ICT in Bangladesh and its possibilities
Sunday, 28 March 2010
Shihabuddin Mahmud and Tahmina Afroz Momen
In Bangladesh, micro finance by Grameen Bank has set an example how poor women can contribute to income generation and become important in decision making. The huge women population can be used for agro-based industries where the information technology or e-services can take a prime role in setting up the market strategy. The basic idea is to provide a model by which they will be interested to take such a service that will make their economic activities easier, faster and fruitful.
In Bangladesh, the NGOs (Non Governmental Organisations) take up many projects to upgrade the living standard of poor women in the rural areas where e-services can be an essential tool. However, the lack of education seems to be the prime constraint. Therefore, how to educate or train these poor women in order to benefit from the e-services can be a challenge.
This paper tries to highlight the challenges and opportunities for the village women in Bangladesh. It is all in the thought process about how women can make opening to the world market and how they become successful in selling goods in local markets and also get all possible information by e-service. However, it is not impossible.
At the dawn of human civilisation, agro-based societies evolved when people learn how to live and settle in a particular place rather than moving from one place to another like hunting and gathering societies. This was one indicator of civilisation. In the second half of the eighteenth century, with the advent of the steam engine the industrial revolution took place in Europe. Now at the dawn of the new millennium another revolution of entirely different kind is taking place across the globe, a silent revolution, much more powerful, and this is information technology revolution.
Due to lack of information people are deprived of many things. The country that has more access to information is rich. The first condition for human development and quality of life is to provide varied opportunities, scope and alternatives. Whereby, a person will be able to make a choice in getting a specific service.
The term information technology or IT has been replaced by information and communication technology or ICT, which involves collection, storage, processing and distribution of information. Computers, internet and electronic communication are integral parts of ICT. Texts, numbers, audios and videos are being exchanged throughout the world without space and time barrier. ICT has accelerated the pace of' globalisation. At the heart of the rapid development in some of the developing countries there lies ICT. Countries having access to and control over information will dominate the world economically.
There is an ever increasing demand for Internet access in rural Bangladesh and that mobile networks are the best way to meet that demand as pointed out by Erik Aas, Chief Executive Officer of Grameen Phone. It is indeed a challenge to make the Internet affordable for ordinary Bangladeshis by the information centres, while channelling funds to local entrepreneurs is also possible. It is assumed that widespread access to the Internet will have a profound effect on the social and economic development of Bangladesh
The problems in Bangladesh surrounding ICT are manifolds -- very low telephone density, high charge of internet service, insignificant number of people having access to internet, the present low speed and efficiency of the communication system in the country, absence of cyber laws and many other related things. In the backdrop of all these, a big event is going to take place at the end of this year as Bangladesh is going to be connected to the information super highway as fibre optic backbone within the country and the fibre optic submarine cable connection are going to be complete. Suddenly, we will find ourselves amidst a digital communication system many thousand times more efficient. So, why the number of the users should not be increased and why should not we give another try to make it accessible for rural people, who can really play very important role in all kinds of service sectors such as education, health, business and communications. Once information is easily accessible, no matter what improvement is guaranteed. However, Bangladesh is ready for this big arrival".
In Bangladesh, in the ICT sector a large work force at different levels and various expertises is growing. Computer literacy is imparted, computer applications are taught. training given, and degrees awarded. Training centres, colleges, computer institutes, private universities and public universities are all contributing in different ways. The related departments are IT, ICT, Computer Applications, Computer Science, Computer Engineering and Telecommunication Engineering. Steps for quality control of computer education of all kinds should be taken. Very soon the need and supply of the ICT work force at different levels is to be assessed.
Today, thousands of tele-centers/information centres in Bangladesh have been installed, but a large number of villages still remain outside the network. There exists a mission called 2011 after 40 years of our independence, which is hopefully bring the whole country within the services of IT. In fact, UNDP has a project to help install such telecenters and this is a joint between BTN and UNDP as mentioned in one of the NTV programmes. Mobile operator GrarmeenPhone is setting up Community Information Centres across rural Bangladesh, giving up to 20 million people a chance to use the Internet and email for the first time. Following a successful pilot project conducted with the help of GSM Association's Development Fund, GrameenPhone is teaming up with local entrepreneurs to set up approximately 500 centres in communities throughout the country.
