Pro-Poor IT
TALKING about harnessing the information and communication technology or ICT for a
pro-poor and inclusionary social development, as Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand
stressed while inaugurating the Ninth Nepal Information Technology Show and Conference at
the Birendra International Convention Centre Thursday, has far reaching implications for a
country like Nepal. The key words of his speech are ICT, pro-poor and inclusionary and
they are far from compatible in the first place. ICT has to do with a range of knowledge
and gadgets that the poor people cannot simply afford to acquire. So making ICT pro-poor
means extending outside help to those who are at the receiving end of the latest
information and communication processes. Making it inclusionary means putting a
well-functioning democratic system in place where everyone, especially the poor rural
populace, is enabled to participate in the emerging 'information' society. It looks like
it is a tall order to bring all the Nepalese into the information network, which needs
electricity in the minimum, let alone telephone lines, computers and knowledge to use
them.
Not oblivious to the gloomy ground reality, the authorities
have introduced the IT Policy 2002 which aims at popularising the ICT business and
industry to reduce poverty and establish the knowledge based society. An action plan
ensuing out of the policy targets to reach the rural communities through community
information centres. Among other things, plans are afoot to apply IT in government
offices, develop human resources to meet the demand and complete the ongoing IT Park in
Banepa. Unicode Nepali font has already been developed. It will help develop application
tools and databases in the native language, which is likely to significantly increase the
number of people participating in the process. These measures will give a fillip to narrow
down the knowledge gap or the digital divide to some extent. The high priority accorded to
IT in the Tenth Plan should give a further boost to the process of expanding the outreach.
It augurs well for Nepal that the countries of the Asia-Pacific region who assembled in
Tokyo recently were trying to develop a shared vision and common strategy for the
development of information society. Chand's ambitious targets should be seen in that
light.
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