The important role that information now plays in the global society
has led many to regard it as the most important national resource
which any country can apply to its own development. In a recent
paper authored by Harland Cleveland, a former US Ambassador to
NATO and President of the University of Hawaii, it is suggested
that the world tends to regard this new resource, information,
in the same way that it has regarded tangible resources or things
such as property, money and raw materials. Dr. Harland argues
that information is not a commodity with physical properties,
and that it displays unique properties that need to be specially
recognized. He proposes the following differences:
information expands as it is used; it tends towards
glut and not scarcity
as information expands it is less hungry for other
resources than were the earlier engines of economic growth
information is substitutable – it can replace
land, labour and capital
information is readily transportable – makes
remoteness a matter of choice
information is porous – it leaks
information is shared, not exchanged – the
message delivered from the seller to the buyer, also remains
with the buyer
Thus, the very essence of information as a resource offers
both new prospects and new concerns to any society that proposes
to harness ICTs in its determination to obtain maximum benefit
from their application. For example, the Malta Workshop addressed
the issue of the protection of privacy in the exchange of data.
Societies need to be aware of the tendency for information to
leak and must define procedures and regulations that inhibit
such leakage. Another important concern arising from both leakage
of information and its tendency to glut, is the impact such massive
amounts of information can have on the cultural imperatives of
a society. Governments may need to provide regulations that safeguard
them against those elements in the tidal wave of information,
which threaten unique cultural and linguistic characteristics.
Delegates also recognized that if ICTs are to be widely applied
in support of sustainable development, the nation must provide
for universal open access. Such universality is critically
dependent on an effective telecom infrastructure. Unfortunately,
a reliable telecom infrastructure does not exist in all countries,
and where it does exist, as was emphasized in the presentation
by Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization (CTO), its financial
strength may be challenged through the introduction of competitors
through liberalization and the increasing downward pressure on
international settlement rates. Given the importance of an effective
infrastructure, the delegates agreed that emphasis within the
Commonwealth needed to continue to focus on the improvement of
such basic services. In that regard, they welcomed the important
role played by the CTO in training and capacity building of national
telecoms.
Nevertheless, the introduction in the very near future of global
satellite-based mobile telecommunication services offers the opportunity
to those countries with weak land-based telecom infrastructures
to leap-frog ahead. Adding to this the fact that prices for both
hardware and software for the application of ICT continue to diminish,
most countries in development have a major window of opportunity
to put information and communications technology to work for their
sustainable economic development.
It was recognized by all of the delegates that any nation which
failed to join in the application of ICTs would be applying a
form of protectionism which would so severely limit their access
to the world economy and the benefits of global commerce, that
they would be doomed to economic stagnation – a form of slow
suicide. The danger remains that the world will be divided into
haves and have nots, not because of access to natural
resources or industrial capital, but because of a lack of access
to information, and to an ability to communicate with others in
the global marketplace. The responsibility to guard against this
development remains with national governments, who must undertake
as a priority, to develop the required models for development
of both infrastructure services and the application of
information and communications technologies, which are appropriate
to their country. The Commonwealth is in a unique position to
assist in the support of such national efforts through the provision
of shared experiences and the development of best practices.
Returning to the primary focus of the workshop, it was noted
that even with the best telecom and ICT infrastructure in the
world, unless the national business enterprises, acting as the
engines of the economy, fully participated in the application
of information and communication technologies to their own business,
its availability would result in little benefit to the nation.
The workshop reviewed several important applications of information
and communication technologies as they affect trade and investment
promotion. These included such items as:
-
open access to public services by the government sector
-
dissemination of procurement opportunities from both public and private sector
-
display of market and trade information for business purposes
-
provision for the matching of business opportunities.
-
development of new electronic information commodities, such as specially prepared databases offering analysis of statistical information
-
completion of trading and business transactions, including EDI and actual electronic commerce including payment
Most critical in this regard would be the involvement of small
and medium enterprises (SMEs) since they formed the largest employment
sector in most countries, and offered the best hopes for job creation
and poverty alleviation. Yet, it would be the SMEs that would
be most difficult to enroll, since their financial and human resources
are always stretched, and their focus exclusively on what would
serve the interests of their business and not on a perceived national
benefit. The attraction of such enterprises to the application
of ICTs would require extensive promotion and training, would
likely require the involvement of those associations or chambers
which serve the sector, and would be assisted by the development
of new approaches to the delivery of ICTs. Commonwealth assistance
in these activities should be supported and encouraged.
