Professional Documents
Culture Documents
IT Information technology
1 Introduction..............................................................................................................................4
2 Terms of reference and objectives...........................................................................................5
2.1 Objectives..........................................................................................................................6
2.2 Terms of Reference...........................................................................................................6
3 Methodology............................................................................................................................6
4 Key concepts............................................................................................................................7
5 ICT, NRM and local development.........................................................................................10
5.1 Overview.........................................................................................................................10
5.2 ICTs in NRM and local development: Past and current experiences ............................13
5.2.1 ICT Projects and initiatives .....................................................................................13
5.2.2 Researchers and research organizations ..................................................................25
5.2.3 ACACIA - IDRC ....................................................................................................27
5.3 Lessons learnt and challenges ahead ..............................................................................29
6 Using ICTs to meet new challenges in NRM and local development...................................31
6.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................31
6.2 Disaster risk management...............................................................................................32
6.2.1 Climate change.........................................................................................................34
6.2.2 Food security............................................................................................................35
6.3 Decision making ............................................................................................................36
7 Emerging issues for further research and action: Some suggestions for discussion..............41
7.1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................41
7.2 Using ICTs to strengthen Decision Making Processes for Local Development.............41
7.3 Using PGIS for an enabling land reform policy and conflict prevention ......................42
7.4 ICTs and EcoHealth: Reinforcing trans-disciplinary research methods ........................44
7.5 Web 2: Changing the face of local development?.........................................................44
8 Conclusion.............................................................................................................................46
9 Bibliography...........................................................................................................................48
10 Annex A: Internal consultations..........................................................................................53
11 Annex B: External consultations..........................................................................................53
12 Annex C: Internet resources.................................................................................................53
1 INTRODUCTION
In natural resource management (NRM) and local development ICTs have until now
been applied in a variety of ways and for a range of purposes, and continues to have
an increased impact on activities. Whether they are mobile phones to facilitate
communication among communities, internet to access and diffuse information, or
satellite images to support territorial management, including managing land rights,
ICTs offer tremendous possibilities that are being implemented across the continent.
In sub-Saharan African (SSA) the use of ICT for development (ICT4D) is more recent
than in the North. Today there have been a large number of initiatives and research,
across the development field. The literature is mostly addressing these by domain,
such and water, forest, and land management and not from an ICT4D perspective in
general as it by its very nature a trans-disciplinary field.
Institutions such as IDRC has played a critical role in addressing this knowledge gap
and ensuring more knowledge of the ICTs applied to development is available, and in
pushing for further research and knowledge of the area.
This background paper will firstly attempt to give an overview over current initiatives
around ICT, NRM and local development, through a review of available literature.
The overview will be followed by a selection of case studies, documenting initiatives
where ICT plays a prominent role and suggestions for further research and projects
to inspire discussion for the future research programme. This is as part of a process
to develop a pan African research programme exploring ICT innovations in, and the
consequences of their possible application to NRM and local development.
ICT4D, NRM and local development are extensive fields, and it is not possible to
address all aspects in this paper but only what has been found to be of greatest
current importance. When applying ICT to local development and NRM, it has been
found that the most important challenges that local communities are currently facing
are the responsibilities that have been transferred to them through recent
decentralization. In this document this aspect will thus be deliberately focused upon
on along with the ICTs that are of most relevance to these communities meeting their
new responsibilities.
The objectives of this background paper are to: i) guide and stimulate the discussions
at the regional IDRC ICT and local development workshop which will take place in
May 2009 in Dakar; ii) contribute to the exploratory phase for the development and
adoption of their related pan-African research programme.
The paper will not provide a complete review of the current ICT initiatives around
NRM and local development in SAA, as this would involve longer term research and
consultations, but it does aim to further inspire the workshop participants and the
research agenda developments.
The specific terms of reference for the paper are to provide a review of current
developments in the field of ICT and NRM, in Africa and around the world.
Specifically the Terms of Reference are to:
3 METHODOLOGY
The preparation of this paper has been done in the framework of the exploratory
phase for the development of the IDRC pan-African research programme and with
the view to stimulate and inspire discussions at the May 09 workshop. No original
research was conducted during its preparation, as the ultimate objective is to give to
the participants attending the workshop an overview of current developments in the
field of ICT, NRM and local development and suggestions for potential research
avenues on ICT4D for NRM.
It is based on a short period desk study and draws from existing practice and thinking
related to the use of ICT in NRM and local development.
The methodology for preparing the paper included the following steps: i) review of the
available literature and; ii) internal consultations with Enda TM and LEAD experts;
and iii) consultations with members of IDRC’s ACACIA programme, and; iv) feedback
from consultations with external experts in different fields such as ICT, NRM and
gender around specific aspects. Some of the main questions and issues raised in the
4 KEY CONCEPTS
During meetings and workshops it important that all participants have a common
understanding of the key concepts they are addressing.
Since this document is an introductory note for a workshop, which will be attended by
experts and specialists from different backgrounds and perspectives, it is useful to
present and discuss some of the key concepts and references used in the document.
By doing so the purpose is to delineate the scope of the concepts and put them into
perspective rather than providing a strict definition accepted by all and to encourage
participants at the workshop to agree on the same operational meaning for each
concept.
The term natural resources refer to a wide range of environmental assets, which
include air, water, land, plants, animals and micro organisms. All these assets are
interconnected to form complex ecosystems of varying scale such as rivers, lakes
and wetlands, estuaries and coasts, forests, fields, geological systems and
resources, and mountains2.
Natural resource management seeks to manage resources in a sustainable manner
for the long term, achieving a balance between economic and social development
and the need to protect the environment. What really determine the success of
natural resource management is the level of community involvement and the
adoption of ecologically sustainable practices across the community.
It is in reference to the significance of the role of the communities in Natural
Resource management, that the research community came up with the Concept of
Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM).
1
Social Entrepreneurship Development Center, LUMS McGill http://sedc.org.pk/portal/general/theme_desc.php?themeid=57
2
Op.cit.
INRM can be defined as the responsible and broad-based management of the land,
water, forest and biological resources base - including genes - needed to sustain
agricultural productivity and avert degradation of potential productivity (TAC 1997).
