Fourth Annual Regional Meeting

Building Communities of Practice (CoPs) for Achieving Millennium Development Goals

Supported by

! UK Department for International Development(DFID)

! The Humanist Institute for Co-operation with Developing Countries, Netherlands (Hivos)

! Swiss Agency for Devlopment and Co-operation (SDC)

Table of Contents

Message from Honourable President of India: Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam 1 Foreword 2 Executive Summary 3 The Annual Regional Meeting (ARM) 2005 3 Rationale 3 Proceedings 4 Key Outcomes 4 Conclusion 8 1. Introduction 9 1.1. Background 10 1.2. OneWorld South Asia – A Brief Perspective 10 1.3. The ARM 2005: A Call for Synergy 12 1.4. Structure of the Report 12 2. Concept to Action – Workshop Design and Objectives 13 2.1. Structuring (CoPs) – A Conceptual Understanding 15 2.2. The Goal: Sustainable Development 15 2.3. MDGs :The Relevance? 16 2.4. ICTs for Development 17 3. Curtain Raiser – Enabling Environment for ICTs in South Asia 19 3.1. Facts and Figures about the Telecom Sector in India - Potential for Growth 20 3.2. Technology – Boon or Bane? 21 3.3. Multi-stakeholder Partnerships 22 3.4. The Quest for Renewable Energy Sources 23 3.5. Research-based Data on Delivery of ICTs for Development 23 ICTs and MDGs : Context, Relevance and Interlinkages 4. Combating Poverty & Food Insecurity 25 4.1.South Asia Scenario 26 4.2. Issues that Emerged from the Discussions 28 4.3. ICTs as a Tool for Poverty Alleviation 29 4.4. Conclusion 34 5. Educating All for Social Empowerment : Possible Strategies 35 5.1. South Asia Scenario 36 5.2. Creating an Agenda for Synergy 39 5.3. Creating Solutions : The Bhartiya Yuva Shakti Trust Experience 40 5.4. Experiments in the field of Distance Learning 41 5.5. Organised Strength as a Pre-Requiste for Accessing Technology 42 5.6 Conclusion 46 Table of Contents

Message from Honourable President of India: Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam 1 Foreword 2 Executive Summary 3 The Annual Regional Meeting (ARM) 2005 3 Rationale 3 Proceedings 4 Key Outcomes 4 Conclusion 8 1. Introduction 9 1.1. Background 10 1.2. OneWorld South Asia – A Brief Perspective 10 1.3. The ARM 2005: A Call for Synergy 12 1.4. Structure of the Report 12 2. Concept to Action – Workshop Design and Objectives 13 2.1. Structuring (CoPs) – A Conceptual Understanding 15 2.2. The Goal: Sustainable Development 15 2.3. MDGs :The Revelance? 16 2.4. ICTs for Development 17 3. Curtain Raiser – Enabling Environment for ICTs in South Asia 19 3.1. Facts and Figures about the Telecom Sector in India - Potential for Growth 20 3.2. Technology – Boon or Bane? 21 3.3. Multi-stakeholder Partnerships 22 3.4. The Quest for Renewable Energy Sources 23 3.5. Research-based Data on Delivery of ICTs for Development 23 ICTs and MDGs Context Revelance and Interlinkages 4. Combating Poverty & Food Insecurity 25 4.1.South Asia Scenario 26 4.2. Issues that Emerged from the Discussions 28 4.3. ICTs as a Tool for Poverty Alleviation 29 4.4. Conclusion 34 5. Educating All for Social Empowerment : Possible Strategies 35 5.1. South Asia Scenario 36 5.2. Creating an Agenda for Synergy 39 5.3. Creating Solutions : The Bhartiya Yuva Shakti Trust Experience 40 5.4. Experiments in the field of Distance Learning 41 5.5. Organised Strength as a Pre-Requiste for Accessing Technology 42 5.6 Conclusion 46

Fourth 2 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Foreword

Dear Readers I am delighted to present the outcome of the deliberations that took place at OneWorld South Asia’s Fourth Annual Regional Meeting (ARM 2005) held on 3rd and 4th March, 2005; with over 500 experts from South Asia who came from a cross-section of organisations, representing the media, private sector, government, academia and the civil society. Building Communities of Practice (CoPs) for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); the theme of ARM 2005 already has two acronyms! Communities of Practice (CoPs) is a concept that demonstrates the effectiveness of wilful knowledge sharing, collaboration and action over a common concern. These days, the MDGs are mostly referred to as the Minimum Development Goals, as they proffer only the lowest possible benchmarks of human development. To these two acronyms, I wish to add a third one in Multi Stakeholder Partnerships (MSPs), a concept which became a sensational highpoint of the ARM meeting. For OneWorld, MSPs are quite important as most of the organisational knowledge emerges out of our experiences with various stakeholders, in all the sectors. I personally subscribe to the idea of bringing together the expertise that is available in cross-sectors to realise the Himalayan task of achieving the MDGs, even though many critics consider them to be the minimum goals. For OneWorld South Asia, the meeting helped in concretising its new operational strategy in the region. The vision of OneWorld South Asia – voicing the voiceless – brings forth two main challenges: a) Amplifying the concerns of the voiceless through MSP-based CoPs using Information, Communications and Technologies ( ICTs). b) Creating communication opportunities for the voiceless so that they are able to voice their concerns themselves. As OneWorld attempts to face the above mentioned challenges, it also strives to realise its overarching mission of Connecting Communities and Empowering People. I am glad to note that the meeting clearly reiterated the need for strengthening and building CoPs for a coordinated and strategic action towards achieving the MDGs. While it emerged that ICTs do offer new opportunities for building CoPs, the deliberations also led to the identification of ways and means to mainstream ICTs in developmental initiatives. I am thankful to all those who attended the ARM 2005; for you helped to shape the discussions into a meaningful beginning, for a new OneWorld South Asia’s operational strategy. You would, I promise, witness a number of CoPs emerging in the forthcoming months and years. The ethos of OneWorld would continue to help us develop collaborative, coherent and well meaning strategies to achieve the MDGs. I wish you the best as you browse through this report and use some of the learning points in your I am glad to note that own areas. At OneWorld, my team members and I are committed to support you in your work as the meeting clearly you deem appropriate. reiterated the need for With warm personal regards strengthening and building CoPs for a coordinated and Basheerhamad Shadrach strategic action towards Director achieving the MDGs. OneWorld South Asia New Delhi E-mail: [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 3

