INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR DEVELOPMENT: PROMOTING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN PEOPLE AND NATIONS

1
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR
DEVELOPMENT PROMOTING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN
PEOPLE AND NATIONS

• SIDA, STOCKHOLM
• MAY 5TH 2000

2
IMPACT OF ICTs ON DEVELOPMENT IN SRI LANKAPAST,
PRESENT AND FUTURE

• PROF. V. K. SAMARANAYAKE
• CHAIRMAN, COUNCIL FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
  (CINTEC)
• DIRECTOR, INSTITUTE OF COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY,
• UNIVERSITY OF COLOMBO, SRI LANKA

3
SRI LANKA AT A GLANCE

• AREA 65,610 sq.km
• LOCATION 80?E 7? N
• POPULATION 18.5 million(1997)
• ADULT LITERACY 91.8
• GDP (per capita) US760
• LIFE EXPECTANCY 72.5 years
• INFANT MORTALITY 17 per 1000 /live births
• LANGUAGES SINHALESE, TAMIL, ENGLISH
• ETHNIC GROUPS
• Sinhalese 74.0 Tamils 18.1 Moors 7.1
  Others 0.8
• RELIGIOUS GROUPS
• Buddhists 69.3 Hindus 15.5 Muslims 7.5
• Christians 7.6 Others 0.1

4
SRI LANKA - THE PAST

• RECORDED HISTORY - 543 BC
• VARIOUS INDIAN INVASIONS -
• PORTUGESE INVASION - 1500
• DUTCH INVATION - 1600
• BRITISH RULE ALL CEYLON - 1815
• INDEPENDENCE - 1948
• REPUBLIC - 1972

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THE KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY OF THE PAST

• EMPHASIS ON KNOWLEDGE
• PIRIVENA (TEMPLE) CENTRED LEARNING
• SEATS OF LEARNING
• MAHAVIHARA(200BC), ALUVIHARE
• ANCIENT TECHNOLOGY
• MIHINTALE HOSPITAL INCL SURGERY (400BC-1000AD)
• IRRIGATION WORKS, LOW GRADIENT CANAL (YODA ELA),
  MADURU OYA DAM
• SIGIRIYA ( 500AD)
• BLACKSMITHS AT KOTMALE(1200AD-1500AD)

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ICTs IN THE PAST

• COMPUTERS
• INSURANCE, ENGINEERING, ACCOUNTING
• CENSUS OF 1971
• BANKS
• UNIVERSITI ES (1967)
• SCHOOLS (1983)
• COMMUNICATIONS
• TELEPHONE
• RADIO
• TV (COLOUR - 1981)
• CELLULAR ( 1985 )
• WLL ( 1998)
• INTERNET
• E-MAIL (1993)
• LEARN UNIVERSITY NETWORK (1995)
• FIRST ISP (1995)

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ICTs FOR DEVELOPMENT - THE PAST

• DISTRICT COMPUTERISATION
• PENSION PAYMENTS
• DISTRICT DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
• INTEGRATED RURAL DEVELOPMENT
• ELECTION RESULTS
• BANKS
• EDI
• MARINET AT PORT OF COLOMBO
• STD CODE FOR SINHALA/TAMIL
• ISO 10646, KEYBOARD, GLOSSARY
• REVENUE COLLECTION
• ELECTRICITY, WATER, TELEPHONE, RATES,TAXES

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MAJOR IT EVENTS

• FIRST COMPUTER INSTALLATION 1964
• COMPUTING TAUGHT AT UNIVERSITIES 1967
• BANKS INTRODUCE COMPUTERS 1970
• LUMP SUM DEPRECIATION FOR COMPUTERS 1977
• MICROCOMPUTERS IN EDUCATION 1980
• COMPUTERS USED FOR ELECTIONS 1982
• CINTEC ESTB. 1984
• COMPUTER SCIENCE DEPTS IN UNIVERSITIES 1985
• INSTITUTE OF COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY ESTB. 1987
• IT LAW COMMITTEE 1986
• ACADEMIC NETWORK LEARN 1990
• EVIDENCE ( SP. PROV.) ACT 1995
• INTERNET INTRODUCED ON A COMMERCIAL BASIS 1995
• NATIONAL EDI COMMITTEE 1996
• IT LAW CENTRE 1997
• SL TELECOM PRIVATISED 1997
• DUTY AND TT REMOVED 1997
• IT YEAR 1998

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THE MOBILE UNIT -ESTB. 1987CREATING IT
AWARENESS TO THE VEDDA CHIEFTAN