3
CGIAR Inter-Center Working Group on INRM, 2000
“ICT, NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT”
BACKGROUND PAPER PREPARED BY ENDA LEAD AFRICA FOR THE IDRC REGIONAL ICT AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP,
9
MAY 2009
computing, and the Open Access agenda; iv) Regulation of the ICT Sector and digital
rights: Universal Access vs. monopolistic structures, Intellectual Property Rights,
privacy, security, and digital identity.
ICT refers to a spectrum of technologies and means that are related to computing,
online and virtual technologies and processes; the combination of hardware and
software and the means of production that enable the exchange, processing and
management of information and knowledge.
They include for instance technologies that link producers to the market (e.g. mobile
phone), assist local communities to map their territory and plan for their natural
resources management (PGIS for forestry and land management), allow online
education and health services (internet), help coordinate social movements and
campaigns etc., traditional technologies like community radio broadcasting, and
newspapers that are now having a greater reach and impact due to digitalisation.
5.1 Overview
The management of natural resources has never been an easy task and as the
majority of the world and especially Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in particular is facing
increasing threats to its resources, and thus development in general. As those
threats are being further exacerbated by climate change, the challenge is only
increasing
The advancement of ICT and the tools it brings to development are an invaluable and
essential addition to addressing these challenges and an addition that deserves and
is already playing a key role in the response.
In SSA in general the most recent major change to natural resources governance is
the new responsibilities (management of land and forests etc.) transferred to local
communities, which have resulted from the decentralization process. Local actors are
obliged to develop new approaches and adopt new decision-making systems in order
to meet their new responsibilities as to manage local development and thus also the
NRM process. Two main concerns arise from this:
i) The commitment and inclusion of all stakeholders in the NRM and local
development planning process to ensure that the concerns of all
including the socially disadvantaged are taken into account,
ii) The harmonization of local interventions that are implemented by several
types of institutional bodies intended to be complementary, but are
generally competitors (government services, development projects, local
communities, NGOs, social organizations, etc.). It becomes essential to
promote overall coherence of activities undertaken in the field, by
fostering dialogue to guide these interventions (systems of financing
modalities to support local ownership use of proximity operators, etc.).
4
Fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change (2007)
5
http://esa.un.org/unpp/p2k0data.asp
Current estimated population in Africa is just above 1 billion and 860 million in SSA. http://esa.un.org/unpp/p2k0data.asp
Of course ICTs are also further assisting some of the natural resource ‘mis-
management’ however for the purpose of this paper the focus will be on initiatives
that further the management of natural resources and attempt to benefit local
communities and their development.
During the last two decades the development of information and communications
technologies (ICTs) and their application to local development have increased rapidly
all over the world.
ICT is creating new market opportunities, enabling new sources of finance and
improving opportunities for trade across the world, at all levels and now plays an
increasing role in local development.
Natural resource management in local development has the possibility to benefit from
ICTs in a variety of ways, especially through removing some of the risks and
uncertainties associated with NRM, such as from variable rain fall, soil erosion, pests,
disease, climate change, fluctuating market prices etc, and enabling the access to
timely information of which this field is so dependant. This has been the case over
the last decades in the ‘developed’ parts of the world, where ICT is part of more or
less all natural resource management processes.
In SSA, the application of ICT, has not reached the same level as the ‘northern’
countries, however there has been a great increase in the access and use of the
internet, mobile phones and other ICTs. For example, according to ITU usage of
mobile phones has gone from 16 million mobile phone subscribers in 2000, to 136
million in 2005. Consequently, local actors, such as community groups, authorities
and individuals are increasingly using ICTs, for purposes such as obtaining
information from the internet, communicating via mobiles and interacting with the
media, which furthers their knowledge of and influence on local development matters.
Given the opportunities ICT bring the development arena in SSA, there has been
great interest in ICT in SSA from NEPAD to the Africa Commission, in areas such as
The following two sections will present, in more detail, some of the research, action
research and other practical initiatives that have and/or are currently underway as a
result of these developments. Possible avenues for further research and discussion
will then be addressed based around some of the key challenges facing local
development and NRM today and in the foreseeable future.
5.2 ICTs in NRM and local development: Past and current experiences
ICTs and their application in local development, have only been really noticeable in
SSA over the last two decades, and begun to have a measurable impact over the last
5-10 years. The common usage has been mainly around facilitating communication
such as use of the mobile phone, and some communities (mainly urban) benefiting
from access to information via the internet.
A multitude of projects and initiatives utilising ICT for NRM and local development
have been implemented over the last decade. Mapping for land management, GIS
for surveying resources, GPS for tracking wild life as just a few of these. The
application of ICT is not only used for top down initiatives, but also to ensure that
local communities are able to be directly involved in decision and planning
processes.
6
Heeks, R (2007) e-Africa and m-Africa, How ccan ICTs deliver, Centre for Development Informatics, IDPM, University of Manchester,
UK, p 1
7
Op. Cit.
8
http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=75122
“ICT, NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT”
BACKGROUND PAPER PREPARED BY ENDA LEAD AFRICA FOR THE IDRC REGIONAL ICT AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP,
13
MAY 2009
The intention here is not to show all the applications of ICT to development and
NRM, as clarified above, but examples from the literature where local communities
are being aided by ICT to manage the responsibilities transferred to them by recent
decentralisation. The examples are grouped around five main areas; Community-
based resource management (GIS, PGIS); accessing market and generating income
(Mobile phones); monitoring carbon stocks (mobile GIS); tracking wildlife (PDA) and;
multi purpose development projects.
5.2.1.1 Using GIS and PGIS for community-based resource management (forests,
water, land)
The following examples shows how GIS and digital imaging is fighting forest fires
(South Africa); enabling large scale NRM and community participation (the Congo
Basin), community based natural resource management (Namibia); land use
management and harnessing ICT for land reform (Senegal); and combating crop
disease and enabling agricultural forecasting (Uganda).
• South Africa: Fighting forest fires: Digital imaging, GIS and Firehawk
software
Firehawk works through sending images from the digital video cameras to the
Kwambonambi Operations Centre where the Firehawk software analyses the
images. The software can distinguish between fire, smoke and glow and
automatically raise alarm. The cameras can further be operated from the central
Operations centre and be used to zoom in on the affected areas. The software is
The enterprise has been running for over 10 years and is continually
expanding its operations to deliver services to yet more areas and to upgrade the
effectiveness of the Firehawk system.