Executive Summary

The Annual Regional Meeting (ARM) 2005 was a milestone, a vantage point from which OneWorld South Asia (OWSA), its trustees, partners and other development professionals could review the progress for the preceding year and plan strategies for the coming year. It was also an opportunity to consolidate its identity as a grassroots communications organisation based in India, and serving in South Asia and focused on “voicing the voiceless by the voiceless themselves”. Rationale OWSA sees itself as a platform for development, which complements global partnerships engaged in the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and committed to the broader Millennium Declaration. OWSA believes that the achievement of the eight MDGs calls for a focussed and consistent endeavour, not only by governments, but all stakeholders from the world over. Given the current emphasis on knowledge intensive development efforts globally, it was felt that knowledge needs to be integrated in the life of communities that share similar values, beliefs, languages and approaches for empowering the underprivileged. Communities of Practice (CoPs) can significantly contribute to the ability of all the stakeholders to learn and share knowledge and experiences to achieve the MDGs. Therefore OWSA adopted the theme “Building Communities of Practice (CoPs) for Achieving the MDGs” for its regional meeting this year.

It was also important to explore the role of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) in building CoPs, because of their great potential to facilitate networking and knowledge-sharing amongst development communities around the world.

The Secretary-General for U.N, Mr. Kofi Annan said in his opening address at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), December 2003, “We are all familiar with the extraordinary power of Information and Communications Technologies. From trade to telemedicine, from education to environmental protection, we have in our hands, on our desktops and in the skies above, the ability to improve standards of living for millions of people on this planet MDGs. We have tools that can propel us towards the instruments with which to advance the cause of freedom and democracy, vehicles with which to propagate knowledge and mutual understanding. We have all of this potential. The challenge … is what to do with it.”

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 4 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

ICTs are thus expected to play a key role in the development process, and it is up to the community to understand the potential of ICTs through sharing of best practices and by adapting feasible solutions throughout the region. The meeting was expected to facilitate this knowledge sharing as well. Proceedings More than 500 development professionals, including 82 from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, actively participated in the proceedings. The expected outcome was to start a process that would enable the development community to build CoPs for achieving the MDGs in partnership with multiple stakeholders at the national level, to begin with in India. This programme is expected to give impetus to similar initiatives in other countries across South Asia. The meeting was organised around five themes:

1. Sustainable livelihood and poverty reduction. 2. Education for empowerment. 3. Health, water and sanitation. 4. Combating epidemics. 5. Promoting good governance.

There were five plenary sessions that set the tone and provided essential inputs that informed the thematic working group discussions. The thematic sessions included presentations by experienced development practitioners and began with a brief overview of the current status of the progress on the MDGs in South Asia. The delegates critiqued some major strategies that were adopted by the Government, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), NGOs and even the private sector in working towards the realisation of the MDGs. Some ongoing initiatives were presented, stimulating the discussions that followed towards strategies that worked and those that did not. Attempts were made to explore ways in which ICTs can be harnessed for incorporating these learnings to achieve the dramatic transformation that is essential for unhindered progress. Critical issues that emerged from the thematic sessions were then discussed in the plenary to enable all the delegates to hear clear the proceedings of all the groups. By the end of the meeting, linkages between the five themes emerged. Thus the invitees at the ARM took centre stage as they shared their experiences and observations, debated on various issues of policy, technology, research and values that would contribute towards sustainable development for the millennium. There was extensive deliberations on questions of equity, accessibility, outreach, capacity building, accountability and benchmarks of effectiveness. Key Outcomes The event emphasised the critical nature of the MDGs in the context of the current global development scenario, and the importance of ICTs and CoPs for meeting these goals.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 523

There was appreciation of the urgent need for economic, social empowerment, capacity building and co-operation that would strengthen and involve grassroots communities and women. There was a felt need among development practitioners to build CoPs for the sharing of best practices from all around the globe; they need to form alliances and multi- stakeholders partnerships (MSPs) around several themes and focus on inclusive, rights-based approaches to grassroots communities and their concerns. It was also felt that convergence is of critical importance-convergence in terms of aligning all thematic strategies to meet overarching goals, in the form of partnerships and collaborations, and in the form of mix-and-match communication strategies involving traditional communication tools along with newer, equally powerful ICT tools. Some important points of agreement with respect to CoPs, MDGs, ICTs and MSPs were:

! A CoP is a network of like-minded people with expertise and substantive knowledge, who share a concern, a set of problems, or a passion about a topic or thematic area. These people are ready to share their experiences both successful and unsuccessful; at the same time they are also eager to learn from the experiences of others.

! The common objective should be sustainable development, based upon economic improvement, equitable eradication of poverty, sustenance of the environment and empowerment of the individual. Human Development and Environment are interlinked. Therefore the conservation of natural resources is critical to the achievement of development goals.

! ICTs have enormous potential as enablers for the achievement of development goals. But they are not magic formulae, nor are they an end in themselves. People need to understand the power of these technologies to solve specific problems, and they need to appropriate the mechanisms to make use of them.

! The MDGs are time-bound, definitive goals that the governments are committed to achieving, but these should not be seen as the ultimate indicators for development. As against the rights-based Millennium Declaration, the goals are excessively focussed on numbers rather than to the ‘quality of life’. The MDGs therefore, need to be seen as Minimum Development Goals and there is need for MDGs plus.

! MSPs are working collaborations between parties drawn from governments, business and civil society organisations. Such partnerships strategically aggregate the resources and competencies of each party to address key development challenges. The partnerships are founded on the principle of shared contributions, benefits, risks and cost.

! MSPs must be approached with a view to using available skills, capability, managerial and organisational resources without compromising the final objective of benefiting the poor and disadvantaged people.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 6 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

! Grassroots communities should be empowered to partner equally, monitor progress and prioritise their needs and objectives in multi-stakeholder partnerships. Role of ICTs in the Knowledge Society:

! Knowledge and information can enable communities to understand and articulate their needs, rights, to deal with the market and the Government and to protect their own interests.

