http://www.sdnp.undp.org/observatory/ Networking and ICTD Observatory for Developing Countries http://www.sdnp.undp.org/images/sdnpsmal.gif http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10293&action=view Analysts predict that organisations, including governments, will increasingly source their ICT from around the globe without regard to the ‘country of origin’ or ‘headquarters’ of the vendor supplying the solution, be it software, hardware, telecommunications, IT services, or people. Although there is still a huge gap in the absolute sizes of emerging and mature ICT markets, emerging regions are rapidly catching up with mature markets in IT investments. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10292&action=view Beginning in limited runs next month, XO buyers will have the option of computers loaded with or without Windows. Versions with Windows will cost $18 to $20 more; $3 of that is for Windows, and the rest covers hardware adjustments, like an additional memory-card slot, needed to make Windows run. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10291&action=view What is surprising is that despite a few proven successes in improved governance, the government has not demonstrated the political will to extend IT solutions to other government offices that the public have to visit. The sight of unsightly and ill manned offices with unhelpful clerks in the National Capital and confused clients roaming around under the raging noon day sun surrounded by touts and other unidentifiable characters who seemingly can “fix” any thing is enough to undermine any good that the government might have done in other areas. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10290&action=view Another revelation from Krstić's blog post is that OLPC has absolutely no deployment infrastructure in place to facilitate proper distribution of XO units. He says that this task was largely dumped on Walter Bender, who had no assistance and ultimately decided to leave because he felt that the program and his role in it were becoming a sham. This is perhaps the most problematic of OLPC's failures and it doesn't bode well for the future of the project. Krstić recognized this, but he says that OLPC's leaders were largely unresponsive to his concerns. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10289&action=view Due to the presence of lead and other toxins, electronics -- everything from desktop computers to cell phones and televisions -- pose a significant risk to human health and the environment. In Europe, the waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE) directive was passed in 2006 to force manufacturers of electronics to mitigate these risks by taking back and recycling used product in order to divert it from landfills, illegal dumps and unsafe disassembly practices. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10288&action=view The censorship came as Egypt seeks to promote its information and communication technology industry by hosting the International Telecommunication Union conference, which President Hosni Mubarak opened on Monday. "The website is performing normally with other ISPs, but the technical supervisor of the website informed us that the TE-Data Co. blocked Kefaya website through the IP address." http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10287&action=view I think that regulation can help, and that putting control in the hands of democratically elected governments is far better than putting it in the hands of corporations. However not all governments are good; not all governments are wise and sensible; and not all governments listen to reason. It is therefore necessary to ensure that, whatever the architectures of control on tomorrow's network, there is space for subversion, for activism, for stuff that is not approved, not countenanced by the state, not strictly legal. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10286&action=view The defense ministers of NATO members Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, Italy, Spain and Slovakia are to sign Wednesday's agreement that will ensure funds and staff for the center's operations. The United States will join the project as an observer. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10285&action=view The study conducted by P. Mohanan Pillai and N. Shanta of Centre for Development Studies (CDS) here shows that the initiative launched under the State Kudumbashree Poverty Eradication Programme had failed to tap the full potential of the ICT. Poor women through this programme have made an entry into the lowest spectrum of IT enabled jobs, earning just enough to keep them above the poverty line. If the full potential of this endeavour is attained it can provide much higher incomes and larger employment to the poor, the study notes. http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl?do=gpage&id=10284&action=view A toll-free mobile service being launched in selected remote areas in Africa promises to save lives by connecting people with emergency medical cases to health personnel. NIT Search keyword http://www.sdnp.undp.org/perl/news/articles.pl