[Reader-list] ICT and Development Conference (Bangalore, May 2002): Call for Papers

[geert lovink]

Indian Institute of Management Bangalore
Bangalore, India
May 29-31, 2002            http://is.lse.ac.uk/ifipwg94

                          CALL FOR PAPERS

             ICTs and Development : New Opportunities,
                     Perspectives & Challenges

Early encounters of developing countries with ICTs were
characterized by   uncertainty of meeting with an unfamiliar or alien
tool and were distinguished by rare successes and apprehensions
of increasing the developmental divide. Subsequently, as greater
consensus emerged on the potential of these technologies, the
focus was one of localizing associated methodologies and work
practices. Increasingly, however, the potential for enablement and
participation in new economic and governmental systems is visible.
Some of these have been in terms of opportunities for developing
countries provided by new economies for which the conference city
of Bangalore with its cluster of software service providers and
global software companies is a well-publicised example. At a micro
level, ICTs are providing opportunities for individuals and small
firms to participate in economies at a local or larger scale.

ICTs, in addition, provide the unique potential to enable and sustain
communicative participatory processes at global and local levels.
Increasing  access to information and communication media has
often enabled small groups and individuals to be heard on global
debates and forums. They have enabled small cultural and ethnic
groups to overcome disadvantages of physical distance. At a more
local level they are enabling creation of a virtual 'public place'
wherein effective democratic processes of public participation can
take place. For instance, in many developing countries, local
government authorities are actively considering using ICTs as a
means to catalyse initiatives towards democratic decentralization
and the empowerment of citizens to participate in the process of
design and delivery of civic services.  These attempts of using ICTs
are part of a broader agenda of democratic reform in local
governance and typically include a number of other initiatives such
as the formation of decentralized committees, reforms in systems
of administration and privatization of civic services.

On the other hand, many of the old challenges in terms of
inappropriate focus and resource allocation remain.  The cost of
missed opportunities is also increasing. Limitations of existing
structures and decision making processes at higher levels in
conjunction with greater demands placed on them increase the risk
of a reverse spiral of enlarging deprivation. Addressing these
challenges is an essential part of the ongoing debate. We aim to
address these issues and also the evident tension that exists for
developing countries as they try to balance global and local
priorities through the adoption and use of ICTs.

This conference, therefore, aims to examine the new opportunities,
perspectives and challenges provided by information and
communication technologies for developing countries in terms of
the following sub themes:

Participation in global economic activity

o   What are the factors influencing the development of high-
    technology industrial activity in developing countries?  How have
    companies in developing countries used ICTs to participate as
    vendors of goods and services in the global marketplace?
    What have been the constraints in realising this opportunity?
o   What occupations and skills are driving the IT industry, and what
    skills are no longer sought?
o   To what extent does participation in new economic systems
    provide spin offs for the domestic user base within developing
    countries, for example in the public sector?
o   How might the influx of venture capital in developing countries
    alter the geographic profile of the Internet economy?
o   How to theorise about the relationship between IT-led global
    economic activity and socio-economic development within the
    developing countries?

Emergence of new organisational types

o   What have been the experiences of individuals and small
    groups like NGOs advocating developing country point-of-view
    in using new infrastructures to access global platforms?
o   To what extent are Internet-based organisations characterised
    by the specific culture and context in different developing
    country settings?
o   To what extent have new technologies enabled individuals and
    non traditional groups to participate in governance at local and
    national levels?
o   How to theorise about impact of these new organisational types
    which rely on information technology and networks on social and
    political systems in developing countries?


Local governance and socio-economic development

o   How can we characterise new local governance structures
    emerging in many parts of the developing world?  What is the
    role of the private sector in these structures?
o   What has been the experience of non-governmental
    organisations in mediating between citizen groups and
    structures of governance?
o   In what ways have these technologies enabled improvements in
    availability of health services, education and economic
    opportunities to economically disadvantaged areas and groups?
o   In what ways are communities and social interactions changing
    in response to innovations in ICTs?  Are there any measurable
    changes?
o   How can we theorise about the tension facing planners in
    developing countries as they try to mediate between the need to
    participate in new economic systems and socio-economic
    priorities?

                             SUBMISSION

We are interested in receiving research papers, research-in-
progress reports, case studies and proposals for tutorials and
panel discussions, which fall within one or more of the conference
themes.

IMPORTANT DATES

Deadline for receipt of full papers:            31st August 2001
Notification of acceptance of papers: 31st December 2001
Camera Ready manuscript due from authors: 28th February
2002

Formatting Requirements

Documents to be in Microsoft Word, single spaced with a text
length less than 5000 words ( excluding Abstract, diagrams, tables
and references). Cover page should have: Title, Author's names
with affiliations and identification of address
for correspondence  (indicating an  email id) along with an Abstract
of not more than 500 Words. Please do not specify author names
anywhere else other than the cover page. Camera Ready copy may
be requested after acceptance.

Submissions should be sent to either of the two Conference and
Programme Chairpersons:

S. Krishna, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
E-mail: skrishna at iimb.ernet.in

S. Madon, London School of Economics & Political Science.
E-mail: S.Madon at lse.ac.uk

PROGRAMME COMMITTEE

Chrisanthi Avgerou, London, UK. c.avgerou at lse.ac.uk
Abiodun O. Bada, Manchester, UK. a.o.bada at mmu.ac.uk
Jorn Braa, Oslo, Norway. jbraa at ifi.uio.no
Subhash Bhatnagar, Ahmedabad, India.
subhash at iimahd.ernet.in
Gert-Jan de Vreede, Delft, The Netherlands.
gertjanv at sepa.tudelft.nl
Neki Frasheri, Albania. nfra at inima.al
Roger Harris, Sarawak, Malaysia.
roger at mailhost.fit.unimas.my
Richard Heeks, Manchester, UK.
richard.heeks at man.ac.uk
Krisana Kitiyadisai, Bangkok, Thailand.
Krisana.K at Chula.ac.th
Mikko Korpela, Finland. korpela at messi.uku.fi
Renata Lebre La Rovere, Brazil. larovere at gbl.com.br
Esselina Macome, Mozambique.
macome at nambu.uem.mz
Jonathan Miller,Cape Town,SA.                         jonmil at icon.co.za
Eric Monteiro,Trondheim, Norway. eric.monteiro at idi.ntnu.no
Sundeep Sahay, Oslo, Norway. sundeeps at ifi.uio.no
Lucy Suchman, Lancaster, UK. l.suchman at lancaster.ac.uk
Natalia Volkow, Mexico. nvolkow at pres.inegi.gob.mx
Geoff Walsham, Cambridge, UK.
g.walsham at jims.cam.ac.uk