10

USE OF IT IN LOCAL LANGUAGES

• ISO 10646 / UNICODE STD FOR SINHALA TAMIL
• MULTI LINGUAL WEB SITES
• LOCAL LANGUAGE NEWSPAPERS ON INTERNET
• E-MAIL AND PAGING IN SINHALA/TAMIL
• WINDOWS COMPATIBLE MULTI LINGUAL PC PACKAGES
• R D IN NATURAL LANGUAGE PROCESSING

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THE IT INDUSTRY

• LOCAL DEVELOPMENT OF S/W
• TRILINGUAL PRODUCTS
• PARTNERSHIPS
• STOCK MARKET AUTOMATION
• BODY SHOPPING
• US, UK, EUROPE, SINGAPORE
• OUTSOURCING
• S/W DEVELOPERS FROM US AND EUROPE ( e.g. IFS)
• SOUTH ASIANS ARE CONSIDERED CREATIVE - AN
  APTITUDE MOST SUITED FOR THE IT INDUSTRY

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COMMUNICATIONS

• SRI LANKA TELECOM PRIVATISED WITH 35 SHARE SOLD
  TO NTT OF JAPAN IN 1997
• TWO PRIVATE WLL PROVIDERS
• FOUR CELLULAR SERVICES
• FIVE PAGING SERVICES
• FIVE PAY PHONE OPERATORS
• NINE DATA COM SERVICES
• ONE MOBILE TRUNCKING OPERATOR
• SE-ME-WEE II III AND SATELLITE LINKS
• 20 ISPs SO FAR
• SLT MONOPOLY ONLY ON INTL. VOICE TILL 2002

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INTERNET

• LEARN ACADEMIC NETWORK
• 20 ISPs , 25,000 CONNECTIONS
• CINTEC ACTS AS DOMAIN NAME REGISTRY FOR .lk
• ISP ASSOCIATION TO ESTABLISH INTERNET SWITCH
• E-MAIL WEB SITES IN LOCAL LANGUAGES
• CINTEC MAINTAINS NATIONAL WEB SITE
• INTERNET ON THE RADIO TV
• COMMUNITY RADIO TELE CENTRES WITH INTERNET
• LIVE ELECTION RESULTS ON INTERNET TV
  SIMULTANEOUSLY
• EXTENSIVE USE OF MULTI MEDIA

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THE NATIONAL PORTAL - WWW.LK

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RADIO TV PROGRAMS

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NATIONAL ELECTION RESULTS (TRILINGUAL) LIVE TO
TV INTERNET

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INTERNET FOR COMMUNITY RADIO - WWW.KIRANA.LK

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AN EXAMPLE OF A NATIONAL INTEGRATED PEOPLE
DATABASE

• DATA INPUT AT BIRTH REGISTRATION
• ISSUE OF NIC NUMBER AT BIRTH
• ISSUE OF NIC AT 16
• RECORD OF MARRIAGE,DIVORCE
• ISSUE OF PASSPORT
• RECORD OF DEATH
• OTHER USES INCLUDE HEALTH, EDUCATION ETC.

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LEGAL INFRASTRUCTURE

• IT BASED EVIDENCE (1995)
• COMPUTER CRIME (2000)
• DATA PROTECTION
• IPR (1978, 2000)
• ELECTRONIC SIGNATURE/CA (2000)
• AWARENESS AMONG LEGAL PROFESSION

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HUMAN RESOURCES

• TRADITION OF HIGH PRIORITY FOR EDUCATION
• AVAILABILITY OF TALENT AS SHOWN BY PERFORMANCES
  AT COMPETITIONS
• MIS -MATCH OF MANPOWER NEEDS SUPPLY
• SKILLS CERTIFICATION
• CONVERSION OF GRADUATES FROM OTHER DISCIPLINES
• NEW JOB CLASSIFICATION
• LOW SALARIES OF TRAINERS
• NATIONAL PLAN FOR HRD IN IT

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INFORMATICS OLYMPIADS

• INTRERNATIONAL OLYMPIAD IN INFORMATICS (IOI)
• 1992 FIRST YEAR OF PARTICIPATION
• 1993 ONE BRONZE
• 1994 ONE SILVER
• 1995 ONE GOLD, ONE SILVER
• 1996 ONE BRONZE
• 1997 ONE SILVER, ONE BRONZE
• 1998 ONE BRONZE
• 1999 ONE BRONZE
• SRI LANKA NATIONAL OLYMPIAD IN INFORMATICS
  (SLNOI)
• INAUGURATED IN 1998

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IT IN UNIVERSITIES

• 13 STATE UNIVERSITIES, 8 INSTITUTES, 2 PRIVATE
  UNIVERSITIES
• B.SC/B.ENG SP. DEGREES IN 4
• PG COURSES IN 2 ICT
• EXTERNAL DEGREE (BIT)
• LEARN ACADEMIC NETWORK
• SRI LANKA INTER UNIVERSITY COMMITTEE ON
  COMPUTING
• R D AND CONSULTANCY
• TRAINING OF TRAINERS
• THIRD COUNTRY TRAINING PROGRAM