We cannot achieve the goal if ICT is confined in selected households in one or two big cities and if we fail to take it to the doorsteps of general people throughout the country. It is possible to open a huge number of cyber centres in the small towns and villages in the country. The cyber centres can be a place where people will get opportunity to send and receive e-mail and have telephonic talk over the internet. These are the places where people will have access to internet for information on agriculture and business, health service and can have education, entertainment and so on through internet. All post offices can work as cyber centres, in addition to their normal present duties. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina already declared the post office to be the IT centre in her 2021 project " Digital Bangladesh". These cyber centres can be economically profitable for the entrepreneurs. One may raise the question how the illiterate and ill-educated village people can understand English. It may sound like a fiction but in near future we will find texts in English converted to texts in Bangla, more surprisingly to voice in Bangla! Extensive researches are going on in India to convert text in English to voice in different Indian languages including Bangla. The success is round the corner.
Electronic commerce or e-commerce covers many forms of trade of goods and services, all of which rely on the internet to market, identify, select, pay for and deliver these goods and services. Although it originated in developed countries, e-commerce has changed the perspectives of entrepreneurs the world over, including the remote areas of developing countries. E-commerce and e-banking or online banking is in its initial state in Bangladesh. We should develop e-commerce culture to create such buyers who will expect quick service and supply. Bangladesh can specialise in e-service, any service that can be provided through internet. More and more services will emerge, which will be just appropriate for providing through internet.
Now, how to develop these centres? What would be its mission and vision? Do the people really need it? A demand for internet has to be created. A number of donor countries may help in the initial stage. However, how these information centres can be more effective and grow faster is a necessary task. Now, the basic question will be what are services that they can be offered to the rural people and, to be precise, the rural women. One thing is for sure, unless it is economically beneficial or profitable, potential users will not be interested. Therefore, to make them understand and how it can help income generation is another big challenge. It is perhaps the economic benefit is the priority for them and how it will have impact on their social and environmental conditions is secondary issue to be addressed and to be understood.
Dr. Mahmud is an Associate Professor, College of Architecture and Planning, King Faisal University, KSA, and Tahmina Afroz Momen is a teacher, Bangladesh
International School
In Bangladesh, micro finance by Grameen Bank has set an example how poor women can contribute to income generation and become important in decision making. The huge women population can be used for agro-based industries where the information technology or e-services can take a prime role in setting up the market strategy. The basic idea is to provide a model by which they will be interested to take such a service that will make their economic activities easier, faster and fruitful.
In Bangladesh, the NGOs (Non Governmental Organisations) take up many projects to upgrade the living standard of poor women in the rural areas where e-services can be an essential tool. However, the lack of education seems to be the prime constraint. Therefore, how to educate or train these poor women in order to benefit from the e-services can be a challenge.
This paper tries to highlight the challenges and opportunities for the village women in Bangladesh. It is all in the thought process about how women can make opening to the world market and how they become successful in selling goods in local markets and also get all possible information by e-service. However, it is not impossible.
At the dawn of human civilisation, agro-based societies evolved when people learn how to live and settle in a particular place rather than moving from one place to another like hunting and gathering societies. This was one indicator of civilisation. In the second half of the eighteenth century, with the advent of the steam engine the industrial revolution took place in Europe. Now at the dawn of the new millennium another revolution of entirely different kind is taking place across the globe, a silent revolution, much more powerful, and this is information technology revolution.
Due to lack of information people are deprived of many things. The country that has more access to information is rich. The first condition for human development and quality of life is to provide varied opportunities, scope and alternatives. Whereby, a person will be able to make a choice in getting a specific service.
The term information technology or IT has been replaced by information and communication technology or ICT, which involves collection, storage, processing and distribution of information. Computers, internet and electronic communication are integral parts of ICT. Texts, numbers, audios and videos are being exchanged throughout the world without space and time barrier. ICT has accelerated the pace of' globalisation. At the heart of the rapid development in some of the developing countries there lies ICT. Countries having access to and control over information will dominate the world economically.
