[UgaBYTES] Mobile Revolution Can Benefit Youth

[Ndaula Sulah]

Hey Sandra,

I have been following mobile technology with love - but not at all as an
expert but rather as a learner. When new ICTs (I mean computers and
internet)  first came to Africa, many researchers and practitioners linked
them to the "African Drum": the drum of community service, the drum of
death, the drum of harvest... and the socialization culture of Africans at
village level - at least in social development. That is why public access
centres were bound to succeed and that many organizations used the drum as
their symbol at a time e.g. Drum Beat to emphasis the place of ICTs in
social cultural roots of the continent. But not in practice.

Picking pieces together, the technology had to sheer on the socio-cultural
and economic norms of the continent. The continent is largely oral: messages
that are spoken fly x6 faster than those that are written. You may remember
a common saying "if you want to rob an African write and if you want to fail
speak". With this analysis, it was not surprising that later, after many had
thought that new public access centres would replace radios, researchers and
pac practitioners thought it fiting to incorporate community radio within
the PAC model to create CMCs. UNESCO and IDRC have been central here. The
intervention came in later, asserted more impact and empowerment. It was the
perfect awaited recipe to push sustainability of telecentres to a new
meaning. These with commercial hung, were out to establish radios for profit
in Africa - in uganda 212 FM radios have been established - all successful.

Reflecting on what I am say, I not sure am speaking. But when mobile
telephony came in with 100% oral focus, allowing people to speak their own
luganda, kiswahili, and the millions of dialects there may be in Africa, wow
the adaption and adoption has been un measurable. The simplistic talk has
again grown that mobile technology will replace PAC which were thought to
replace radio and libraries ealier on. How interesting! But most of you have
already seen how oral ICTs have intermarried to create bigger impacts than
either of them could. Look at the democratization of FM radios through
mobile technology - a typical example, isn't it?

I have been wondering, how the siblings of present relationships between
mobile phony platforms and other communication and development sectors will
look like in future. Will content be an issue? Who will own the voices and
trascation through the platform? How will the remittance systems be handled
as most service begin to be delivered through the Mobile phone system? Is
there any anticipated takeove and major revolution say in the banks will
operate, etc.? ....

Best Regards,
---
Sulah


On Tue, Jan 5, 2010 at 1:49 AM, Sandra Nassali <snassali at ugabytes.org>wrote:

> The explosion of mobile telephony in the just-ended decade shattered the
> myth that Africans are slow to take up technology.
>
> The mobile distribution, though still low by global standards, is one of
> the
> fastest growing in the world and proves one other thing - that technologies
> which address practical problems will always be readily embraced.
>  Besides the difficult-to-compute millions of shillings that the technology
> has contributed to the economy, at a personal level, it has revolutionised
> how Africans communicate, transact business and even exchange money.
>
> The biggest segment of the community to benefit from this technology are
> the
> youth, who have opened myriads of retail mobile-related businesses, from
> the
> sale of sets, accessories, repairs, programming and many others.
>
> The momentum has only started and an even higher pace is expected in coming
> years. And this is where young people can benefit by developing real-life
> solutions to build around the technology.
>
> There is no doubt that a convergence of sorts will happen around the mobile
> phone in coming years, and the biggest winners will be companies and
> individuals who today provide tomorrow's solutions.
>
> Largely, young people have shunned traditional engagements such as
> agriculture for not being trendy, but this time, with cash available from
> the Youth Development Funds, there is no reason why they should not invest
> in the business.
>
> We are optimistic that this time round, government regulatory authorities
> will not stand in the way of innovations, and that it will provide the
> right
> policy framework in good time. It must also seek ways to thwart the
> manipulations of traditional corporate cartels.
> --
> Sandra Nassali
> Community Facilitator
> UgaBYTES Initiative (www.ugabytes.org)
> Telecentre.org  (www.telecentrecommunity.ning.com)
> Plot 2218 Ggaba Road,
> 2nd Floor Kangave House
> P.O. Box 6081 K'la
> Email  snassali at ugabytes.org
> chat    (skype)- n.sandra.
> Tel      +256-414-370163
> _______________________________________________
> ugabytes mailing list
> ugabytes at lists.ugabytes.org
> http://lists.ugabytes.org/mailman/listinfo/ugabytes_lists.ugabytes.org
>



-- 
Executive Director
UgaBYTES Initiative
Tel: +256414370163
Mob: +256712314969
Skype: sulah.ndaula
Yahoo: ndaulasula
Email: ndaulasula@
(ugabytes.org,yahoo.co.uk or gmail)