I read Richard Heeks’s article ICTs and the MDGs: On the Wrong Track? back in February when it was first released at i4donline.net. Found it an alternate point of view.
Now that John Daly posts about it referencing the original source, I can’t help but give my comment on the article.
I guess I agree 95% with all the statements Heeks give, specially when he writes about the difference among “what one should do” and “what one has to do”, and the difference among “do what I did” and “do what I tell you to”.
But, I think he goes one step too far when he speaks about public investment and the importance of investment in a (developping) economy and mixes it with ICT fostering. IMHO, even ICT fostering necessarily has an important part related to investment, this investment has to be linked with uses and services, with the ability to use it (call it human capital investment, capacitation, etc.) and all the issues related with law, rights, permissions, etc. that will framework everything.
However, it seems to me that Heeks focuses too much on local economies development, entrepreneurship on ICT, etc. I don’t say that I don’t agree – how could I? I really do! :) – but I think this is not exactly ICT fostering but investment fostering.
A subtle difference? Maybe ;)
If you need to cite this article in a formal way (i.e. for bibliographical purposes) I dare suggest:
Peña-López, I. (2005) “ICTs and the MDGs: On the Wrong Track?” In ICTlogy,
#20, May 2005. Barcelona: ICTlogy.
Retrieved month dd, yyyy from
https://ictlogy.net/review/?p=279
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