment and backwardness. The government has been struggling hard to attack these social and economic problems. ICT can play an important role in alleviating poverty and attacking other problems of the country. Against this background, an interaction programme was held in Kathmandu recently in which experts discussed the role of ICT in eradicating poverty in the country. Despite the importance of ICT in development, the case of Nepal is very unique. Only a small section of urban people have access to information communication technology. Vast majority of the rural people do not have access to IT services. Moreover, Nepal lacks the infrastructure for the development of ICT and for making it available to a larger mass of the country. If ICT is to benefit the mass, measures need to be taken to make ICT accessible and affordable for majority of the people, who are poor and are living in the rural areas.

Improving Child Health

AN estimated 3.15 million children, aged six months to five years, were administered Vitamin A capsules during the two-day programme on October 18-19. Except for the two Maoist-affected districts of Rukum and Jajarkot, all the other 73 districts were covered by the National Vitamin A Programme (NVAP). The NVAP, which first began in eight Tarai districts in 1993, is a success story, thanks largely to the active participation of the Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHV) in the rural areas. By October 2000, the programme had established itself in 69 districts and had a target of covering all the 75 districts in 2001. The programme has been able to expand rapidly due to the contribution of donor agencies, both bilateral and multilateral. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the major funding agency for he NVAP with Unicef and AusAID providing immense support. Actually, 80 per cent of USAID assistance to this country is being utilised in the health sector. Vitamin A deficiency used to be a serious public health problem just a little over a decade back. But supplementation of the Vitamin A capsule has helped reduce child mortality dramatically in Nepal. Every year, the programme helps avert some 30,000 child deaths. Two large-scale studies conducted in the mid-western hills and eastern Tarai have found that the child mortality rate had reduced by as much as 30 per cent due to the programme. The implementation of the NVAP has had significant impact on the prevalence of nightblindness and bitot’s spots. What is most encouraging about the NVAP, as opposed to other health services, is that there is little difference in coverage between boys and girls. A survey (BCHIMES) conducted in 2000 also found that coverage was higher in the rural areas than in the urban areas. Coverage of the NVAP stands at between 93-100 per cent, and it is important that the programme is sustainable in the long run even without donor assistance. It is heartening to note that local bodies, such as the Village and District Development Committees, have set up revolving funds at the local level for the programme. Interest from this fund will be utilised to motivate the FCHVs, for instance, to carry out their responsibilities with even more zeal. Given the effectiveness of the FCHVs in implementing the NVAP, the FCVHs can be very effectively put to other uses as well. For instance, in generating awareness about the importance of sanitation.