The Central African Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE) is an USAID
initiative involving a consortium of government and NGO partners, which works to
reduce the rate of forest degradation and loss of biodiversity by supporting the
increase of local, national, and regional natural resource management capacity. This
is mainly done through a landscape approach to NRM using, amongst other, tropical
forest zoning maps consisting of high-resolution satellite images that have been
combined with geographic information system (GIS) data sets containing information
on the vegetation as well as socio-economic data. This information assist the
planning and monitoring for the areas such, as for example the communities and
policy makers in identifying which forest areas and plant and animal species are
under threat from logging, cultivation and other human activities.
The Congo Basin covers a vast area and is in many areas unknown territory. Prior to
the production of the maps, knowledge of the region was limited. The work of CARPE
and their partners using the information gathered about the natural resources is now
helping the protection of the area and the management of the natural resources,
protecting wildlife, monitoring logging and efforts to combat climate change.
The CARPE program was initiated in 1995 and initially proposed as a 20-year
regional initiative divided three strategic phases. On completion of the second phase
in 2011, the third and final phase will run until 2016, when the activities will be turned
over to Central African institutions.
9
http://www.zfps.co.za/ and http://ictupdate.cta.int/en/(issue)/19
In order to better control the potential for conflict between different stakeholders, the
rural council of Ross-Béthio in the Saint-Louis region in Senegal, developed and
implemented with partners ‘POAS’ (Plan d’Occupation et d’Affectation des Sols - land
use plan). The POAS ‘tool’ was developed by and with the rural communities to
"control" their land under new decentralization structures.
"The POAS is considered a framework to guide local managers for planning and
development at the local level. It is also a tool for dialogue between people and
institutions, which can enrich or influence the conduct of any operational planning
and development in light of the constraints of land use and their impact" (d'Aquino et
10
http://www.tropicalforesttrust.com/index.php
11
www.irdnc.org.na and http://ictupdate.cta.int/en/Feature-Articles/ICTs-in-Namibia-s-communal-area-conservancies
This plan which development process was conducted jointly by research institutions
and rural councils between 1997 and 1999 had on three major objectives:
From an operational point of view, the POAS has three essential elements
• Rules governing the management of space and natural resources in a land
where competition has been exacerbated by the transfer of frontier areas in
the rural community of Ross-Béthio;
The process was aided by satellite imaging and GIS enabling the operational
planning process and development regulation in relation to all farming and pastoral
land. The visual tools aided the discussions and involvement of the local
stakeholders who were involved and continue to be involved in all aspects of the
POAS framework.
The latest developments (2009) resulting from the POAS framework are; formal
registration of cattle trails and water points; the formulation of a regulatory framework
to improve relations between farmers and pastoralists; and local development plans
for agricultural/pastoral activities. Furthermore the region of Ross Bethio has been
able to further monitor desertification and are implementing projects involving all
stakeholders to improve local conditions resulting from desertification.
The Organisation for National Dialogue and Rural Cooperation (CNCR) - an umbrella
organisation of farmers’ organisations in Senegal – conducted, between 2000 and
2004, a study of the farmer movement on land reform. The purpose of this study was
the formulation by farmers themselves of proposals for amendments to the national
The proposals made by rural people have emphasized, among other things, the
transformation of property rights into land titles. In the opinion of CNCR, the new
legislation should recognize the rights holders’ possibility, at any time to, transform it
into a lease or land title. For this option not to cause a rush for the registration of
lands and not be circumvented by the holders of capital, a discouraging land tax will
be fixed for those who do not have a development project sufficiently profitable to pay
property taxes.
The registration of land is a real challenge. The boundary approach currently adopted
by the technical services (Land and Tax department) is not satisfactory. Indeed,
these services are located in the administrative centres of regions, and the
mobilization of surveyors to demarcate the plots, making sketches and records is too
expensive for farmers and unprofitable, in the case of lands having a low level of
productivity. While the NDA allows the grantee who is developing a piece of land to
have it registered, in order to obtain a land title or lease, there are very few people
who have done this, due to the high costs.
The pilot has distributed mobile phones with cameras (cost US$30 to $330 – testing
different models in the pilot) to community workers from farmers groups who are then
collecting the data, which then gets sent on to the foundations database for
agricultural forecasting.
The above examples go some way to show how ICTs are invaluable assets to NRM.
PGIS is especially showing itself as a key tool to aid the decision making process in a
‘decentralised’ setting, and aid the local community to meet their new NRM
responsibilities. From large scale mapping and land reform challenges in the
example from Ross Bethio in Senegal, to the smaller scale mapping exercises in
Namibia, the decision making process is aided by the availability of participatory
processes. This enables the involvement of all stakeholders, be they government
bodies, community members or organisations, that all have a stake in the usage of
natural resources and the local development plans.
5.2.1.2 Using mobile telephones for accessing market and generating income
The mobile phone is the most commonly used communication tool and no longer just
a tool for making calls but increasingly a communications package, with camera,
GPS and internet access among some of the possible functions. The below graph
depicts the dramatic increase in mobile subscribers and penetration in Africa in the
period from 2002 to where it is expected in 2012.13
12
http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=83805
13
International Télécommunications Union (ITU)
The example below show how mobiles are allowing farmers and fishermen/women in
Senegal to access current market information, lessening transaction costs and
making the agricultural sector more effective.
The applications of the system have been extended to include health and e-
governance:
• e-government applications – Online land registration and management by
local authorities and GIS mapping linked to GPS.
These initiatives and businesses is happening across the continent, taking advantage
of the widespread use of mobiles with great success and having a measurable
impact on the incomes of the local population.
As mentioned above the mobile is no longer just a phone, but increasingly able to
handle applications such as GPS and GIS etc. In the following example the mobile
combined with GIS software is enabling communities to monitor their carbon stocks
in areas of East and West Africa.
• East Africa, West Africa and the Himalayas: for monitoring carbon
stocks: Mobile GIS
The University of Twente (Netherlands) and ITC along with partners such as ENDA
14
http://www.manobi.sn/sites/sn/
This example again shows how the gathering of information in GIS, in this case
carbon stocks, is enabling the community to have documented records of their
natural resources. This combined with access to information on initiatives such as
CDM through the project, and possibility to apply to these initiatives, is thus giving
them more control of their environment.
