Training Program Outline

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ICT-103E

ICTs FOR POVERTY REDUCTION

Description

A 5-day Training Program to provide participants with an understanding of the relationship between ICTs and poverty. The Program will allow participants to better understand how ICTs can be used to help tackle poverty and improve the quality of life of people. It will also look at top down as well as bottom up approaches that use ICTs to tackle poverty. This will include looking at the impact of ICTs on livelihoods, on national as well as local and community development, on promoting social, human and economic development, and on pro-poor growth. It will also consider policies that governments can take to promote the use of ICTs for economic development and poverty reduction.

Objectives

• Provide participants with a sound understanding of the nature of poverty, of the underlying causes of poverty and of the importance of poverty reduction to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• Provide participants with knowledge of different approaches used to fight poverty including the concept of pro-poor growth
• Provide participants with a sound understanding of the role of ICTs in development so they can devise appropriate interventions to reduce and, in some cases, eliminate poverty
• Provide participants with an understanding of which ICTs have the greatest potential to reduce poverty under given circumstances
• Help participants devise strategies and approaches including how to structure and finance projects to use ICTs to tackle poverty in their jurisdictions and at various levels: nationally, regionally and at the local and community level

Topics

• The nature of poverty
• What contributes to poverty? The many dimensions of poverty
• Impact of poverty and poverty reduction on development
• Gender and marginalization
• Poverty and rural development
• Current thinking about poverty
• Definitions: OECD, UNDP, World Bank, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)

• A priority in international development
• Why is poverty such an important issue?
• Progress and historical background
• The World Bank Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) and related processes
• Poverty and the MDGs
• Poverty reduction policies around the world – trends

• The nature of ICTs
• Definition: digital vs. analog technologies
• ICT for Development (ICT4D)
• ICTs with the greatest potential to stimulate economic development and pro-poor growth

• ICT policies and their impact on poverty
• Historical perspective
• The policy framework – the relationship between ICT policy and national development policies and priorities
• The dimensions of ICT policy: the digital divide, e-government, e-commerce, enhancing access to ICTs at the local and community level
• Scale: national as well as local and community level
• Human impacts
• Creating competitive advantage

• Planning and implementing projects to use ICTs for poverty reduction
• What is an ICT-based poverty reduction plan and what does it involve?
• What tools and approaches? Top-down and bottom-up approaches
• Community assessments: the importance of listening to people
• Knowing the market: lessons from universal access policies and plans
• Issues and examples related to the adoption of new technologies and practices by poor and marginalized communities: lessons learned

• Measuring success
• Results Based Management (RBM) framework
• Outcomes and measurement: indicators of performance
• Universal access policies and practices and their impact on poverty: lessons learned
• ICTs and the PRSP: what to be achieved in the first place?

• Examples
• Case studies
• Community access facilities: telecentres, multipurpose community telecentres, etc.

Target Audience

• Government officials, planners and decision-makers, including local government officials and administrators
• Managers, analysts and program officers working in international development
• Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
• Organizations and individuals working at the local and community level in the developing world
• Professionals interested in international development looking to complement their skill-set by understanding the role of ICTs in development

Methodology

Our Training Programs combine expert presentations, workshops, case studies and discussions based on real-life situations faced by participants. Emphasis is placed on examining issues of local importance and looking at ways in which the material discussed during the program can be used by participants in the context of their own realities or work situation. Complete training material is provided to all participants for future reference and follow-up action plans.

Location

Our Training Programs are held at regular intervals in selected cities around the world. Upon request, our expert trainers can lead Training Programs at the location of your choice. If interested, please contact us at training@neotelis.com.

Expertise

Neotelis provides consulting and training services to telecommunications organizations worldwide. Its team of experts has trained thousands of executives and managers working for operators, regulators, policy-makers and governments in over 100 countries around the world.