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THE LEARN NETWORK

• ESTABLISHED IN LATE EIGHTIES FOR E-MAIL
• INTERNET CONNECTIVITY IN 1995
• MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
• SERVICES ALL UNIVERSITIES AND SOME RD INSTITUTES
• UNIVERSITIES PAY FOR SERVICE
• SLT PROVIDES INTL. CONNECTIVITY
• SUNTEL SLT PROVIDE LOCAL CONNECTIVITY (2MB
  128K)

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EXPLOITING IT FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• THE USE OF IT FOR EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATION AND
  MANAGEMENT
• THE USE OF IT FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN
  FINANCE, TRADE AND COMMERCE
• THE CAPTURE OF PART OF THE GLOBAL SOFTWARE AND IT
  SERVICES MARKET
• THE USE OF IT IN PROVIDING INFORMATION ON THE
  COUNTRY AND ITS CULTURE TO THE WORLD AT LARGE AND
  AS A TOOL FOR THE ACQUISITION OF INFORMATION BY
  ALL SECTORS OF THE POPULATION
• CREATION OF AWARENESS AND AN IT CULTURE
• THE USE OF IT IN ALL OTHER ASPECTS OF THE
  NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT EFFORT

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1998 - THE YEAR OF IT

IT 2000
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MESSAGE OF H.E.THE PRESIDENT

• The Government of Sri Lanka has identified IT as
  one of the major thrust areas in our development
  plan. Information Technology is essential for all
  our development goals such as good
  governance, efficient services,
  increased productivity and
  competitiveness in international trade
  and commerce, facing up to the challenges
  of globalisation,
  development of Sri Lanka as a
  commercial hub for the region, increased
  value addition to our exports and
  the general improvement of the
  quality of life of our people

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E-COMMERCE/BUSINESS

• NATIONAL EDI COMMITTEE
• MEMBER OF CEFACT/AFACT
• SRI LANKA EDI NETWORK SERVICES LTD.
• E-COMMERCE ACTIVITIES
• CINTEC INITIATIVE FOR
• CERTIFICATION AUTHORITIES
• DIGITAL SIGNATURE ACT
• SECURITY CONCERNS
• PROMOTION OF USE OF E-C BY SMES

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E-GOVERNMENT

• INTERCHANGE OF INFORMATION
• USE OF LOCAL LANGUAGES
• TRANSPARENCY THROUGH AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION
• DISSEMINATION
• WEB BASED PROVISION OF INFORMATION
• MTC BASED ACCESS TO INFORMATION

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E-EDUCATION

• IT IN EDUCATION
• IT EDUCATION
• IT AS A FACILITATOR FOR LEARNING
• WEB BASED LEARNING
• TELECONFERENCING
• DISTANCE LEARNING
• INTERACTIVE MULTI MEDIA
• LOCAL CONTENT

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ICTS FOR SOCIETY

• NON FORMAL DISTANCE EDUCATION
• INFORMATION ACCESS BOTH WAYS
• CONTENT CREATION
• MARKET INFORMATION
• EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
• TELE MEDICINE
• AWARENESS OF DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES
• LOW COST COMMUNICATION SERVICES

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ICTs FOR RD

• ACCESS TO RD LITERATURE
• PEER CONTACT VIA THE INTERNET
• DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY FACILITATING DATA CAPTURE
  PROCESSING
• SHARING OF FINDINGS GLOBALLY
• EXCHANGE OF EXPERIENCES
• FACILITATES JOINT RD BETWEEN REMOTE PARTNERS

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THE NEEDS

• HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
• DEVELOP LOCAL EXPERTISE
• LEGAL INFRASTRUCTURE
• COMMUNICATION INFRASTRUCTURE
• THE THREE CS
• COORDINATION
• COLLABORATION
• COOPERATION
• ATTITUDINAL CHANGE
• INVESTMENT
• IPR VS AFFORDABLE COSTS
• EXTERNAL ASSISTANCE
• BUILD ON EXISTING SUCCESS STORIES

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STATE ASSISTANCE

• FREE EDUCATION UPTO UNIVERSITY
• FREE HEALTH SERVICES
• FREE SCHOOL BOOKS UNIFORMS
• NO TAX ON PUBLIC SERVANTS
• POVERTY ALEVIATION PROGRAMS
• RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS
• DECENTRALISED BUDGET FOR DEVELOPMENT
• PRIORITY FOR IT

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EXTERNAL ASSISTANCE

• PROJECT BASED DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE FROM MANY
  INTL NATIONAL AGENCIES
• THIRD COUNTRY TRAINING PROGRAMS
• SUSTAINABILITY AFTER COMPLETION?
• INTEGRATION LOCAL EXPERTISE
• NEED FOR USE OF IT
• NEED TO STENGTHEN LOCAL EXPERTISE
• RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT?

