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''Honors Seminar in Technology'' Mission Statement: To explore Information Technology tools that will allow: -Easier access to education -A global marketplace for commerce -Exposure of gov't corruption -Expansion of necessary infrastructure EDUCATION An educated population is the first step to growing a modern African economy. So many of the current African population have little or no education. This less educated population creates a gap between the rich, and the poor. There is virtually no middle class in sub-saharan Africa. Education systems have been brought to the top of the new governments of Africa to revitalize the knowledge open to Africans. It is on the front line for national planners and has been a major concern to each individual independent country of Africa. In order to improve national development, governments are realizing the importance of education. By making sure every child in Africa gets a quality high school level education, the governments can greatly increase their economic potential. Regional distance learning and health education programs can be spread throughout the country and be the base for increasing information communication to citizens that did not have the opportunity to learn or the right of knowledge that was not provided in previous years. However, the more prominent obstacle with this solution to better the people is the omitting of African culture and philosophies. For example, African religions, names, games, food, and indigenous medicines are not used in schools due to the systems left by the europeans who once ruled their country. English is still the language used as a way of instruction today. Where that may not be a bad thing, not all citizens who could receive an education speak English. African languages used in school settings could increase the number of those educated. About 78.5% of Africans by age 5 and older speak other languages at home but speak English “very well.” Efforts to reform and improve the systems to benefit the people and the communities have remained low on the priorities as just talk but little action. Today even in America, the philosophies have changed to promote multicultural education and acceptance of diversity, but in Africa the education systems forget that they have the vast range of a multicultural population from the European and American style education systems already in place. This should continue to grow off of the differences to better Africa as a whole and individually by catering to the culture in which the educated population can thrive due to their surroundings and beliefs. Education needs to be adapted to each communities needs in order to be effective. An educational system can, if not implemented well, alienate those receiving the education from their own practices and values of their own life culture. Education is one system that will need to be greatly revised. Some prominent problems already identified with the African education system are the relationships of education toward economic development, funding the education opportunities, obtaining the needed amount of teachers, educating the adult populations, and achieving a high quality of educational performance. Getting the appropriate information to the people is the main concern at this time in the education progress. Information technology can speed and efficiently transfer information in this process. Intel begins this adventure in Nigeria to start business. Through the use of grants provided by both the United States as well as other countries, Sub-Saharan Africa will be able to create an education system which will allow for higher enrollment rates as well as better materials with which to teach. In order to jumpstart the economy in Africa, To tie education in with Information Technology is simple. By injecting money into the education system in Africa, it will allow for the better education system to support such a large initiative to teach the young students about computers and other useful electronics. The Balancing Act is a development facilitator to allow content on accessable internet hook ups to expand culutural content. Telephone systems are being funded by China in Eritrea. Once the base has been established, students would continue to learn as well as teach others about information technology. Essentially we would be creating a domino effect that would ultimately result in a successful African economy as well as an education system that is strong in many different aspects. For further details: http://www.reallylinux.com/docs/africa.shtml - IT Education and Development in Africa http://www2.ncsu.edu/ncsu/aern/okrapgy.html - Academic Colonization and Africa's Underdevelopment http://www.balancingact-africa.com/ - Balancing Act Updates http://africaeducation.org/internet_access.htm - Internet in Africa COMMERCE One of the main reasons there is so much poverty in Africa is because there is such little commerce. The reason commerce is so limited is because of the lack of infrastructure in place. This can be changed by providing basic infrastructure such as roads, canals, and electricity to enable a digital age economy. As new technological business opportunities begin to unravel in the Africa, there opens an availability of business infrastructure to actually be a reality. Technology can take advantage of opportunities of trade and investments that can ultimately help to create a better economy and infrastructure base. Once the base is created, then improvements can become the main concern and on-going process. This lack of resources will always cause problems in rural African countries. This can be avoided though, by focusing a growing economy's industry less on natural resources, and more on human resources. This shift in resources can be seen in the recent history of India. India is known throughout the world to focus on technology rather than agriculture or industry. The economy has grown significantly because of the technology service industry. A service and agriculture economy is the best avenue for the modernization of Africa. But this cannot be done until there is massive government reform, as well as a modernized education system. A main issue with the commerce system in Africa is the seeming lack of an e-commerce system. Due to the fact that most do not own credit cards or have the means to purchase products through a system such as that, it would be something to plan for in the future. Most that have a limited amount of money do not choose to connect themselves to the internet due to the monetary constraints, which could possibly be fixed by the growth of an e-commerce system. Africa has various niches in its produced products that could allow for various peoples businesses to grow through the use of the internet and other electronic resources. With the improvement of various systems in Africa such as courier and transportation services, commerce could allow for a great boost in economic performance in Africa. But all e-commerce does not need to rely on typical African economic performance. Entrepreneurs can concentrate on the niche markets contained in Africa and sell it globally. Since e-commerce is truly global, there would be no issue in selling to other countries through the use of Information Technology. For more information visit the UN's conference on Trade and Development. http://www.unctad.org/ Also: http://www.uneca.org/ADF99/adf99ecommerce.htm GOVERNMENT Government corruption continues to hinder economic development throughout Africa. Because the economies are so weak, there is no income to tax, and therefore no money to build infrastructure with. As the technology develops, so would a need for government regulation. Regulation regarding the usage as well as the aquisition of materials and systems required for an infrastructure would need to be layed out in order to avoid problems due to conflicting systems. This would also prevent systems from becoming ineffective. Issues that may be most important include what to regulate, how to regulate, and when to regulate. The main reason for all of the regulation is to keep the systems somewhat cost effective while still allowing for a well executed system. Many pressing issues include how much government money to inject into information technology, how much control to exercise, as well as where to put money received as aid from other countries. Due to the corruption of various governments, many countries are wary of giving any more aid to many parts of Africa. This aid is critical to the success of a system in which Information technology and digital age technology could be used for the benefit of African citizens. Aparthied and technology: http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~cale/cs201/apartheid.concl.html INFRASTRUCTURE Roads and canals create means to move raw and finished goods. Without these pieces, there is no way to create product, and therefore, no economy. In today's global digital economy, electricity is a necessary component of any modern infrastructure. Along with basic electricity, means of communication are also necessary. Because of the vast geographic area of rural Africa, the most cost effective communication technology would involve satellite technology. Technology, as a fulcrum of change, will empower the people to move ahead and take control of their own futures. Advancements can then begin to focus on infrastructure and help create a core principle. Technology today is becoming a greater tool at a diminishing cost that now opens these opportunities. However good all of this information sounds, it took a long time to begin plans to improve infrastructure and it will take time to build a working, useful infrastructure with a lot of work, commitment, and patience not only from Africans but the outside world and global markets. For further details: http://www.reallylinux.com/docs/africa.shtml http://www.ifpri.org/pubs/ib/ib32.pdf - Africa FOR MORE INFORMATION http://www.isoc.org/inet97/proceedings/B7/B7_1.HTM http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/rls/24182.htm http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/AFRICAEXT/0,,contentMDK:20358914~menuPK:685152~pagePK:146736~piPK:226340~theSitePK:258644,00.html |
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