PDA (Personal digital Assistant) or handheld computer is not only being used in its
ability to store data ‘on the go’, but can now also act as a mobile phones, web
browsers, or as a portable media player. In the example from Botswana it is used for
tracking wildlife, by enabling trackers to record their observations.
Software like ‘CyperTracker’ for devices like the PDA and mobiles, are becoming
increasingly accessible, which further adds to the possibilities for the involvement of
local communities in the management of their natural resources. In this case it is
wildlife, but it can of course be applied to all areas of NRM and local development. It
has been adapted to the local conditions (taking illiteracy and innumeracy into
consideration) instead of using applications made for other purposes, increasing the
chances of success of the initiatives.
As with the carbon stocks project above, initiatives such as these goes towards
adding to the ‘library’ and access to knowledge of natural resources on local levels
thus easing management and local development.
5.2.1.5 ICT for multi purpose development projects: towards the MDGs and social
change
As seen in the above examples a combination of ICT tools are usually used in
projects and initiatives, which is also the case for multi purpose development projects
that aims to aid more facets of local development. Examples such as the
Mogalakwena HP i-Community below show the possibilities of introducing some of
the ICT tools to the grassroots, where local solutions to NRM and implementation of
ICT can then be supported.
Technologies in the project and facilities created include: computer literacy training
rooms (33 Multi-user 441 Desktop Solution personal computers18, a business
resources centre, a call centre, a multimedia studio, a PC refurbishing centre, and a
satellite office has also been established. The entire Mogalakwane area is networked
16
www.cybertracker.co.za
17
An “i-community” is a community where ICT infrastructure is deployed to create sustainable social and economic development. This is
measured according to tangible criteria such as literacy, skills enhancement, job creation, income, access to government services, healthcare
and education, etc
18
The HP441 is an Open Source computing system that allows 4 users to operate simultaneously and independently from one computer
using separate keyboards and monitors.
The project has been able to produce a number of graduates from the training
programmes, many of them women and many are now employed locally or have
been recruited by national companies. It is the first place in South Africa to have a
multilingual, municipal and community web site and it has developed an internet-
based radio station and a web-design cultural audio-video centre helping to preserve
the region’s cultural heritage. It is also the first ICDL training and testing centre for
open source software.
Multi purpose projects, such as the above project example from South Africa, goes to
address more community needs, such as capacity building, infrastructure and
awareness, as opposed to many of the single objective projects and initiatives. It
enables fuller participation from the community and is better able to respond to
community needs and requirements. Raising awareness, delivering training and
allowing access to ICT tools, also furthers the possibility for the communities to
develop locally suitable application of the tools, as opposed to when they are simply
trained to use one kind of ICT application.
In development where goals, such as the MDGs, are increasingly important, the multi
purpose project approach is possibly more effective, however questions of how it can
be made sustainable remains. Addressing an issue such as ICT in NRM in isolation
is not possible, and all social aspects needs to be taken into consideration to achieve
sustainability, and this is of course also the case with the choice of approach.
The examples above show many interesting developments in the application of ICT
to local development and all of their experiences go towards strengthening
knowledge of possibilities in the area. Whether it goes further than the specific
project area and whether the lessons learnt go on to influence policies on a regional
and national level is though questionable. Also the fact that the projects and
initiatives are mainly initiated and funded by external parties, leads to questions of
sustainability of the application of ICTs to NRM in local development. This has been
a central challenge for many projects, including for IDRC’s ACACIA initiative, where
similar conclusions were made after their first phase of research and piloting.
The responsibilities for NRM has been ‘decentralized’ but very often no further
capacity building or strengthening of local infrastructure take place to enable the local
actors to deliver on their new responsibilities. Ensuring that they have the knowledge
of and access to the ICT tools that can aid the development process of local
In Africa, research around ICT4D and NRM is done at various levels and by a
plurality of organizations that are more or less in interaction. National organizations
include public universities (which often host research institutes), in particular their
engineering departments and research organizations. These national organisations
will often team up with universities, research institutes, government agencies from
developed countries (e.g. IRD, CIRAD, ITC, IIED), regional centres (e.g.
AGRHYMET, OSS, I2R), UN agencies and international NGOs (e.g. IUCN, WWF,
Enda) and research centres (ICRISAT, CIAT, WARDA). Often cutting edge ICT4D
NRM research originates or is led by organisations from developed countries,
regional and International organisations or by individuals from SSA with tight links
with them. This is changing, though, as more and more technological capacity is
found in African organisations. The private sector is also a crucible of NRM research
(e.g. export agriculture, renewable energies, impact assessment) and often involves
consulting firms from African and from developed countries. While still timid, there is
also some research linked to private universities, utilities companies, etc.
There are different types of research involved in ICT4D, each type having their own
priorities according to their mission. Academic research would tackle a development
problem, but is not necessarily accountable for adoption of research results: the main
goal is to produce scientific knowledge. On the other hand action-research19, which
is less known in the academe20, is geared towards development and often involves
national and international NGOs and centres such as CGIAR21 Some universities
such as UGB (Saint-Louis) are also more integrated into local and regional
development. It is good to note that some will use the term “research” to label a
process that is not, in fact, a true process of investigation, but instead a process of
transferring research results (in general this will not lead to scientific publications but
instead is building on them). There are essentially two ways of implementing action-
research: a) researcher’s led process, where researchers team with practitioners or
sub-contract them; b) development led process, where practitioners will team with
researchers or subcontract them.
19
According to Beaulieu et Orindi (2008) action-research is a process to find knowledge, solutions or means to improve a situation, which
implies implementing actions in the field and evaluations of the impact of these actions
20
A notable exception in West Africa is ENEA which is very much driven –and involved- in local development issues
21
CGIAR is a strategic alliance of members, partners and international agricultural centres that mobilizes science to benefit the poor.
www.cgiar.org
The table below show a few examples in SSA that has been successful or
promising22.