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SIDA INITIATIVES

• UPPSALA PHYSICS CHEMISTRY PROJECTS
• ASSISTANCE TO MAHAVELI PROJECT
• SAREC RESEARCH PROJECTS/GRANTS
• GRANTS TO NARESA/NSF
• SIDA-IT PROJECT
• REPUTATION FOR GENUINE SUPPORT

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THE SIDA-IT PROJECT

• SPLIT Ph.D.s IN IT ( 8 FROM 4 SL UNIVERSITIES
  LINKED TO 4 SWEDISH UNIVERSITIES)
• DEVELOP ELECTRONIC INFRASTRUCTURE IN 3
  UNIVERSITIES, 1 RESEARCH INSTITUTE AND LEARN
  ACADEMIC NETWORK

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www.dsv.su.se/gds/SidaIThomepage.htm
www.dsv.su.se/gds/SidaIThomepage.htm
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(No Transcript)
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OTHER SWEDISH INITIATIVES

• VOLVO
• SKANSKA - KOTMALE MAHAVELI PROJECT
• INDUSTRIAL FINANCIAL SERVICES (IFS)
• ERICSSON REGIONAL CENTRE
• TELIA (SUNTEL)
• THE LIFE ACADEMY

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OTHER INITIATIVES

• UNDP
• UNESCO
• BRITISH COUNCIL
• JICA
• CIDA
• COMMONWEALTH SECRETARIAT
• ITU
• US AID
• WORLD BANK

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THE ADVANTAGES

• EMPHASIS ON EDUCATION
• IMPORTANCE OF CREATIVITY INNOVATION
• MOVE TOWARDS INTERACTIVE MULTI MEDIA
• KNOWLEDGE BASED TECHNOLOGY
• RE-EMERGENCE OF TRADITIONAL VALUES
• COMPETITIVE COSTS
• BENEFITS TO ALL
• ACCEPTANCE OF ROLE OF IT BY ALL

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CONCERNS

• GAP BETWEEN HAVES HAVE-NOTS
• UNEMPLOYMENT IN GENERAL
• UNEMPLOYMENT OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS TRAINED
  IN IT
• COMPUTER CRIME FRAUD
• RELATIVELY HIGH COST OF H/W S/W
• NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF INTERNET ETC.
• DONOR POLICY

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THE FUTURE

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THE FUTURE

• THE GLOBAL VILLAGE
• THE BANGALORE DECLARATION
• PARTNERSHIPS
• CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE
• DONOR RECEPIENT COLLABORATION
• THE MODE 2 APPROACH TO RD
• NETWORKING
• KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY
• THE GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE INITIATIVE
• ACCESS TO INFORMATION FOR ALL
• UNESCO/ITU INITIATIVES
• MULTI PURPOSE TELECENTRES
• GOOD GOVERNANCE

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The Bangalore Declarationon Information
Technology for Developing Countries in the
Global Village-1998

• Information Technology presents developing
  countries with a historic window of opportunity
  that enables them to create national wealth and
  break the cycle of poverty and dependence they
  have been caught in and leverage their wealth of
  human resources to finally secure a rightful
  place for themselves in the Global Village.

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• From all perspectives
• humanitarian, moral, ecological, economic and
  social - Information Technology has the
  potential to elevate the quality of human life
  everywhere.
• It is imperative that we, the citizens of this
  Global Village, seize this historic opportunity.

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• LET US SHARE OUR KNOWLEDGE, RESOURCES,
  CAPABILITIES POTENTIAL FOR A TRULY GLOBAL
  VILLAGE WHERE WE LIVE IN PEACE AND HARMONY AS A
  SINGLE WORLD COMMUNITY

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SOME USEFULL WEB SITES

• www.lk NATIONAL WEB WINDOW
• www.cintec.lk CINTEC
• www.cintec.lk/policy CINTEC - IT POLICY FORUM
• www.ac.lk LEARN
• www.ict.cmb.ac.lk ICT
• www.priu.lk PRESIDENTIAL RESEARCH INFN. UNIT
• www.kirana.lk KIRANA COMMUNITY RADIO
• www. csa.iisc.ernet.in/bangit/global/index.html BA
  NGALORE ITCOM
• www.globalknowledge.org THE GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE
  PARTNERSHIP
• www.dsv.su.se/gds/SidaIThomepage.htm SIDA-IT
  HOME PAGE
• www.unesco.org/webworld/future UNESCO FORUM FOR
  IIP

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THANK YOU

• sam_at_sam.cmb.ac.lk