! Participatory approaches facilitating the generation of knowledge by the poor themselves, will be far more useful that universities and research laboratories. Also the poor and the farming communities should be the partners and not the recipients of knowledge.

! Several CoPs exist in the region even today, and they are doing excellent work in their own spaces. Now we need to bring them together and to learn from them, benefit from them. Online CoPs will enable wider outreach and therefore, access to more resources. ICTs can play a role in widening the reach and efficiency of CoPs.

! ICTs are critical for the conversion of outlays to outcomes, to help meet the challenging goals presented by the MDGs plus.

! ICTs can help in measuring the progress of communities, the success of programmes and initiatives and this will be the greatest impetus for upscaling such initiatives. They can also provide the necessary tools and techniques for the development of indicators of progress in a bottom-up manner, so that the effectiveness of service delivery by the public and private sectors is measured in respect of improvement in the lives of the poor, and not by balance sheet figures.

! ICTs can play a key role in communicating the message of the MDGs across the globe and into the rural areas. The range of communication technologies is vast, it includes print media, community radio, satellite television, computers, internet, wireless technology and it is possible to find an appropriate choice of tools to suit a particular context.

! Several instances of successful knowledge-sharing initiatives exist in India. Some examples are the OKN village at Villianur in Pondicherry, E-choupal in Maharashtra, the CLR community radio initiative in Pune and the financial management initiative for efficiency reforms in the United Kingdom. We now need to leverage our learning from them, not only in terms of best practices, but also in terms of what we ought not to do. Some important highlights from the presentations

! Focus on facilitating local initiatives for local content in local languages.

! Need to customise knowledge to meet user-specific requirements with sensitivity towards specific sections of society – based on age, gender, caste, religion and particularly, the most disadvantaged, most neglected people.

! Need to have convergence while pursuing the MDGs, with cross-cutting out-of-the-box strategies interlinking all aspects of development – education,

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 7

health, epidemics, socio-cultural dimensions relating to caste, culture, religion and gender, water and sanitation.

! Research as an ongoing process is important since the community initiatives are accelerated when supported by measurable indicators of progress.

! NGOs or CSOs can validate the data collection done for the National Sample Survey, or the Family Welfare Survey, since they work at the block level, or the village level. Such practices need to be institutionalised in order to ensure accuracy of data collection.

! Training and capacity building has made women in local governance institutions more capable, so much so that in Karnataka and other states, where the second and third round of elections have taken place, more than 40 per cent women have been elected, even beyond the reserved seats.

! Capacity building is a basic component that needs to be built into each and every programme, so that people are aware of their rights and are able to negotiate for them.

! Poor people should be allowed access to the basic resources that they need; ICTs can improve people’s they should be empowered to prioritise their concerns, and they can do a far understanding of better job of combating poverty and hunger by themselves. environmental issues and their policy implications, ! Today we speak of women’s collectives and women’s organisations having access leading to more inclusive to technologies; they have their own space, and they can take benefit at policies and their own pace and time. In short, political and social empowerment goes environmentally Highlights Highlights Highlights hand-in-hand with access to technology. Highlights Highlights sustainable outcomes. ! Access to basic health, water and sanitation facilities has to be given utmost priority, both by the community and the governments. Access, equity and affordability are three critical aspects that needs to be considered in respect of essential drugs, water and sanitation leading to a safe, healthy life.

! There are many local practitioners of indigenous, traditional and alternative forms of healing. Their skills need to be upgraded and they need to be included to supplement and support the health services.

! Active community participation will be needed to conduct use-based analysis of water – capturing who uses how much water and for what purposes – and use this information as a regulatory mechanism in pockets of excess usage. There needs to be a fine balance between the use of water as a resource and water as a component of livelihood, between availability and sustainability.

! ICTs can improve people’s understanding of environmental issues and their policy implications, leading to more inclusive policies and environmentally sustainable outcomes.

! Strategies and campaigns around HIV/AIDS need to be addressed within the gender and rights framework, and not merely as a health issue.

! There is a need to explore possibilities for integrating monitoring and surveillance, prevention and care programmes for epidemics, along with Primary Health Care services so that simple testing, prophylactic treatment or cure options can be

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 8 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

made available easily, at the same time, sensitive issues regarding consent, confidentiality, stigma will need to be addressed. Also needed is a horizontal integration of different services for prevention, detection, cure and care in HIV/AIDS with those for other diseases (e.g. malaria, HIV/AIDS), and a continuum of services through the adoption of a life span approach.

! In a democracy, ultimately, the ball is firmly in the court of the citizens. People have to get together to understand where the levers of change are, understand the goals and make them happen. They need to look at effective solutions that have been based on collective wisdom and experience, and replicate them across the country.

! In India, a lot of energy is put into lawmaking but there is still a need for mechanisms to strengthen public understanding for better implementation.

! ICTs do bring people together, offering opportunities for sharing learning and around the globe, however, they are yet to reach the local communities, local levels and unless this happens, the digital divide will not lessen, and people’s potential will not be realised. The most disadvantaged have the lowest levels of access and miss out on many of the benefits; we need innovative solutions that factor this in.

Conclusion

! The meeting concluded with a renewed commitment to realise the Indian Finance Minister P. Chidambaram’s call, in his budget speech on February 28th, 2005, to translate outlays into outcomes so that funds allocated for development benefit the targeted people. Quoting the minister from his budget speech, “The National Commission on Farmers has recommended the establishment of Rural Knowledge Centres all over the country using modern information and communication technology (ICT). Mission 2007 is a national initiative launched by an alliance comprising nearly 80 organisations including CSOs. Their goal is to set up a Knowledge Centre in every village by the 60th anniversary of Independence Day. Government supports the goal, and I am glad to announce that the Government has decided to join the alliance and route its support through NABARD. I propose to allow NABARD to provide Rs.100 crore out of RIDF.” OWSA partners, along with other key stakeholders of Mission 2007, will now partner with NABARD in designing the funding mechanism for this initiative.