22
*Type or organization: U:University or institute; S: State institution; A: State Agency; P: Private; N: National; I: International; NGO: non
governmental organization; Reg: Regional; I: international ; [SSA: sub Saharan Africa; DC: developed country; R: research; Organization]
**Type of research: R: academic research; AR: action research; DR: application of research results to development; I: interdisciplinary; T:
thesis
The programme started in 1997 with Phase 1, which mission was to explore the
potential of the internet on poor, rural people23. The programme supported the
development of rural internet centres/telecentres and measured the impact of these
initiatives. Furthermore support was given to the development of ICT policies in
African countries to enable the use of ICTs for development. The lessons from this
first phase were especially that of the difficulties in “creating sustainable, affordable
23
http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-8455-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html
The second phase (2001-2005) continued the work from phase 1, however more in
the way of research, compared the pilot activities of phase 1. The programme
focused on researching more sustainable and appropriate access models and ICT
innovation for the African context, such as lower cost technologies and effective
policy reform to bring down the cost of access. It furthermore sought to support
African initiatives on content in response to the findings from phase 1.
Acacia, now in the middle of the third phase (2006–2011), has three core research
themes that serve as a framework for the programme:
The specific objectives and measurable outcomes for the third phase have been set
as:
• Sustained Policy Dialogue: While ICTs have the potential to enhance social
and economic development, policy inevitably lags behind in this fast-changing
field. Acacia is committed to fostering ongoing, robust dialogues among
ICT4D researchers, policy-makers, and other key policy-related bodies.
24
Acacia Prospectus 2006-2001, Acacia, http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-113431-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html p 9
25
Op.Cit
• More Social and Technical Innovation in ICTs: ICTs are enablers of both
social and technical innovation and Africa is home to a great deal of
innovation especially around the adaptation of low-cost ICTs to African needs
and conditions. In the next five years, we expect to stimulate innovation in the
development and use of new ICTs including mobile telephony, wireless
broadband, alternative policies and intellectual property regimes26.
Acacia have furthermore identified key areas of interest alongside the research,
which are remittances, PGIS and digital human rights27
ACACIA currently has a variety of studies and projects underway that are very
relevant to NRM and local development, such as a scoping study on ICTs and small
scale agriculture, environment and natural resources management in Benin, Ghana,
Madagascar, Malawi, Kenya and Uganda, and a scale up of electronic government in
Fez in Morocco. The experiences of their studies and experiences over the last
decade have had a major influence on the field and hopefully will continue to do so.
As seen above the ACACIA programme currently focus their research around policy
dialogue, strengthening research networks, strengthening research capacity on
ICT4D, and social and technical innovation in ICTs.
In their 2006-2011 prospectus one of the main challenges to the research and
research in general in this area is that of speed of publication. ICT is a fast moving
field and for research to be relevant it will need to be able to keep pace to have an
impact on developments. The ‘new’ ICT tools themselves are of course also helping
the research efforts as researchers start having access to the various databases that
are slowly becoming established along with improved communication tools etc.
In this regard the emphasis of ACACIA to work towards strengthening the research
efforts on ICT4D on the continent is commendable. Currently they are amongst only
a few research institutions based in SSA that focus on the area and any expansion of
this can only be of value. Research agenda’s are often driven by institutions from the
‘North’, and even though these attempt to take the agenda of the national and
regional entities in question into consideration, and deliver useful research, the ability
to ensure integrated and effective results, without being based in the research
locations can be questioned.
Through the examination of the current initiatives it has furthermore been noticed that
gender is yet to be fully integrated into the discourse around ICT and NRM. However
there are interesting developments and the literature review revealed previous,
current and ongoing research and initiatives around ICT and gender. The recent
CGIAR Gender & Diversity Bulletin (Gender & Diversity News, No 84, April 2009)
provides information of the most recent research on gender and Information and
Communication Technologies.
Another interesting recent source of information, in this case around policy, gender
and ICT, is GenderIT.org. Here, the inequalities occasioned by unequal access to
ICTs by men and women in particular are highlighted, along with the latest research
and publications from the field.
In the case of sub-Saharan Africa one of the most recent publications is “African
Women and ICTs: Investigating Technology, Gender and Empowerment”. It explores
how women in Africa use ICTs for empowerment and is based on an extensive
research project. It discusses issues such as ICTs against gender-based violence,
ICTs for empowerment and as agents of change amongst many others.28
The information society and its essential characteristics continue to change and
introduce new flavors to this societal issue. The question of the direction of change is
still blurred and there is no mutual understanding among the academics whether
ICTs will in fact narrow or exacerbate the existing gendered divisions in the society. It
does, however, remain evident that women are not as strongly associated in the
development project of the information society as men are. Some individual projects
do target women and women’s empowerment around ICTs, however further analysis
on the gender dimension and how it affects the development, choice and
implementation on ICTs around NRM and local development, is yet to be fully
explored. Again the ACACIA programme is determined in its third phase to further
support and develop research in this area, which can only positively contribute to the
developments around ICT, NRM and local development
28
AFRICAN WOMEN AND ICTs: Investigating Technology, Gender and Empowerment; ed. I. Buskens, A. Webb, Zed/IDRC, 2009
6.1 Introduction
The Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) has estimated
that each year, close to 250 million people around the world are affected by drought,
floods, cyclones, earthquakes, wildfires and others hazards29. Increasing population
density, environmental degradation, global warming and poverty compound the
impact of these events. Figures show that the average annual number of disasters
occurring in Africa rise by 25 percent every year.30
The deep running trend connected to the increase in the risk of catastrophes calls for
a new way of managing the disasters. For this reason, the concept of Disaster Risk
Management (DRM) is one of the most important challenges of the new century, and
the governing decisions made by and for local communities for issues related to
development, have never been so critical as today.
The chapter will address some of the new challenges and emerging issues to the
application of ICT to NRM and local development, such as disaster management in
relation with climate change, food security etc. Furthermore decision making
processes are addressed and how the application of ICTs, in research, data
collection and storage, knowledge management, monitoring and evaluation, and
decision support systems, can contribute to these processes and towards improving
NRM and targeting local development challenges.
29
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, Emergency Disaster Database.
30
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
The international community has formulated many strategies and policies aiming
towards disaster risk reduction, such as the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015,
aimed at building the resilience of nations and communities to disasters32. The scope
of this Framework for Action encompasses disasters caused by hazards of natural
origin and related environmental and technological hazards and risks. It reflects a
holistic and multi hazard approach to disaster risk management and the relationship,
between them which can have a significant impact on social, economic, cultural and
environmental systems,
In the case of SSA strategies and frameworks such as the Africa Regional Strategy
for Disaster Risk Reduction and New Partnership for Africa’s Development exist
along with sub regional strategies. These frameworks and strategies call for the
integration of disaster risk reduction in development policies; advocacy, resource
mobilisation and capacity building; technological development and regional
cooperation.
