After all, a bridge needs two ends to be supported firmly. While technologists and thinkers may offer ideas, thoughts and even resources, that is just one end of the bridge. It is just one node.
At the other end the local beneficiary also needs to handshake with all that is offered, however well meant it may be from the other end. Some of this is direct, by way of education, peoples initiative groups, etc while the government - central and local - play a critical role, in terms of law & policy as well as opinion leaders. Therefore a two-pronged effort is a must. Perhaps we could involve more potential beneficiaries in discussions like this. Udit Chaudhuri "Ivo Njosa" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I have not been a member of this group for long but I have a deep > appreciation as an African for those who are really trying to bridge the > "digital divide". I would not want to discourage. All the help is > needed. However, my re-occurring theme here will be to keep putting the > problem where it belongs. African governments must change for a lot of > these initiatives to really take off. There are lots of good western- > influenced ideas that if implemented and committed to could make a huge > impact on African societies. Technology is one of those tools that can > really help a nation leap-frog into the modern economy but again, the > commitment must be there. African governments are amongst the most > irresponsible I have ever seen. They do not even try. It is the > mind-set. It is ingrained in the society and accepted by the denizens. > Advocating change for the benefit of the greater society is strange to > us. Until this changes, I do not see many viable programs\projects. > > True democracy will go a long way towards alleviating this problem but > it will not be an end by itself. African governments at all levels must > profoundly feel that they will be held accountable if things do not > work. The one that usually gets their attention is the idea of losing > power. If this gets solved, a lot of the other problems would at least > have a fighting chance. When non-Africans talk about this issue, we get > offended. But other societies are leaving us behind. A drunk must accept > that he is a drunk before any lasting solution can be introduced. ------------ ***GKD is solely supported by EDC, a Non-Profit Organization*** To post a message, send it to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. In the 1st line of the message type: subscribe gkd OR type: unsubscribe gkd Archives of previous GKD messages can be found at: <http://www.edc.org/GLG/gkd/>
