Connecting the Majority, Getting Digital Dividends

ICT is changing the way people live and do business globally, and is creating new social and economic development opportunities for lower-income populations and vulnerable groups, by enlarging markets and facilitating greater access to information, public services and economic activity. ICT is an effective tool that, when supplemented by investments in innovation, education, social inclusion and flexible government policies, increases competitiveness and contributes to economic growth, social development and poverty reduction, contributing to the creation of a knowledge economy. Yet, these opportunities cannot be effectively and fully realized if left to market forces alone, and require the active participation of the public, private and civil society sectors under an integrated effort towards the development of a socially inclusive knowledge society. This paper, that is descriptive in nature, provides references and examples of e-government pilot and investment initiatives in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Region pursuing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), showing the ICT pivotal role in the social and economic development of the developing countries. The examples considered in the paper show how favorable development can be achieved through the effective deployment of ICT tools and solutions, especially those based on mobile and wireless technologies, in the priority sectors of education, health, government, finance and social inclusion of vulnerable groups, including ageing people and people with disabilities. These examples also form the basis for a proposed action-oriented strategy that, under a multi-sector approach, aims at the creation of the necessary conditions to facilitate investments in technological infrastructure and connectivity, facilitate access, foster digital education and training, promote the development of local content, and delineate the participation of various stakeholders in the implementation of ICT-based development programs. In the paper four development scenarios benefitting the LAC Region are suggested that can be achieved through the coordinated efforts of the governments, the private sector and civil societies under the described strategy. Although these scenarios are specifically conceived for the LAC region they can be easily transferred to other developing regions.