31
http://www.unisdr.org/eng/library/lib-terminology-eng%20home.htm
32
http://unisdr.org/wcdr/intergover/official-doc/L-docs/Hyogo-framework-for-action-english.pdf
33
Disaster Risk Reduction in West and Central Africa: Local perspectives, Enda Tiers Monde/ProVention, 2008
p.91
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4. Strengthen community capacities by training and raising the awareness of the
actors involved, allocating sufficient resources for this purpose and developing
partnerships among the main actors
5. Include disaster risk reduction in policies, strategies and programmes
formulated at the community level
ICTs have a key part to play in achieving these goals and implementing the above
actions, from the research, data collection and storage, establishment of knowledge
and management systems, decision support systems and early warning systems
through ICTs. The technology is available; however the access to the tools and the
knowledge and capacity to implement them is still a challenge.
Initiatives such as the ‘The Advancing ICT for disaster risk management (DRM) in
Africa’ (AIDA) project, which is run by a number of partner organisations and
institutions (VITO, ITC, EUMETSAT, NetQI, GEOSAT Technology, Tech sans
frontiers, ARU, IER, FUTM CSIR34) aims to share knowledge about affordable ICT
solutions in the support of disaster risk management in Africa. AIDA recognises that
the majority of the actors are able to access ICT for DRM, thus they are working to:
reduce the risk of natural disasters; improve the capacity to respond to disasters; fill
the ICT information GAP; promote existing successful ICT solutions; open
GEONETCast35 for alerting purposes; strengthen the European leadership in ICT
solutions; and to pave the road for a long-term ICT cooperation with Africa.
One of the most impressive examples of initiatives currently being implemented is not
in SSA, but in India. It is the nationwide community watershed management
programme, implemented by the central government, in where satellites assist
planning activities, monitor progress in the many community disaster rehabilitation
schemes, and evaluate the impact of projects. This process has lead to further
34
http://aida.vgt.vito.be/partners.html
35
GEONETCast is a near real time, global network of satellite-based data dissemination systems designed to distribute space-based, air-
borne and in situ data, metadata and products to diverse communities.
Applying this to SSA would be of great benefit, because the region is amongst the
most vulnerable to disasters. Implementing these would involve solving many
organisational challenges that would need to be overcome to enable this to happen
and further cooperation between nations to combine resources and capacity36.
Climate change and DRM are inseparable topics today, and the impact of climate
change in SSA is predicted to be severe. Global warming will in fact affect Africa
most and especially West and Central Africa are predicted to experience some of the
highest temperature increases anywhere in the world. The range of impacts will
affect agriculture and water resources, food security, coastal zones and human
health. Other key assets at risk include natural resources as well as transport
infrastructure (roads, bridges, airports and ports), energy infrastructure, water and
sanitation systems and coastal defences. The situation will be worsened by the
interaction of various other social, economical, technological and institutional factors
related to development. These include extreme poverty, the rapid growth of the
population, lack of access to finance, technology and information, the degradation of
the environment, and conflicts.
Thus the mitigation of climate change can be aided on many areas by ICT, however
as important as mitigation is in SSA, adaptation is even more so.
36
http://ictupdate.cta.int/en/Feature-Articles/Real-time-satellite-data-for-natural-resources-management
37
ITU and CC - www.itu.int/themes/climate
The causes of food crises are multiple and complex and climate change has a
profound and unavoidable effect on these, such as increasing temperatures and
shifting rain patterns causing reduced access to food across the continent. Recently
food production and food shortages, has again hit the headlines, not only due to
climate change but also the financial crisis, bio-fuel production, and oil price
fluctuations38.
Climate change affects African food systems in the broadest sense of the word. It
impacts on the availability of, access to and utilisation of food. The increase in
frequency of extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, hail and heat waves
can be fatal to crops. Apart from damaging crops directly, extreme climatological
events may damage infrastructure such as roads which may prevent people from
buying and selling food on the markets.
Changes in precipitation are not merely about increasing or decreasing rainfall. Rainy
seasons that begin later or earlier than normal, or sudden rain spells hitting a region
when it is supposed to be dry, have a greater impact on crops failing than a wetter
rainy season that starts on time. As a result people have less access to food, which
forces them to buy food products, which then affects their financial situation. It also
influences their health as people often buy cheaper food which is frequently less
nutritious.
Climate change not only impinges on the cultivation of crops but also the fishing
industry. Fish stocks in large lakes across Africa are declining not only because of
over-fishing but because of declining water levels due to evaporation as a result of
rising temperatures.
Another scenario where the effects of climate change on the vulnerability of food
systems become visible is where arable land is lost. This happens as a result of
declining ground-water levels and rising sea levels. It can lead to aridity of the soil or
increasing levels of saline. It reduces the suitability of land for cultivation of crops.
Such changes require farmers to alter their agricultural practices. Sorghum, for
instance, is more heat resistant and therefore does better than maize in places where
rainfall decreases.
However, the question is whether communities that are used to and have a
preference for maize will switch to sorghum or another more suitable staple crop.
38
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7774167.stm
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Further adaptation and awareness of alternatives would then be required and this is
just one of the areas where ICTs can contribute in local development and food
production.
As ICT is able to aid the ‘management’ of disasters, and climate change, it is able to
further ‘work’ for food security in SS and the adequate management of natural
resources relating to food production.
ICT is now making it possible to have monitoring systems such as the Famine Early
Warning System (FEWS) and the Global Information and Early Warning System
(GIEWS) on a global level which monitors nutrition status and large scale threats,
with the help of vulnerability information and mapping systems (FIVIMS).
These are available on national and international levels, however on local level ICT is
not yet having the full impact on strengthening efforts on food security.
Through specific projects and initiatives this is slowly reaching communities however
often the technology and awareness of the possibilities does not reach those that
most need it. Enrica Porcari from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research (CGIAR) expressed that ‘the information is often used by a select group of
project farmers yet many such projects do not last beyond project funding," and ‘that
it is not in the mandate of research institutions to disseminate the information to the
farmers’.
The key recommendation from organisations such as IFPRI is that much investment,
capacity building and development of suitable technologies is required, however
crucially to ensure further food stability in regions the involvement of regional and
local intermediate organisations is integral, as the link between the populations and
ICT tools39.