! The minister’s budget speech, which also laid emphasis on the government’s commitment to alleviate poverty and focus on health, education, livelihood and gender equality, strengthened the resolve of the development community and raised hopes for effective partnerships for meeting the MDGs.

! Concluding the meeting, OWSA’S director, Dr.Basheerhamad Shadrach said, “The next steps include creating twenty CoPs on issues like food security, access to water, poverty eradication, improving governance and securing gender equity among other issues. OWSA is committed to steering this process with its partners in the region.”

The two-day meeting was concluded with consensus on the formation of some CoPs, both real and virtual, around the various issues that had emerged. Everyone went back with a great sense of responsibility for the tasks that lay ahead, and a shared vision of sustainable, equitable, environment-friendly development.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Introduction

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 10 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Introduction

1.1. Background numerous CoPs already in place through the effective use of ICTs. OneWorld South Asia (www.oneworldsouthasia.net), based in The present report draws upon the New Delhi, India, is a part of the proceedings of the ARM 2005. It aims OneWorld Network (www.oneworld.net), to arm all the partners with a roadmap OneWorld South Asia has which was formed in the U.K. in 1995. and some milestones, principles, over 500 partner It is an international non-profit indicators in respect of individual organisations in South Asia, network engaged in using ICTs like the programmes and projects, and in respect including non-governmental Internet, mobile telephones and of the overarching objective of achieving organisations (NGOs), community radio for poverty the MDGs. It also places the spotlight donors, multilateral alleviation. on OWSA’s intended role as the springboard for the development organisations, private With more than 500 organisations in sector, media, academicians community and as a facilitator for Highlights Highlights Highlights Highlights Highlights South Asia, including non-governmental grassroots communication leading to and governments. organisations (NGOs), donors, policy formulation. multilateral organisations, private sector, media, academicians and 1.2. OneWorld South Asia (OWSA): governments as its partners, OneWorld A Brief Perspective South Asia (OWSA) is dedicated to OWSA’s strategic move from being a part “voicing the voiceless” and to exploring of OneWorld International to an the role of ICTs in achieving the independent unit also signified its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), intention to identify itself as a which are internationally agreed time grassroots communication organisation bound targets for measuring based in India and focussed on South development progress. Asia. Thus, after being in existence for OWSA believes that the achievement of four years, OneWorld South Asia shifted “a dramatic reduction in poverty and its emphasis towards promoting marked improvements in the quality of grassroots communication to strengthen life of the poor” through meeting the the voice of the poor and the eight MDGs calls for a focussed, marginalised. Its key programmes are : convergent strategy involving stakeholders from the entire region. One ! Grassroots Communication key component is the integration of ! Knowledge for Development knowledge among communities that ! Research and Analysis share values, beliefs, languages, and ! Policy Advocacy supported by Capacity Building

ways of doing things. With this ! Technical Services realisation, OWSA adopted the theme of ! Partnerships and Networking. “Towards Building Communities of Practice (CoPs) for achieving the MDGs” One of OWSA’s pioneering steps in this for its Fourth Annual Regional Meeting direction is the generation of local (ARM) for the year 2005. The meeting knowledge in the Tamil language by sought to facilitate interaction between the local community, which is then multiple stakeholders to identify new disseminated through All India Radio CoPs and also to strengthen the (AIR) and local language newspapers in

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 11

southern India. In collaboration with grassroots voices in the national the MS Swaminathan Research and international arena. Foundation (MSSRF) and as a part of OWSA and the MSSRF have jointly the Open Knowledge Network (OKN) launched an online discussion forum on project, this initiative provides people Information Kiosks. The major at the grassroots with opportunities to themes for this email and web-based communicate locally relevant knowledge discussion are: scalability, sustainability in local languages, at an affordable and collaboration. A summary of these cost to nearly 0.1 million people living discussions would be shared at two in a radius of 200 km. It has now separate national workshops on moved out from Pondicherry to the rest technology and policy issues in ICTs for of Tamil Nadu, to North India in development initiatives. collaboration with Tarahaat and Dhrishtee Foundation, and to Sri Lanka On June 3, 2004, OWSA hosted a pre- in collaboration with the ICTA, the ICT consultation in Delhi, to make a strong agency of Sri Lanka. case before the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for allowing Another step to amplify grassroots Community Radio in India. voices was the initiation of a DFID- Representatives of the civil society and supported action research project in media took part in the consultation, and Nigeria, Croatia, Pakistan and India pressed for opening up of the airwaves to study the relevance of ICTs in pro- for community radio through liberal poor public service delivery. As the regulations on licensing, eligibility and implementer of the India chapter of regulatory issues. this action research, OWSA will focus on the health sector The Training and Technical Services initiatives of the India Population division of OneWorld South Asia is aimed Project of the Municipal Corporation at building capacities of our partners of Delhi. We are collaborating with and stakeholders, to work towards the a Delhi-based partner NGO, Prerana realisation of MDGs. The focus is on (www.prerana.org), on this project. providing knowledge and expertise at grassroots and In addition, the Highlights intermediary Digital Opportunity Highlights institutional levels, Channel and Learning OneWorld South Asia’s key programmes and enabling Channel, two other are Grassroots Communication, the deployment of online global products Knowledge for Development, Research ICTs in grassroots emanating from and Analysis, and Policy Advocacy developmental OWSA, introduced supported by Capacity Building and initiatives-thematic several interactive Technical Services and Partnerships and training programmes platforms for Networking. on specific MDGs, advocating policy creation of on-line learning solutions for changes aimed at reducing poverty. specific target groups, and providing OWSA also continued to expand its open-source technology based tools, partnership base during this period. The knowledge networking and handholding partners, at several other consultations, support to the partners. The division is further reinforced the value of the also developing the Ek-Duniya Content OWSA partnership in promoting Management System, a local language peer-to-peer networking and advocating content-hosting and communications

