The case for technology in developing regions

Abstract

A mong the broad set of top-down Millennium Development Goals that the United Nations established in 2000 (http://www.un. org/millenniumgoals), one stands out: "Make available the benefits of new technologies-especially information and communications technologies." Alongside good governance, technology is considered among the greatest enablers for improved quality of life. However, the majority of its benefits have been concentrated in industrialized nations and therefore limited to a fraction of the world's population. We believe that technology has a large role to play in developing regions, that "First World" technology to date has been a poor fit in these areas, and that there is thus a need for technology research for developing regions.Despite the relative infancy of technology studies in developing regions, anecdotal evidence suggests that access to technology has a beneficial economic impact. Cellular telephony is probably the most visible application, but there are many others, some of which we cover in this article.The World Bank's infoDev site catalogs hundreds of information and communications technologies (ICT) projects (http://www.infodev.org), albeit not all successful. Most of these projects use existing off-the-shelf technology designed for the industrialized world.Although it is clear that there are large differences in assumptions related to cost, power, and usage, there has been little work on how technology needs in developing regions differ from those of industrialized nations. We argue that Western market forces will continue to meet the needs of developing regions accidentally at best. ICT RESEARCH FOR UNDERSERVED REGIONSEvidence from the development of other technologies, such as water pumps and cooking stoves, demonstrates widespread impact from research.1, 2 Novel ICT has the potential for great impact in a variety of fields ranging from healthcare to education to economic efficiency. However, we do not propose that ICT offers a panacea for the complex problems facing nations on the path to economic development. On the contrary, at best, ICT can enable new solutions only when applied with a broad understanding and a multidisciplinary approach.I hope the industry will broaden its horizon and bring more of its remarkable dynamism and innovation to the developing world.

WiFiRe: rural area broadband access using the WiFi PHY and a multisector TDD MAC

“…Only 2.5 percent of households earn in excess of US$500/mo [1], and can even aspire to have a personal computer and an Internet connection. For the majority, however, with an average monthly household income of US$60, a public kiosk (that has a basket of services) can serve the need for Internet access, or even telephony, both of which are enablers for wealth creation [2].…”

“…A BS can be expected to serve about 250-300 connections initially, going up to 1000 connections in a few years. Given the cost target, only a wireless technology that leverages mass-market components, such as DECT or WiFi [2], is viable. Custom-built technologies, or emerging technologies at the early induction stage such as WiMAX, are too costly [2].…”

“…Experiments with off-the-shelf equipment have demonstrated the feasibility of using WiFi for long-distance rural point-to-point links as well [4]. However, the DCF MAC of WiFi is not suited for a wide-area distribution service that needs to maximize capacity for subscribers and maintain quality of service [2]. It has also a better performing PCF mode, which is not widely supported.…”

“…The spectrum allotted in India for WiFi in the 2.4-2.485 MHz band can be employed by anyone for indoor and outdoor emissions without a prior license, provided certain emission limits are met. 2 If the emissions interfere with any licensed user of spectrum in the vicinity, the unlicensed user may have to discontinue operations. Permission for a higher EIRP and higher antenna deployment in rural areas will be required for WiFiRe.…”

Teaching Data Science and Cloud Computing in Low and Middle Income Countries

“…The small number of researchers in any given institution means that it is difficult for them to find a community of users to get support and advice. Power supplies are often intermittent or do not stay at the appropriate voltage [3]. Internet connectivity lags behind that in the developing world but is improving [4].…”