The document discusses the potential of mobile phones to drive social and economic development. It notes that while mobile phones have revolutionized communication, there is no evidence they have significantly addressed development challenges. To fully realize their potential, barriers like connectivity, access to information, and usability must be overcome. A bottom-up approach is needed that empowers local communities and entrepreneurs to develop mobile services for their needs. Addressing technological and skills gaps through collaboration between different sectors can help mobile technologies better meet development goals.

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Mobile Phones in ICT4D
Stéphane Boyera
http://www.w3.org/2009/01/sb_coop2.0/
2nd International Meeting on ICT for Development and Cooperation
Gijon, Spain, February 12 2009
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Introduction
Co-chair of W3C Mobile Web for Social Development
Mission: Exploring and Understanding the barriers of using Mobile Technologies in ICT4D
Home: http://www.w3.org/2008/MW4D/
Head of Web for Society Program of the Web Foundation
Mission: Working toward having all people benefiting the Web
Home: http://www.webfoundation.org/
Manager of the EU-FP7 project Digital World Forum
Mission: Using ICT and low-cost technologies to leverage economic development in Africa and Latin
America
Home: http://www.digitalworldforum.eu/
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Outline
Introduction
Mobile phones: a revolution in communication
ICT and ICTD
Mobile phones: a potential revolution in ICTD
Current State and Challenges
Next Steps
Mobile phones to save the world and solve all problems ?
Conclusion
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Mobile Phones: a Revolution
(source: ITU World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators (WTI) database.)
Mobile Phones are changing people's lives in the
Developing World:
In the way they work
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In the way they communicate
In the way they live
...
But no evidence that mobile phones has significantly
impacted development challenges.
Next Step: ICT Revolution
ICT has changed the Developed World:
in the way people work
in the way they meet
in the way they move
(source: Ken Banks Kiwanja.net)
...
Promises of ICTD: changing the Developing World, and having an impact on
development challenges by bridging historical divides:
Access to health services
Access to Education
Access to finance
Access to Government services
Access to Agriculture services
...
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ICTD Challenges
Connectivity issue
Needs bandwidth
Needs devices
Information Availability issue
Needs of relevant and useful services
Information Accessibility issue
Needs of affordable, accessible and usable services
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ICTD in the past
Focus on Connectivity: e.g. telecenter
Pilot projects organized by Development agencies
without sustainability in mind
without easy replicability (high cost solutions)
without scalability (running 300000 telecenters ?)
as a top-down approach
...
Less than satisfactory results !
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Mobile Phones: a potential ICT revolution
A potential revolution on the focus: Services vs Connectivity
Focusing on people needs
A new opportunity for a bottom-up approach
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Bottom-up Approach: Empowering People
Principle: moving from recipients only to actors and
contributors
Objectives:
Not limiting ICTD to development agencies and rich/big NGOs
Opening it to millions of people/ngo/grassroots
Rationale
Only scalable way to make an impact at the global Society
(Photo Source : The Economist )
level
Opening ICTD to entrepreneurship and creating a new sector
of activity
Capturing/using local innovation
Putting Governments out of the critical path
Putting pressure for more transparent accountable
Governance
Iqbal Qadir: The power of the mobile phone to end poverty
...
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Challenges of Empowering People
Availability of software and tools
free and open source
easy to use
Availability of expertise
Present: Capacity building in mobile ICT for ngos, entrepreneurs, IT
sector,...
Future: Curriculum and degree at universities
Awareness
(Photo Source: Der Spiegel
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Challenges of Information Accessibility
Current focus on Information Availability
SMS success stories
Lots of issues on the current approaches to benefit all people:
Accessibility of services and content by people with low reading skills
Availability of services and content in local languages
Information Illiteracy: searching, finding, using content and services
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Next Generation of technologies
Today: SMS
relative easy setup, availability of tools, free reception, available on all phones
issues: discoverability, cost of running a service, text-only approach, interoperability between operators
Next Generation:
Mobile Web
free service development and deployment, more powerful interface potentially able to bridge existing barriers,
discoveability, low required expertise, access to enormous knowledge,...
issues: availability on phones, costs of data access, still some technological gaps
Voice
natural way of communication, easy to use for people with low reading skills, available on all phones
issues: requires high expertise, expensive infrastructure, usability issue, technological gaps (i18n)
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Next Steps
Building, Coordinating and driving a diverse community
Development agencies and international organization
NGOs, grassroots, people with field experience
Academics (ICTD, Sociology,...)
Mobile industry
Understanding needs, issues, challenges in the field
exploratory field researches
pilots using new technologies
Identifying and bridging technological gaps to lower access barriers
understanding and solving illiteracy, usability, internationalization issues
identify other issues
Working towards solving the empowerment challenges: lowering development and
deployment barriers
identifying tools gap and developing them
develop mobile ict capacities for present and future, and build on existing success (e.g. EPROM)
raise awareness on existing technologies, the way to use them, their domain of applications,...
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Mobile phones to rule them all ?
Mobile phones: a way to reach the mass
Mobile phones: available in the field
But
Mobile phones: a very constrained device
Mobile networks: very expensive
Other approaches are meaningful
Low-cost laptops will be key elements for a greater exploitation of ICT potential
Low-cost wireless broadband infrastructure will be critical for first class information society citizen
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Conclusion
Mobile technologies have the potential to meet the ICTD hopes
Mobile Technologies have the potential to make significant impact on Development
challenges and MDGs
This potential has been largely demonstrated with deployed services
But for this potential to be realized
A concerted effort of all communities is required
The focus have to shift and concentrate on
bridging technological gaps to meet the needs and profile of targeted people
empowering people
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References
Contact: Stephane Boyera (boyera@w3.org)
W3C Mobile Web for Social Development
Home Page: http://www.w3.org/2008/MW4D/
wiki and online resources: http://www.w3.org/2008/MW4D/wiki/
draft roadmap: http://www.w3.org/2008/MW4D/wiki/roadmap
Next Event: W3C Workshop on the Role of Mobile Technologies in fostering Social and Economic
Development
April 1-2 2009, Maputo Mozambique
http://www.w3.org/2008/10/MW4D_WS/
Web Foundation: http://www.webfoundation.org/
Digital World Forum: http://www.digitalworldforum.eu/
Next Event: Workshop on Low-Cost Broadband and Infrastructure
May 4-5 2009, Kampala, Uganda
http://www.digitalworldforum.eu/workshops/20-future/66-workshop-on-broadband-access-a-infrastructure-call-for-paper
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