39
IFPRI, International Food Policy Research Institute, ‘Making Information and Communications Technologies
Work for Food Security in Africa, 2004
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Decision making is a complex and long process at all levels of interventions. The
need for support to decision-making processes is becoming more and more crucial
due to new environmental challenges.
These mechanisms and systems are important to decision making processes, but the
quality of the information and data (raw data, traditional knowledge, research, etc)
and the involvement of stakeholders are also critical. Lack of involvement of the
people most affected is a consistent failing in development programming where the
major decision-makers are often geographically, economically and socially remote
from these people.
There are three decision-making traps that must be avoided if the value of ICTs to
the overall development process is to be optimized.
• The first is where decisions about the technologies themselves, in isolation
from the development context, guide decision-making; this places the ICT
experts at the centre of the decision-making.
• The second is where the ICTs are viewed from an efficiency model point of
view; the first ‘line of sight’ for development organizations related to ICTs is to
view them as helpful in doing their business quicker and better and this places
the development organization staff at the centre of the decision-making.
• The third trap is set by the argument that development issues are complex
and difficult and therefore require guidance from the best formally educated
and most well-read people in order to reach the most astute and well informed
decisions.
The added value of ICTs for enhancing the engagement of the people most affected
in decision-making about action on the issues that most concern them is reflected in
the ICT literature at two levels: decision-making about the priority use and
development of the ICTs themselves; and using the ICTs to engage more people
centrally affected by development issues in overall decision making processes.
But, if we consider local development and Natural Resources Management, how can
ICTs be tools for decision making? There are different levels to be considered:
individual producer, local council, Farmers Organizations and State.
The lack of mechanisms for accessing information is the root cause of the
vulnerability of family-owned farms, which suffer from the effects of the liberalisation
of the economy, coupled with the disappearance of State mechanisms for support to
production and prices. Small-scale fishermen and farmers are finding it extremely
difficult to keep pace with an economy ruled by market laws alone. Agricultural
producers’ income has considerably decreased, since they are in no position to set
market prices before selling their produce or catches to middlemen who, generally,
offer prices lower than those of the market.
In Senegal, an experiment based on the use of ICT has helped provide, in real time,
for fruit and vegetable producers in the Niayes area (a market- gardening region in
the Western part of the country) information on prices offered on the major urban
markets, through mobile phones and the Internet. Thanks to this, each producer can
check supply and demand concerning various urban markets, and locate the place
where they can get the best prices. Consequently, producers in this area have been
able to boost their prices by more than 50% thanks to the system developed by
Manobi (See 5.2 for Manobi example).
In addition to the increase in the income of small- scale rural producers, the
experiment has shown the economic and technical viability of the use of the mobile
40
PGIS combines a range of geo-spatial information management tools and methods such as sketch maps,
participatory 3D models, community-based air photo and satellite imagery interpretation, GPS transect walks
and GIS-based cognitive mapping. Participatory GIS implies making GIT&S available to disadvantaged groups
in society in order to enhance their capacity in generating, managing, analysing and communicating spatial
information.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, the issues related to equitable access to the land are due to
the fact that land is one of the major assets for productive activities in rural areas. It
seems crucial to secure equitable access to lands in the areas where poverty is
increasing. This need is all the stronger since the main strategies to eliminate poverty
take agricultural recovery as the main path to economic growth. Access to land is a
must for farmers to get credit, make use of scientific and technical innovations, and
improve their livelihoods thanks to the modernisation of agricultural activities and the
increased profitability of crop systems.
Land registration is quite a challenge. The approach which has been adopted by the
technical services concerned (Land and Tax departments) to demarcate land plots is
often not satisfactory. It is expensive and counterproductive for farmers to mobilise
land surveyors to work out plots of land, if it is low-yield lands. While the current land
legislation makes it possible for the land holder to register the land and get a lease or
land title, very few have done so as, as it is too costly.
Some alternative solutions will have to be found to the traditional methods of land
plotting that are cumbersome and costly. For that purpose; farmers’ associations are
advocating the use of more flexible techniques that rely on the use ICT and GPS.
Some interesting experiments have been carried out by the Centre for Ecological
Monitoring in relation to mapmaking, and by several rural communities that have
conducted land plotting operations for housing or agriculture.
In order to find a structured answer to repeated food crises affecting countries in sub-
Saharan Africa, most Governments have set up an institutional framework and tools
to prevent and manage crises. Those mechanisms have, as their main duties, to
contribute to the lessening of the food vulnerability of the populations, thanks to an
improved coordination and management of interventions, though, among others: (a)
the development of strategies to prevent food crises; (b) the building of the capacities
of the populations for protection against crises and the reconstruction of their
economies; and (c) the improvement of the consistency and efficiency of the public
response to food crises.
In keeping with the above, many countries in the region have now got environmental-
alert systems based on the lessons learnt from the past agricultural season. Thanks
to the help from some specialised regional institutions like AGRHYMET, many
counties have created models to identify risk areas regarding rain-fed crops, by using
first NDVI data. Early in the rainy season, the results allow to identify those areas
where abnormal conditions in the space and/ or time-related distribution of rainfalls
announce a deficit in agricultural production.
7.1 Introduction
The choice made to identify emerging issues for further research is dictated by the
need to find out the most promising areas of application of ICTs in relation to local
development. This, within the framework of the preparation of a Pan African
research project on ICTs, Natural Resources Management and local development.
In order to meet the many challenges of local development, those applications should
be imagined in relation to the need for local communities to meet their new
responsibilities.
The examples given below are related to decision making processes for local
development, land reform and related conflict prevention, EcoHealth, and internet for
social change, which have been found to be relevant for local development in the
current context.
The methodology used for the collection of the data should be based on a
participatory approach taking into account the needs of local communities.
Participatory activities should be held in order to bring people to list priorities relevant
to their development.
The formatting and presentation of data calls for lessons learnt in information sharing
and exchange between local communities and government officials; this on the base
of a smooth integration of the various categories of knowledge, ranging from
traditional to peripheral and academic.
The rationale for using PGIS to achieve MDG can be explained by different factors: i)
new responsibilities transferred to local councilors concerning the management and
funding of health services and others sectors including education, sanitation and
access to clean water; ii) the opportunity to articulate MDGs with the social policies
initiated at local level; iii) the councilors’ capacity to make the MDGs more
operational, thanks to new responsibilities transferred to them in the framework of the
decentralization process.
