Railroads Telephone Internal Combustion Engine Electric Power Radio, Television and Movies Airplane Travel Plastics Microelectronics The Internet

Transformative Technologies in Modern History

The First Wave Transformation from hunter gatherer society into an

agricultural society

The Second Wave The Industrial Revolution

The Third Wave Transformation into an information society

Competition in the Third Wave will be a battle of intelligence and knowledge management

“The Third Wave”

Understanding The Internet A cold war concept developed in the US to counter Soviet

space dominance

A globe spanning network of networks, perhaps the purest form of electronic democracy A collection of worldwide networks Connected together, hence the term

Word Wide Web of networks

Originally designed in the US for research and information exchange

Today, it is the hub for all e-Business and e-Commerce activities

Standards regulated by the Internet Activities Board

850 million people online

Over 200,000 e-mails get sent per second,

worldwide

920920 households in the the US go online every hour

By the end of this year, 4 million million people will be

taking University courses online

By the end of 2005, over 87 million7 million children and

teenagers will be online around the world

The Internet: Who’s Paying Attention?

720,000 phone lines for 140M people as of June 2004 Only 500,000 of those lines are functioning

There were 4,000 Internet users in 1998 Nearly 400,000 and growing, by the end of 2004 No definitive Internet strategy or direction

Perception is Internet still a convenience, not a “must have”

GSM very broadly accepted; Figures vary eBusiness readiness Rankings: Nigeria ranked 58 out of 64

countries surveyed. Denmark was #1

Studies Show Nigeria has …

Bridging The Digital Divide

Mobile phone is the technology with the most greatest impact on development in rural areas

An extra 10 phones per 100 people in the developing world raises the GDP growth by 0.6%

The mobile phone impact is twice as big in developing nations than in developed ones

Reduces transaction costs and broadens trade networks Major software companies view software for mobile phones with

growth trajectory Promotes sustainable ICT integration with open technologies

The Mobile Telephone Surprise

Technology awareness at all time high in rural areas Fishermen, Farmers, Traders no longer scared of

handling technology, nor view as out of reach Internet availability now a necessity within local rural

communities Within Zambian villages, global companies like Coca

Cola are interacting with rural resellers using combination of Internet and mobile phone Eliminates the need to hold cash

Mobile Phone + The Internet = Sustainable Development in Rural Areas

Capacity Building Through Rural Internet Centers

Strategic partnerships with NGO’s and CBO’s Government must build at the local level Private companies drive the infrastructure Allows citizens in rural communities to learn IT locally and

more affordably. Form Global IT partnerships for exchange programmes Attract Global Organizations to the Area

Companies require PC literate populace

Proven Approach

Located in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State Commissioned by President Olusegun Obasanjo in May, 2004 Centre profile includes:

Nearly 300 Personal Computers 60 Seat Amphitheatre 100 Person Library Meeting and Conferencing Centre Offers Education & Training Exhibition Hall

Each LGA Chairman in Bayelsa equipped with laptop and other ICT tools

Plans for smaller, rural centres in every Local Government Area within the State

The Bayelsa State Case StudyThe DSP Information Technology Centre

Stimulate the interest of women in ICT development Organize a computer camp for kids Introduction of ICT Clubs within the Rural Internet Centre

Integrating Women and Youth into ICT Schemes

Websites and Website Standards within the Rural

Areas

Provides information to the world about your community Showcase mineral and natural resources of your area Maintain a rural database of available manpower Generate revenue from advertising

Why a Good Website Matters

Design an “Asset Identity” programme, for which all Federal Government of Nigeria websites must adhere to. This will provide much needed positive brand recognition.

Implement a monitoring or review council to oversee the activities of your website

Implement a “Reward / Penalty” system to ensure compliance with the official standards and guidelines for all Federal Government of Nigeria websites.

Create an official “cyber seal” of authentication, linked to a credible and secure database, which would verify the authenticity of any website claiming to be associated with the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Set a scheduled plan for a detailed course of action for implementing the new standards and guidelines

Recommended Standards For Websites

Lack of executive leadership and support No clear objectives Changing requirements and specifications Technology incompetence Lack of resources Unrealistic timeframe for deployment No results measurement criteria New technology

Factors Impacting Rural ICT Penetration in Nigeria

The Issues …The Answers Social Concerns

– Old Thought: Some people prefer in person transactions– New Reality: People are beginning to trust the Internet

Cultural– Old Thought: Language and literacy a problem– New Reality: Literacy issues not a deterent

Economic– Old Thought: Many people cannot afford devices to access the

Internet– New Reality: Broad initiatives within LGA makes access possible

Geographic– Old Thought: People who live in remote areas may have fewer

access options– New Reality: People willing to go out of their way to get things done

Learning issues– Old Thought: Certain percentage of the population will not be willing

to learn or use new technology– New Reality: Yes, but provide access for those that are

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The value added economy in developing nations is currently being driven by wide spread adaption of mobile phones

Coupling this with Rural Internet Centres having a profound impact on development

Citizens in rural communities are “technology” enlightened and need to be enabled

Knowledge is becoming a key strategic asset

Establishing a rural Internet center is NOT about Technology

It is about leadership and sound processes

Be prepared to maintain and extend the infrastructure

Pay attention to the local culture and changes

They are more challenging than the technology

In Closing …

Millennium Choice: Who we Are, What we Do

Offer best of breed technology consulting services to governments and businesses

Provide training to Chairmen of Local Government Areas, and other tiers of government and industry

Serve as well as trusted advisors to industry leaders and Governments

Design, build and maintain your website Deploy reliable e-mail and messaging services Technology equipment, procurement and supplies Software development

Millennium Choice: Moving the Ball Forward

http://www.mchoice.biz

USA: +1-770-330-9362

Nigeria: 0803-473-4626

0802-311-8080

Let us know how we can help unlock the technology potential of your Local Government Area Today.

Thank you for having us!