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 12 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

platform, training grassroots level up with one another and to form COPs partners on this platform, and deploying that would enable the region to their websites, using this platform. progress towards the MDGs. 1.4. Structure of the Report In line with its strategic objective of supporting local content in local Chapter One introduces the rationale languages, OWSA is currently behind the selection of the theme for the collaborating with National ARM 2005. It begins with a brief about Informatics Center (NIC) on the creation of a tool called OpenEnrich. Highlights OWSA also partnered with British Telecom (BT), Cisco and Wipro to In line with its strategic objective of initiate ‘Lifeline’ an audio helpline, supporting local content in local based on the question and answer model languages, OWSA is currently collaborating with National and supported by experts. This support Informatics Center (NIC) on the system can be accessed by farmers in creation of a tool called OpenEnrich. India to solve all kinds of problems. As a part of its mission to widen the OWSA’s history and links it up to our outreach of development debates and current strategy and future vision with news in South Asia, OWSA also respect to the dominant development circulates Ekam Lokam, a newsletter questions confronting the region. for CSOs and NGOs in the development sector, and Mainstreaming ICTs, the Chapter Two delineates OWSA’s first magazine on MDGs in South Asia. understanding of the priorities set for the ARM 2005. This regional meeting was 1.3. The Annual Regional Meeting 2005 about how governments, civil society A Call for Synergy and private sectors can all work At the last annual regional together of accelerate the progress partnership meeting, towards the achievement of the MDGs. representatives of over 100 Chapter Three discusses possibilities NGOs from the sub-continent for an enabling environment for using had agreed to work ICTs to build CoPs and thereby achieve together to achieve the the MDGs. MDGs. The establishment of COPs was something that Chapters Four to Eight present a had been discussed at summary of the discussions under the that meeting; OWSA saw five thematic working group sessions. this coming to life at the They highlighted the main issues under ARM 2005. each theme and identified possible areas Noting that the where ICTs can contribute for achieving the MDGs. participants included development professionals The Final Chapter presents the key from all sectors, Dr. learnings and areas of concern reflecting Shadrach encouraged the the delegates’ evaluation of the delegates to make full use meeting, and identified action points of the opportunity to link that emerged from the conference.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Concept to Action

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 14 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Concept to Action Workshop Design and Objectives

The history of OneWorld South Asia’s practices, and ways of doing things, is foray into developing relevant and an essential ingredient in successful appropriate technologies, and creating development intervention. We realised multiple linkages from grassroots to that Communities of Practice (CoPs) policy formed the backdrop and set the would significantly contribute to the stage for ARM 2005. ability of all stakeholders to learn and share knowledge and experiences to Dr. Shadrach introduced OWSA as being achieve the MDGs. FOUR MAGICAL ACRONYMS about four magical acronyms—MDGs, ICTs, MSPs and AGC (Appropriate The workshop brought together a MDGs - Millennium Development Goals Grassroots Communication). OWSA also development leaders like Ashok Khosla ICTs - Information, Communication believes in using a combination of (Development Alternatives Group), & Technologies appropriate media, whether traditional Mohan Dharia (Vanarai Foundation), MSPs - Multi-stakeholder Partnerships or state-of-the art - to involve various Priyantha Kariyaperuma (Advisor to the AGC - Appropriate Grassroot stakeholders, in a concerted effort to Hon’ble Prime Minister of Sri Lanka), Communication achieve the MDGs. Given the current Kiran Karnik (NASSCOM), S.K.Chopra emphasis on knowledge-intensive (Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy sustainable development efforts Resources), Manju Hathotuwa (ICT globally, and in South Asia in particular, Agency of Sri Lanka), Vinay it was clear that knowledge needed to Dharmadhikari (Government of India), be integrated in the life of communities Syeda Hameed (Planning Commission of that share similar values, beliefs, India), Rinalia Abdul Rahim (Global languages, and approaches for Knowledge Partnership), M.Tawfik empowering the underprivileged. (UNESCO), Daniel Gustafson, Shantanu Therefore, OneWorld South Asia adopted Mitra (DFID), Steve Glovinsky (UN), the theme “Building CoPs for Achieving Edmund Marsden (British Council of the MDGs” for its ARM 2005. India) and Shahid Akthar (Asia The objectives of the meeting were to: Pacific Development Information (i) Understand the current status of the Programme, UNDP). MDGs in South Asia. Presentations and debates in the five (ii) Explore the role of ICTs in achieving plenaries focussed on issues related to the MDGs. policy, technology, and strategy around the formation of CoPs for MDGs, on the (iii)Identify methodologies for availability and accessibility of building CoPs. essential technologies and (iv) Facilitate CoPs through ICTs. partnerships, and on questions of equity that need to be, but are often The workshop design evolved over the not, inherent to all of the above. year as we worked with partners seeking new pathways towards the achievement Using the plenaries as the planks for of the MDGs – some of our collective getting all delegates on board with experiences have shown that knowledge respect to some main issues, the five sharing and integration among parallel thematic sessions steered communities, that share values, beliefs, them in specific directions based upon

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 15

the MDGs. The constraints of time and Shantanu Mitra, Senior Economic space demanded that we broadly Advisor, DFID India, felt that the sheer classify the basic themes from the breadth of the development agenda does eight goals into four categories, necessitate that a number of CoPs be namely – Poverty and Food Security, formed around various issues like Education, Health, Water and water, health, education and so on, Sanitation, Combating Epidemics. and these CoPs in turn be linked to Governance was added as a fifth theme one another. This can lead to for discussion. overarching synergies amongst different but related goals and a unified Thematic discussions were to be led strategy of development for all. by experienced professionals who would share strategies and ongoing A systematic approach to facilitating initiatives in order to stimulate such sharing can expand outreach and discussions that were followed by coverage and provide tools for effective strategies that worked and those that interaction. did not, for possible learning. Two 2.2. The Goal: Sustainable Development working group sessions, also following the same parallel thematic format, The generally accepted definition of than focussed on the role of ICTs in sustainable development has survived the strategies discussed so far. a decade since the UN’s Commission on Environment and Development first 2.1. Structuring CoPs pronounced it — “Development that A Conceptual Understanding meets the needs of the present CoPs are formal or informal networks without compromising the ability of of people with common interests who future generations to meet their share knowledge on a regular basis. needs.” In other words, sustainable Organisations have begun to learn development is based upon economic from the benefits of structuring CoPs improvement, social equity, protection around specific or generic kinds of of environment and natural resources, problems and creating a knowledge and empowerment of the individual. reservoir of experiences, ideas and If we were to measure progress by ways of doing things. An important these standards, we would soon realise component is the learning, of good that while there is some progress, as well as bad practices, that is there is still a long way to go, and gathered from this common pool. This that current approaches are not process enriches the organisation, helping us deal with any of the shrinks the learning curve and increases problems we are facing today. efficiency – simply by eliminating Much of the concern in civil society possibilities of re-inventing the wheel, today seems to be around a and by offering possibilities for dominant development paradigm divergent, ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking that leads to increased industrialisation, and creative solutions emerging from urbanisation, unprecedented levels of the reservoir. pollution, natural resource depletion and It is evident that development degradation, widening gaps between the practitioners will benefit the most by haves and the have-nots, and poverties sharing experiences and knowledge with and epidemics of various kinds and at others working on similar issues. various levels.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 16 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

