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MISTICA: Book review on community networking

From: Daniel Pimienta ([email protected])
Date: Wed Jan 30 2002 - 16:11:48 AST

>To: [email protected]
>From: claire shearman <[email protected]>
>Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2002 19:33:19 +0000
>Subject: [Globalcn2000] forwarded book review on community networking
>
> From the bytes for all readers list
>
> >Bridging the Digital Divide: Gyandoot � The Model for Community Networks
> >By Rajesh Rajora
> >2002 Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi
> >319 pages

> >Review by Madanmohan Rao ([email protected])
> Extracted from>//Full-length version; January 30, 2002//

> >Well-planned community networking can play a key role in bringing the
> >benefits of IT to rural societies, and the Gyandoot initiative in rural
> >Madhya Pradesh, central India, is perhaps one of the best such exemplars.
> >Rajesh Rajora is an officer of the Indian Administrative Service in Dhar
> >district, where he was instrumental in conceptualizing, installing,
> >managing, and assessing the Gyandoot community centres (�gyandoot�
literally
> >means purveyor of knowledge). Leveraging access via the Intranet and
> >Internet, it represents a sustainable, self-supported model of interactive
> >information services tailored to the local rural communities.
> >The Gyandoot government-to-citizen network won the Stockholm Challenge
Award
> >in 2000 as well as the Computer Society of India�s National Award.
> >The book is must reading for the development community, policymakers,
social
> >scientists, educators, activists, IT specialists, rural entrepreneurs, and
> >all IT professionals with a sense of social responsibility. The material is
> >divided into 12 chapters, covering theoretical models of community access,
> >networking infrastructure, information needs assessment, user behaviour,
> >research findings, and recommendations for other similar projects.
> >The unfolding of events is presented in a step-by-step manner which will be
> >very useful for social activists; the described journey is also fortified
> >with a wealth of data in the form of charts, tables and statistics
capturing
> >patterns of information access, demographic profiles, user attitudes, and
> >diffusion of skillsets. The material is well written, full of
anecdotes, and
> >has touches of humour, quotes and cartoons thrown in as well, thus making
> >for an informative and enjoyable read.
...
> >The book begins by focusing on the digital divide in India, a country
with a
> >strong IT sector but low levels of overall telecom and computer
diffusion as
> >well as inadequate focus on domestic applications.
...
> >�It is critically important, as technology provides us with positive tools,
> >to keep an eye on those who are disadvantaged at the starting point, and to
> >ensure that they have access to these tools so that they do not fall
> >behind,� Rajora urges.
> >�An understanding of computers and their use can be a way out of
poverty and
> >into the mainstream of the informed world. Technology can accelerate the
> >rate of progress for the disadvantaged sections of society, if we make sure
> >that they have access to it,� according to Rajora.
...
> >More information in the book would have been desirable on questions
like the
> >implications of such centres for restructuring of information flows and
> >government department configuration, performance issues like the amount of
> >crowding and length of queues at these community centres, and the overall
> >content management and coordination system.
> >Looking further down the road, Rajora advocates the use of user-friendly
> >voice-recognition technologies and touch-screen interfaces for illiterate
> >users, funding approaches based on local micro-finance and transactions
> >instead of hefty grants from donor agencies, cyberlaws protecting
online use
> >of land records, more sharing of such community centre experiences, and
> >technical assistance programs for capacity building.
> >�Food, clothes, shelter and bandwidth are becoming the necessities for the
> >villages. The rural, illiterate, and tribal community, through
Gyandoot, has
> >shown indubitably that information technology has a substantial role to
play
> >in their lives,� Rajora observes.
> >�Involvement of the community at the planning, execution, and management
> >stage of the network creates faith among the diverse sections of the
> >community; it should be based on value-pull and not tech-push. Human
> >bandwidth is more important than volume bandwidth. Sharing stories
about how
> >citizens are benefiting is the best way to help people understand the
> >benefits of the network,� Rajora concludes.

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