7.3 Using PGIS for an enabling land reform policy and conflict prevention
According to statistics provided by FAO, the price index of food was in March 2008,
57% higher than a year earlier. By comparing this index to the average price of the
years 1998-2000, FAO estimates the inflation at 220%. Among the factors underlying
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the surge in prices are: (i) the world production of major commodities and the level of
global stocks: (ii) the increase in food demand in the long term supported by the
population growth, (iii) the increasing demand for agricultural products for bio-fuels
sectors, and (iv) the increase in oil prices which induced an increase in the cost of
processing and transport of products food.
This inflation of commodity prices between 2007 and 2008, as was the case during
the 1970s, has prompted many investors to invest in land. As indicated by Grain, in a
report published in October 2008: “Because of the current financial debacle,
investors (pension and hedge funds, etc.) have redirected their investments towards
the land at the expense of financial markets, knowing that agricultural lands have
become a new strategic asset.’’
Private investors are not the only ones who are involved in the rush for lands. Many
State governments seek to develop agricultural enclaves outside their national
borders to deal with their national increasing demand for food products41.
Sub-Saharan Africa has not been spared by this new dynamic of acquisition of land
on a large scale by foreign countries. In 2006, China signed agreements with several
African States (Zambia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Tanzania, etc.) for experimental
farming. According to Carfantan42, by 2010, one million Chinese farmers could be
installed on these lands.
If these trends are maintained, they will lead directly to large social conflicts. To
remedy this situation, farmers' organizations, as in Senegal, are demanding the
transformation of land rights held by rural producers – which in fact are just rights to
use the land - into land titles. But, the registration of land is a real challenge due to
the fact that small farmers can not afford meet requirement to get their lands
registered.
Given such formidable challenges, ICTs (GPS, PGIS, etc) could play a major role in
mapping land and others natural resources and in allowing local communities to
identify and get their lands registered. The role of ICTs in meeting those challenges
and in preventing social conflicts has been widely acknowledged by farmer’s
organizations.
ICTs are already used in the field of health in many countries today. The
“telemedicine project” supported by IDRC in several African countries (Burkina Faso,
Rep. of Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Tunisia, etc.), is an interesting experiment providing
virtual health-related services which may not be available locally. The objective of the
project is to set up in each targeted country the required facilities and mechanism to
allow consultations amongst stakeholders. There are many other cases around the
world, but the use of ICTs has not been extended far enough to improve research in
EcoHealth.
Using PGIS could help researchers from various backgrounds, local communities,
decision makers, etc. to build a shared vision. PGIS can be particularly helpful in the
collection juxtaposition of data (interrelation between land use, water resources,
cattle breeding and the prevalence of some diseases).
Developments such as these have enabled new links between individuals and
communities, and distance has become less of an obstacle for people to engage in
‘real time’.
Now it is possible to see a third channel guiding and mobilising local development,
through migrants and Diaspora relations with local communities, which has been and
continues to develop with the aid of especially the internet and phone. Diaspora and
migrants may physically leave their communities, but in most cases they still remain
very much a part of the community and contribute to the local development. By
eliminating the barrier of physical distance, ITC allow migrants all over the
world to keep close relationships with their communities and country of origin. Both
the phone and the internet enable the Diaspora to
regularly exchange information with parents and relatives, monitor and participate in
the management of local affairs. ICT have proven to be appropriate tools to
raise Diaspora awareness about local development challenges, and
give migrants incentives to transfer resources through remittances.
One example of the direct involvement the Diaspora have can be seen in Touba,
Senegal, where contributions from ‘community members’, individuals and hometown
associations, residing in South Africa, Europe and the States are funding and
coordinating the building and equipping of one of the biggest hospitals for the city
and surrounding region.
The population of SSA is young and it is mainly the youth that are steering and using
these new ‘community ‘spaces’ that the recent developments of the internet have
allowed the creation of. It is expected that over the next 10-15 years this is going to
be the basis of even further social change and a change to the social realities in
many communities across the continent.
Research in all three directions should in effect strive to analyse social changes
introduced by the use of ICT technologies and their effects on the future of
communities.
8 CONCLUSION
The ultimate objective of the paper is to inspire discussions of the most promising
usages of ICT for NRM and local development and the possible areas of research
proposed throughout the document are only a few of the numerous areas that the
workshop will address. ICT4D is a field that goes across all disciplines and there is
still huge scope for application of ICTs to NRM and local development that can and
should be explored, and this workshop will be able to further contribute to the subject
and research agenda developments
Challenges and opportunities around the application of ICT in the field of NRM and
local development are vast. The technologies exist, however hurdles such as
infrastructure, cartels controlling access, cost and development of appropriate
versions of the technologies for sub-Saharan specificities are still outstanding in the
majority of SSA regions.
Specifically relating to local development and local resources it was here found that
especially local decision making processes, be they by the individual, local
organisations or authorities, using ICTs can substantially increase the involvement of
local stakeholders and improve sustainability of any development efforts. This is not
only in relation to managing NRM, but also to decide on the technologies themselves
as to ensure local ‘buy-in’, to ensure that the technologies are appropriate for the
local conditions, and applicable to relevant challenges facing the population. This is
in all aspects of the effort, not only around research, but also the related knowledge
management, decision support systems, and monitoring and evaluation. It appears
that Web 2 and the next evolution of internet will especially open new avenues for
local development and further reductions in cost and portable technologies even
more so.
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MAY 2009
10 ANNEX A: INTERNAL CONSULTATIONS
InfoDev
http://www.infodev.org
IDRC ACACIA
http://www.idrc.ca/acacia/
IDPM
http://www.sed.manchester.ac.uk/idpm/research/
dgCommunities
http://ict.developmentgateway.org/
EIS-Africa
http://www.eis-africa.org/EIS-Africa/
Link Centre
http://link.wits.ac.za/
Osiris
http://www.osiris.sn/
UNRISD
http://www.unrisd.org/
CGIAR
http://www.cgiar.org/
CTA
http://www.cta.int/
CIRAD
http://www.cirad.fr/
UNEP
http://www.unep.org/
IDS
http://www.ids.ac.uk/
EJISDC
www.ejisdc.org/
Web 2.0
http://www.takingitglobal.org
GenderIT
http://www.GenderIT.org