2.3. MDGs : The Relevance? is expected that the approach would prioritise the empowerment In 2000, the Heads of State of 189 and participation of women and countries, met at the UN Millennium disadvantaged groups, affirm the Summit at New York, formulated and accountability of various stakeholders, ratified the Millennium Declaration including public and private sector

Shantanu Mitra Shantanu (www.un.org/millennium/declaration/ organisations, NGO and donors vis-à-vis ares552e.pdf) that committed them to people affected by problems related to work towards a “dramatic reduction in poverty, hunger, education, gender poverty and marked improvement in the inequality, health, housing and safe quality of life of the poor”. Eight crosscutting development Goals (MDGs) drinking water; at the same time it with clear targets and indicators were would also reinforce the principles of identified, and all countries pledged to global equity and shared responsibility work towards these goals that were to which are the very foundation for the be met by 2015. Millennium Declaration. It is believed that a gender and rights Thus the MDGs focus on poverty based framework is essential to realise reduction and livelihoods, better any strategy to meet these goals. It health, education for all and so on, thus

Examples of CoPs 1. ECOPORT This is an ecology portal, whose mission is to establish and maintain a knowledge commons where individuals and communities can work and learn together to develop sustainable ways to manage earth’s natural resources. This integrates the concept of knowledge commons, where individual records placed in a common database become the central treasury of information. The CoP, in this case, is global; it includes anyone who wants information about plants. The structure is therefore based upon a database of archived data, ready for retrieval by interested individuals. The management is around the idea of a protected commons, where ownership is identified, and quality of content is ensured through the concept of peer review, after which an editor and a manager take over and filter the content. 2. WOCAT WOCAT’s mission is to provide tools that allow soil and water conservation specialists to share knowledge, assist them in their search for appropriate technologies and support them in decision making. A detailed questionnaire helps a user decide among various options by country, technology, or a list of contributors on topics like ground water management, rain water harvesting etc. The CoP in this case is global, but limited largely to specialists in soil and water conservation. It is targeted more to organisations, as they are more likely to be working on such projects, although actually anyone can visit, retrieve or add new content to the database. The structure is rather complicated, with a management committee, database and multiple special features. 3. Solution Exchange The mission of Solution Exchange is to provide a platform to connect people who share similar concerns, strengthen interaction, improve credibility of a larger peer group, and to go beyond sharing knowledge to seek answers on burning issues. Although it does sound very similar to the CoPs discussed above, it is quite distinct from them. First of all, it is used by a relatively limited number of people. Secondly, it constitutes practitioners dealing with a defined and relatively smaller set of common problems. Steve Glovinsky (UN representative in India) used a real example of a UN volunteer, who was looking for ways to set up a communications network in the Tsunami-affected Maldives. He sent out a mail on the Solution Exchange CoP and on the fourth day, the moderator sent him a set of responses from people, who had faced similar situations and problems, in various parts of the world. The compilation included information regarding the pros and cons of different options, the conditions under which they worked, the pre-requisites, the equipment that would be required, where it would be available and a host of other considerations.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 17

4. Chhattisgarh-Net

Chattisgarh-Net is a civil society network established by a group of freelance journalists with the aim of promoting dialogue on various issues related to Chattisgarh, a relatively new state of India. The group was formed in July 2004 and today it has around 235 members, who come from varied professions. It is supported by One World South Asia in its attempt to attract more participants to this platform. The debates on Chattisgarh-Net have been lively, and the issues discussed ranged from human rights, education, agriculture, mining, to the use of ICTs for rural development.

A number of discussions from Chhattisgarh-Net have resulted in the local and national media taking up the matter and subsequent action from relevant people. For example, one of the members Dr Pankaj Oudhia raised the issue of possible bad impacts of Jatropha plantation. Government of Chhattisgarh plans to plant millions of Jatropha trees as a possible alternative source of Bio Diesel but the group has found out that adequate studies have not been done before taking this decision. This discussion resulted in news reports in NDTV, Sahara TV, Star TV, India TV, Down to Earth magazine, BBC Online, Indian Express, India Today and the local paper Haribhumi. The discussion group is now hoping to organise a field trial to find out more about the possible harmful affects of the Jatropha to influence Government policy.