There is an ever increasing demand for Internet access in rural Bangladesh and that mobile networks are the best way to meet that demand as pointed out by Erik Aas, Chief Executive Officer of Grameen Phone. It is indeed a challenge to make the Internet affordable for ordinary Bangladeshis by the information centres, while channelling funds to local entrepreneurs is also possible. It is assumed that widespread access to the Internet will have a profound effect on the social and economic development of Bangladesh
The problems in Bangladesh surrounding ICT are manifolds -- very low telephone density, high charge of internet service, insignificant number of people having access to internet, the present low speed and efficiency of the communication system in the country, absence of cyber laws and many other related things. In the backdrop of all these, a big event is going to take place at the end of this year as Bangladesh is going to be connected to the information super highway as fibre optic backbone within the country and the fibre optic submarine cable connection are going to be complete. Suddenly, we will find ourselves amidst a digital communication system many thousand times more efficient. So, why the number of the users should not be increased and why should not we give another try to make it accessible for rural people, who can really play very important role in all kinds of service sectors such as education, health, business and communications. Once information is easily accessible, no matter what improvement is guaranteed. However, Bangladesh is ready for this big arrival".
In Bangladesh, in the ICT sector a large work force at different levels and various expertises is growing. Computer literacy is imparted, computer applications are taught. training given, and degrees awarded. Training centres, colleges, computer institutes, private universities and public universities are all contributing in different ways. The related departments are IT, ICT, Computer Applications, Computer Science, Computer Engineering and Telecommunication Engineering. Steps for quality control of computer education of all kinds should be taken. Very soon the need and supply of the ICT work force at different levels is to be assessed.
Today, thousands of tele-centers/information centres in Bangladesh have been installed, but a large number of villages still remain outside the network. There exists a mission called 2011 after 40 years of our independence, which is hopefully bring the whole country within the services of IT. In fact, UNDP has a project to help install such telecenters and this is a joint between BTN and UNDP as mentioned in one of the NTV programmes. Mobile operator GrarmeenPhone is setting up Community Information Centres across rural Bangladesh, giving up to 20 million people a chance to use the Internet and email for the first time. Following a successful pilot project conducted with the help of GSM Association's Development Fund, GrameenPhone is teaming up with local entrepreneurs to set up approximately 500 centres in communities throughout the country.
We cannot achieve the goal if ICT is confined in selected households in one or two big cities and if we fail to take it to the doorsteps of general people throughout the country. It is possible to open a huge number of cyber centres in the small towns and villages in the country. The cyber centres can be a place where people will get opportunity to send and receive e-mail and have telephonic talk over the internet. These are the places where people will have access to internet for information on agriculture and business, health service and can have education, entertainment and so on through internet. All post offices can work as cyber centres, in addition to their normal present duties. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina already declared the post office to be the IT centre in her 2021 project " Digital Bangladesh". These cyber centres can be economically profitable for the entrepreneurs. One may raise the question how the illiterate and ill-educated village people can understand English. It may sound like a fiction but in near future we will find texts in English converted to texts in Bangla, more surprisingly to voice in Bangla! Extensive researches are going on in India to convert text in English to voice in different Indian languages including Bangla. The success is round the corner.
Electronic commerce or e-commerce covers many forms of trade of goods and services, all of which rely on the internet to market, identify, select, pay for and deliver these goods and services. Although it originated in developed countries, e-commerce has changed the perspectives of entrepreneurs the world over, including the remote areas of developing countries. E-commerce and e-banking or online banking is in its initial state in Bangladesh. We should develop e-commerce culture to create such buyers who will expect quick service and supply. Bangladesh can specialise in e-service, any service that can be provided through internet. More and more services will emerge, which will be just appropriate for providing through internet.
Now, how to develop these centres? What would be its mission and vision? Do the people really need it? A demand for internet has to be created. A number of donor countries may help in the initial stage. However, how these information centres can be more effective and grow faster is a necessary task. Now, the basic question will be what are services that they can be offered to the rural people and, to be precise, the rural women. One thing is for sure, unless it is economically beneficial or profitable, potential users will not be interested. Therefore, to make them understand and how it can help income generation is another big challenge. It is perhaps the economic benefit is the priority for them and how it will have impact on their social and environmental conditions is secondary issue to be addressed and to be understood.
Dr. Mahmud is an Associate Professor, College of Architecture and Planning, King Faisal University, KSA, and Tahmina Afroz Momen is a teacher, Bangladesh
International School