An Information Society in Africa?

Abstract

The widespread belief in the benefits of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in a developmental context is shared and fostered by international organizations. In recent years they have introduced a multitude of programmes and initiatives in this field. This article sets out to critically analyse the formal ICT policy of three international organizations, namely the World Bank, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). In order to do so, policy is analysed according to three dichotomies which are central to the debate on the Information Society: materialism/idealism, technophilia/technophobia and market/state. As is the case for Europe, it is argued that discourses on the Information Societies in developing countries often do not transcend these simplistic dichotomic pairs.

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