explicitly acknowledging the principles success, provided that we address the of sustainable development. It’s also the relevant issues - issues of connectivity, Mohan Dharia meeting point with alternative models accessibility and affordability; issues of focussing on pro-poor development relevance to the end user – who is the and environmental presentation. technology meant for, what is their need, Mr.Mohan Dharia, President, Vanarai how can it be of use in empowering them, Foundation, was among those in ensuring that they retain control – over advocating simple solutions for their own resources, and over their own eradicating poverty and water lives? There are also issues of power and There has to be a linkage shortage in the world, controlling renewable energy sources. between development and pollution, protecting the environment There is no doubt in most minds in the technology orientation. and impeding the population development sector that ICTs are the only explosion. At the same time, he was way to upscale the small and successful also quite sure that IT could play a interventions at the grass root levels to dynamic role in reversing the trend achieve the kind of growth that the MDGs towards sustainable development; and Ashok Khosla entail. Technology is terrific as long as that all action must be directed to people are the masters, and not the slaves achieve the social objectives of the - what counts is the last person. country. So he strongly advocated a linkage between development and We need to use ICTs to bring in technology orientation. integrity, transparency and accountability of our systems, to bring 2.4. ICTs for Development back life-centeredness and self There is no doubt in most minds “ICT is a very special technology, one sufficiency. At the same time we need in the development sector that that cannot be hijacked. It is the first to use ICTs to create new structures ICTs are the only way to upscale truly democratic technology. It can be based on our learning from around the the small and successful interventions at the grass root seen in the broadest sense as globe, there is not enough time to go levels to achieve the kind of constituted of a wide range of about re-inventing the wheel… growth that the MDGs entail. communication technologies. Properly - Ashok Khosla, President Development conceived, it has the possibility of Alternatives.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 18 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Not everyone present at the ARM had heard about the MDGs. And when they did, it was clear that not everyone espoused the MDGs in the form that they were adopted by the Governments at the UN Millennium Summit. Some had serious concerns about the kind of “development” that the MDGs seemed to aim for. Others critiqued the indicators of evaluation, saying that they drew undue attention to the numbers while disregarding the quality of life, which was in fact the essence of the Millennium Declaration. The third critique about the MDGs was that they were not realistic. Ashok Khosla, Development Alternatives, described them as ‘too cautious’. Further, most action, evaluation and analysis related to MDGs has focussed on the eight goals as watertight compartments, whereas originally, the Millennium Declaration actually conceived of the goals as being part of a compact leading to sustainable development and improved quality of life.

In the words of Sarath Fernando, MONLAR, Sri Lanka, “What does this goal mean to those 80 million people who go to bed hungry everyday. If they go hungry to bed everyday, they are not likely survive for twenty long years; and so this Millennium Development Goal, which is aimed at reducing hunger and poverty, is not relevant or meaningful to any of them!”

This was a concern that came up repeatedly in most discussions. Some delegates preferred to rename the MDGs as Minimum Development Goals, acknowledging thereby that the MDGs were an indication of minimum progress that ought to be achieved in terms of development. Others chose to use the term MDGs plus because they felt that there was indeed a lot more to achieve.

The usefulness of ICTs in the lives of people been in place, available and accessible for all was illustrated by Mr.Priyantha Keriyapperuma, to use. He concluded that there is a need for Advisor to the Hon’ble Prime integrated communication networks Minister of Sri Lanka, in his across the island, including satellite narration of the events that phones for emergencies, tele-centres followed the disastrous Tsunami in urban and rural areas, and Internet that struck Sri Lanka, Indonesia, cafes, and acknowledged that the ICT and India on December 26, 2004. agency (ICTA) of Sri Lanka has been The experience showed that ICTs a high priority for the government for could have been useful, if they had disseminating knowledge.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Curtain Raiser

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 20 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Curtain Raiser Enabling Environment for ICTs in South Asia

Efforts so far have been in vain… But there is reason to hope…

All efforts by the Governments, international organisations, “…last year, ITC set up 2000 village information kiosks. Multinational Corporations (MNCs) and other players in the Today it has 5,000 kiosks. Last year the total number of private sector to meet international goals of equitable kiosks in India was 5000, today the number is 10,000. We sustainable development have been in vain; this is borne need to multiply that to 600,000 and we can. It is out by declining quality of lives and degradation of very much possible because we do have the resource, ecological systems – what can technologies do to reverse we do not have to spend a sing additional penny.“ this situation? - Mr.Pradip Baijal, Chairman, TRAI.

It was largely accepted among the does not have either the funds or delegates that ICTs do have the potential the political will to make it work to support the transformation of the for the poor. South Asian region, but there were still ! Lack of conclusive evidence that some reservations about their actual use ICTs can be used for the benefit of and application in the development the most disadvantaged sections of process. Some of the questions raised people in developing countries. related to: It is true that there are several ! Availability, accessibility and successful ICT initiatives on the affordability of new, yet appropriate ground today, but it is wondered if such and relevant technologies and interventions can be upscaled across the equipment. entire region. Scattered, isolated ! Lack of infrastructure and power to experiments are not likely to take us any use these technologies. closer to our goals – the MDGs. ! Relevance of the technologies in The presentations in the plenary sessions addressing basic questions of addressed some of these questions and Pradeep Baijal Pradeep poverty hunger etc., meeting the raised some debates around them. MDGs and enabling sustainable Regarding the question of availability development projects. Many and affordability of the infrastructure people fear that the elite will for connectivity, Pradeep Baijal, exploit the technology to widen the Chairman, Telecom Authority of India knowledge divide, make the poor (TRAI), spoke with optimism based upon even poorer, and squander away the scarce resources. facts and figures. ! The risks of bringing in multi- 3.1. Facts and Figures about the stakeholder partnerships – Telecom Sector in India - Potential particularly in a situation where the for Growth main objective of the private sector Mr. Baijal presented the scenario with is to make profits and so there seems respect to the Telecom sector in India. to be little likelihood that they will make technology available at In the fifty years that followed India’s affordable prices. The Government independence, the teledensity in the

