1 TECHNOLOGY LEAP FROGGING ANTHONY GACHANGO D61/70547/2008 DIS 605

2 Introduction Technology leapfrogging is a term used to describe the bypassing of technological stages that others (other countries) have gone through in the process of development and economic growth. –Fixed Investments –Accumulation of human capabilities.

3 Benefits Technological leapfrogging offers an opportunity for developing countries to catch up with modern ICT resources by skipping some of the intermediate technology stages. ‘Leapfrogging’ describes the idea that developing economies could find new paths to higher standards of living. –Leapfrogging bypasses the mistakes and limitations of the slow route to development that other nations have had to take. –Developing countries are not hindered by obsolete technologies which most developed countries are reluctant to abandon.

4 Technology Leapfrogging Leapfrogging involves the technical aspects of implementing new technologies in the existing technological environments –Innovation is the cornerstone of leapfrogging - not just identifying new technologies but finding new ways to apply existing ideas. Developing nation, requires a different way of thinking - technology may be used in different ways, for different reasons. Texting on mobile phones is unlikely to take off in a place where literacy is low – but making phone calls to keep up connection in communities, to talk to people, may be a much more vibrant function

5 Technology Leapfrogging Communications technology is one method that is making leapfrogging possible. It's easier and faster to put in cellular towers in rural areas than to put in landlines, so cellular use is exploding in the developing world. It is claimed that mobile phone use is growing faster in Africa than anywhere else in the world, and that those countries in Africa with the greatest use of mobile phones also see higher economic growth rates

6 Technology Leapfrogging Leapfrogging does not necessarily mean that countries which are technologically weak will bypass the other countries in the lead..eg sambaza. Technology leapfrogging can potentially lead to situations where the new technologies become dominant in developing countries. InventionAdoption in years Trains120 Telephone100 Radio and Aviation60 PC and CAT Scans20 Mobile Phones16 The World Bank looked at how much time elapsed between the invention of something and its widespread adoption. (Defined as when 80% of countries that use a technology first report it)

7 Challenges of leapfrogging The first difficulty in developing countries is literacy and computer literacy barriers. Adult literacy is a major barrier to the uptake of information technology in the developing world – Solution: Design a different kind of human-computer interface for use by illiterate or low-literate individuals. “Simple icons and pictures can convey information of direct relevance to users. –Education will increase human-computer interaction. Primitive peoples are not uneducated and they have their own cultures, societies, and abstract thoughts. To empower themselves with technology, however, inhabitants of developing countries must be educated in the skills that technology requires

8 Challenges of leapfrogging Sabotage and vandalism of telecommunications or power equipment can occur during disputes over land ownership and royalty payments from public utilities to landowners Electricity is also not always reliable in developing regions of the world. Power failures and blackouts and much of the rural population has no electrical power. African leaders holding key positions in government making a trade offs in choosing either ICT, health or education. –Solution1: But understand that all should move together. –Solution 2: Build ICT Strategies to ensure that IT growth is build into priority development sectors, in areas such as education, health and environment.

9 Challenges of leapfrogging Avoid new form of colonialism (PEAT) based on the generation, storage, processing, retrieval, transmission, and distribution of information. Many African countries are saddled with inadequate communications infrastructure. –Solution1: The development of IT in African countries will be influenced by issues concerning the economic benefits of IT, IT policy, and its impact on government, society, business, and the security of the state –Solution 2. Acceptance of IT will depend on its perceived benefits in solving some of society's pressing and anticipated problems in education, health care, business, governance, and sustainable rural development.

10 Reference: S. Yunkap Kwankam (2006). Information Technology in Africa: A Proactive Approach and the Prospects of Leapfrogging Decades in the Development Process McNamara, K. S. (2003). Information and Communication Technologies, Poverty and Development: Learning from experience. Washington, D.C., The World Bank. Amidon, D. M. (2003). The Innovation Superhighway. Butterworth Heinemann, US. Bartelson, J. (2000). Three concepts of globalization. International Sociology, 15(2),

11 THE END TECHNOLOGY LEAPFROGGING!