FEATURE: With the message of ICT4D... a new mag for India

["Frederick Noronha (FN)" <fred@bytesforall.org>]

With the message of ICT4D... a new mag for India

>From Frederick Noronha

Finally, the loose ends are coming together. Or so it seems. But getting
together diverse strands interested in deploying IT for the poor is not
going to be an easy task. Because, each group simply doesn't speak the
other's language. Now, a new magazine specially designed to end the 03 of
tongues and help build understanding on this task, so crucial for India, has
begun making it to the stands. 

Ravi Gupta, a young engineer and alumni of the prestigious IIT-Kanpur, was
bold to venture into publishing "the first monthly magazine on ICT4D".
It's called simply i4d, and offers "information for development".
Incidentally, ICT4D is the development's world jargon for 'information and
communication technologies for development'. Check it out online at
www.i4donline.net -- and you can also get a daily newsletter of stories of
interest to this field.

Now just a year old, Ravi Gupta's publication, brought out by his young team
located in Noida, just across the Delhi border, brings across stories of
optimism. It shares ideas on what is possible in terms of harnessing the
potential of these new technologies for the poor, and shows what is already
being done.

For instance, recently Gupta argued that, apart from the three traditional
R's, today a fourth is needed besides Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic, and
that's the computeR. It's getting to play an important role in the developed
world in the field of education. He sees the Internet as a "big equalizer"
-- with the possibility of an interchange for both content and ideas, and
scalable to the level of its user. 

But, at the same time, Gupta cautions: "Computers and the Internet (alone)
do not comprise ICT (information and communication technology). The fact
that the majority of students and teachers in developing nations are bereft
of these ICTs raises doubts as to what ICT actually does."

Gupta runs his Centre for Spatial Database Management and Solutions (CSDMS),
which is deep into Geographical Information Systems (GIS). For many years,
this man in his thirties has work to unveil the role of Geographical
Information Systems in ensure citizen's access to information
-- including scientific information, and specially geographic information.
By some coincidence, a conference in early 2003 sparked off the idea in him
that India, a country closely watched globally in the ICT4D field, needed
its own monthly focussing on this issue. Today, this is probably the only
monthly in the world of its kind.

Nonetheless, his is basically a message of optimism. With a strong flavour
from India. 

Recent stories in Gupta's magazines focussed on Free Software effectively
translating 13 languages at the World Social Forum in Mumbai recently, Shyam
Telecom's efforts in Rajasthan to equip a fleet of rickshaws with mobile
phones to take these to the poor, and attempts to promote IT education among
Mumbai's poor Muslims. 

Then, there are stories of students from North India mapping their areas
with PDAs and GPSs. Likewise, in a special issue on education, the role
playing across India in offering students their board exams through the
Internet is not to be overlooked.

Other well-known experiments (NIIT's hole-in-the-wall), and model ways of
teaching children ICT skills are also included.  Another issue earlier this
year focussed on microfinance. Upcoming themes deal with ICT and health
(March 2004), wireless communication (April), ICT for the poor (May) and
local language content (June).

There is still uncertainty about this new publication, and Gupta is eagerly
seeking the support to keep it going. But one thing there's no doubt over:
this could help build links between the diverse players in the ICT4D space
(computer geeks, NGOs, development organisations, journalists) who need to
start by understanding each other's concerns and potential better before
they can join hands to make a wider impact across India. ENDS

-- 
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     April 2004         | Frederick Noronha, Freelance Journalist
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