Notes

From Web2forDev

Web 2.0 for Rural Development and Community Empowerment, Opportunities and Barriers

Incomplete notes taken during panel discussion:

Moses Kisembo - to share information, you need to have it; it's like saying to people: eating fruit is good for you, drinking lots of water is good for your health --> but you are making an assumption that the people you are speaking to have an appetite - opportunities are present in development/community initiatives (e.g. health) - common challenge of information management; if web2 is linked into this need, demonstrating that you can achieve your programme objectives, then there these opportunities can be used; - capacity building in web2.0 tools is incomplete if you dont link it to information management (how and why to collect information and how and why to share it)

Christian GTZ - web2.0 has great potential, but people need to be convinced of open knowledge sharing; - there is too much global knowledge, too much expert knowledge, and not enough local knowledge; - the real potential of web2 is the ability to personalise knowledge, to connect to the people behind it and to connect among the people that have knowledge; - with web2.0 there can be a more direct and authentic dialogue - from the field to the headquarters, from south-south, south-to-north, and north-to-south;

Kado Muir: - I come from a First World Nation, with nearly everything you can desire, but we dont have effective access to web2; - in the community I come from, we have aboriginal reserves without a single computer, there are maybe 4 mobile phones and maybe 1 payphone, while in the town you have the information super highway charging through; - I want to pose the question: where do indigenous nations in developed countries fall in these discussions? Indigenous nations within donor countries - where do we get the chance to participate?; - I agree with Prince Deh's earlier challenges about vlogging in Ghana; but I see great opportunities as well: - Going back to the pre-internet days, we used two-way radios over thousands of kilometers of desert; then the telephones were adopted, web2 will surely be taken up as well, if there is a chance to do so;

Anriette (from the floor): - one conceptual thing to keep in mind: connecting through social networking tools does not necessarily require that you need a direct link to the internet; if you are connected to someone who has a connection, that means you are connected; - e.g. Digital storytelling - can be done offline; --> question: is that still Web2 or is that something else?

Tobias (from the floor): - Web2.0 is a hyped concept, we shouldnt go back to africa and say 'you need Web2.0' -> response Moses - if you say 'this is Web2.0', they will ask what was Web1.0? you will spend all your time trying to explain the difference. Rather we should focus on what you can do with the technology and not the numbers that are added to the name;

Williams Ezinwa Nwagwu: - we dont go to communities and say ' we want to introduce to you Web2.0' - there is no basis for that and it wouldnt make any meaning for them. We talk about how to collect inforamtion, how to organise it, etc.

Q: do people have an appetite for information? Moses: In Uganda 70% derive their livelihoods from agriculture, small-scale farmers - examples of relevant information are: market information, how can they increase their yields, information that can help them to improve their farming efforts, increase their farming efforts, health as well, HIV/AIDS, Malaria - social related information;

Allen Jackson from Aptivate - I think Web2.0 is more about collaboration than about video or other fancy technogies; - if it is about collaboration, then we need to look at appropriate tools - Kado: video may not be the most efficient way to communicate from a bandwidth perspective - Prince highlighted that, and efficient way is to have the video and then to transcribe that; I would be more inclined to use video and audio where im from;

Christian: Another interesting project is the Mobile Reports project in Africa;i also see language issues as crucial in using Web2 for development;

Edith Adera, IDRC: - wonder whether web2.0 tools should not be integrated with existing communication strategies and existing organisations? - integrating Web2.0 tools within existing organisations within the community - they would need to address the realities and daily struggles of rural communities - ICTs become a complementary tool

Moses: Information Strategies do not exist, or if they do, they are generally not adhered to; Similarly, a credit card by itself will not be useful until you slot it into a machine - you need to have a purpose. We can see Web2.0 as the credit card;

Williams Ezinwa Nwagwu: I am from northern Nigeria, if you move 3 kilometers you are in a different langauge area - this poses entirely new problems; - we have to look at Web2 as to how they can together with other technologies can help us manage information;

Khadar, CTA: - Using Web in combination with other communication tools: example from Namibia - moving material from the Web, repackaging it,and disseminating it using radio;

Moses: - an example from the carribean: former child soldiers are telling their stories, they capture those stories and put them on the blog; - in the same area you have radio stations looking for content on the web, they find teh stories, then turn to localising that information, and sending it out on the radio;

Tobias: - I want to make a pitch for collaboration: there is too much duplication going on among organisations that are working to support the use of appropriate technologies; Web2 allows us to collaborate, let us do it;

Question: Problem of connectivity; real problem, if people have no access to it, the web doesnt amount to much; couldnt there be a more active on the part of our decision-makers; communities have been successul in showing examples, but they are very local - should we have a more active role on the part of our decision-makers to promote Web2?

Christian: - Need to note that some countries' governments are not interested in a more free-flow of information, which is what Web2 tools enable (for example Zimbabwe).

Gracian, ITOCA - I am from Zimbabwe - the issue is not about the governments being interested, it is about what the technologies can deliver to solve livelihoods problems; that is the pitch we need, not Web2, then the governments will be interested;

Nynke, IICD: Can someone on the panel please explain how the social concept of Web2 could be beneficial to development - not the technology, but the concept?

Moses: - governments have a lot on their hands, it is our responsibilty to lobby governments to make the environment conducive - not to expect them to take a leadership role; - but lobbying governments to make conducive environments cannot be overemphasised;

- The concept is valuable, it gives an opportunity for development because those people are not techies, but the tools give them freedom without needing to be techie or have influence over techies;

Jon: - in many ways, Web2 is doing to the internet what participatory development did to development; i think the internet used to be an expert / top-down thing (experts creating databases and portals and havent involved the grassroots);

Louise Clarke - provide support for people to find their own ways to use the tools;

Indigenous people in Australia are suspicious of letting their information and their knowledge go - also why aboriginal communities are wary of open source;

Moses: the only way to save information is to share it. Otherwise you keep it within you and keep it real real safe, and then one day when you are not available, no one will have the key to your safe;

Paula - - in our countries we are still trying to introduce 'Web0.0'. How can you introduce Web2.0 - how do you do that?

Moses: example from Uganda, and reason why we think you should jump to Web2.0 - Web1 tools were really techie driven, we have worked with farmer groups to develop a wiki - in 10 localities; each group has a page where they upload information, weather conditions, vents etc. They can just go there and start typing and editing without needing to know html or complicated