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 21

country had increased by 1.92 per cent BSNL has laid fibre optic cables right - with a much larger population up to 30,000 exchanges in the country. increased the base last year we The additional cost of lighting up these teledensity by two per cent. This exchanges in rural areas is quite revolution can be attributed to two marginal, and the price ought to be close factors –the genius of the Indian people to zero, since there is unlimited and the acumen of the corporates who bandwidth and virtually no demand. saw the opportunity in this sector – they Wireless technology (WLL) has only come up in the last one year, making it brought in the IT services, BPOs, which possible to deliver bandwidth up to 40- produce today three per cent of the 50 kms. So, given reasonable pricing, country’s GDP and contributed to 30 per all 6 lakh villages in the country can cent of India’s total exports. be connected using these 30,000 fibre While improved connectivity is true for ends and WLL. most of the urban centres – the rest of the country and individuals are not so Villages as an Opportunity fortunate. The number of broadband While the growth rate in tele-density in urban areas has increased connections per 100 persons in India is radically due to the entry of private sector companies like Tata, Reliance only 0.02, and this is very low in and Hutch, the rural growth rate is actually negative. But in reality, 70 comparison with other countries like per cent of our people live in the rural areas and there is an urgent Korea (35), Malaysia (2) and China (2). need to reach these people. The main cause of this was the high cost - a broadband connection was priced at 3.2. Technology: Boon or Bane? 15.63 dollars for 100 Kbps. After considerable lobbying, the cost has now “Agreed that historically, technology come to less than 5 dollars for 100 Kbps was for the rich and powerful; some and it is hoped that the number of of them have even used it for tyranny and oppression, and some for connections will now increase. maintaining their domination. Aggressive Indian corporates have put Therefore, it is justified that the down 16 terrabytes of international development community viewed connectivity; out of which the call technology with suspicion. The centre, IT, BPO, ILD businesses use about development community’s inability to 0.18 terrabytes, leaving nearly 14 harness technology has also been due terrabytes for us to tap. We need delivery to other reasons - because people did mechanisms to enter the market and to not make the effort and were not able bring down prices – TRAI will intervene to fully understand technology and use to ensure that this capacity is utilised. it for their purposes. In the last decade

The Telecom Industry in India - A huge opportunity waiting to be tapped!

! There are examples of successful initiatives in ICT in the rural sector, such as e-chaupal of ITC, in Andhra Pradesh Akshaya in Kerala and Bhoomi in Karnataka.

! Expansion of communication is essential for dissemination and utilisation of knowledge.

! Liberal policies that promote the genius of the people and the genius of corporates, will intensify competition and ensure market efficiency.

! There is sufficient infrastructure on the ground and if the government, regulatory bodies, and other civil society organisations get together it is possible to tap it at affordable prices.

! Pricing needs to be sensitive to ground realities – Can the user afford it?

! Villages need to be seen as a huge marketing opportunity, and not as the responsibility of the Government.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 22 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

however, technology has been from 40 countries, its composition successfully used to empower the spans public, commercial and non disadvantaged, to take health and profit sectors. The members include education to the poor, to enhance government agencies, donor agencies, livelihoods and to break some barriers international organizations (including among different strata of people. UN agencies), private sector However, those enthused by technology companies, NGOs, academia and Kiran Karnik very often forget that the most critical media. GKP focuses on sharing component of ‘ICT’ is the ‘I’ knowledge for mutual learning and as (Information) — technology is merely a basis for joint action, and promoting an enabler, a vehicle for the and practicing MSPs as a mechanism information. There are Government for meeting development challenges. schemes, well funded, meant for setting She reflected GKP’s belief that MSPs up community information centres, in strategically aggregate the resources However, those enthused by which the setting up of equipment and and competencies of each party to technology very often forget overcoming of logistical hurdles, such resolve key development challenges. that the most critical as setting up connectivity in remote The partnerships are founded on the component of ‘ICT’ is the ‘I’ areas, become ends in themselves. The principle of shared risk, cost, (Information) — technology people implementing these projects contribution and mutual benefit. is merely an enabler, a vehicle for the information. have not thought sufficiently about The “How To” of Building what is coming down the pipe. Successful MSPs Meaningful content must be created and it must be related to the context Kiran Karnik, President, NASSCOM India, stated that by partnering with in which it must be used. the Government and by holding it - Kiran Karnik, President, NASSCOM India. accountable for converting outlays 3.3. Multi-stakeholder Partnerships into outcomes, successful MSPs could The question of MSPs was raised by be forged. many delegates at different points in Regarding other potential the meeting. How to get them stakeholders like private players some together and ensure synergy? Some of concerns that plague the development the more forceful points that came community at large are : Are they from the distinguished speakers are going to distort and change the reproduced below: dimensions of our objectives? Are they going take over? Are they going to The GKP Experience make this a commercial outfit? Karnik Rinalia Abdul Rahim, argued that there was always a Executive Director possibility of these fears coming true Global Knowledge unless the civil society played a more Partnership (GKP) proactive role. Malaysia, introduced her He gave the example of Mission 2007 own organisation as an which, having started as a civil society illustration of successful initiative, has been able to broaden its Rinalia Abdul Rahim Abdul Rinalia MSPs. GKP is a global stakeholder base the Government is now network with 92 a willing and active partner, and so are member organisations the Indian industry and MNCs.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 23

ICT Agency of Sri Lanka sustainable energy security. This must An Example of a Vibrant MSP meet the requirements of energy consumption at the macro levels but Manju Hathotuwa, MD & CEO ICTA must also reach the remotest village for Sri Lanka, described the national plan cooking, heating, lighting and for led by the government and supported providing ICT access too. by other groups, and which aims for multi-sectoral development across the This energy must necessarily be entire country. It is a group of eighteen decentralised and must include local professionals drawn from public and energy sources. At the same time, private sectors, from civil society, donor continous experimentation with agencies and it functions as an MSP – renewalable energy sources is required. These sources include wind energy, solar on the one hand it partners with the energy, small hydro and bio-mass. Other Government to put the infrastructure in innovative options include hybrid place and on the other, it involves local systems with combinations of wind and communities and focuses on locale solar energy. specific content and problem solving models. It also partners with OWSA – Fuel cells provide an alternate efficient, drawing upon its expertise in creating non-polluting power source that local content for developing countries. produces no noise and has no moving parts. Though they have been in 3.4 The Quest for Renewable existence providing electricity on Energy Sources spacecraft since the 1960s, the main The next constraint that faces the region hindering point is the high cost of is the shortage of power. When we have manufacturing, and this has currently computers linking every village, how do limited them to a handful of exotic we ensure that there is enough power applications. Now falling prices and new to run them? technologies suggest that the fuel cell’s S.K. Chopra Several delegates stressed that this day may finally be applicable in the is an important constraint. S.K. Chopra, context of development today. A fuel Additional Secretary, Ministry of cell can operate at much higher Non- Conventional Energy Resources, efficiencies than internal combustion Government of India, presented engines, extracting more electricity from the possibilities in the renewable the same amount of fuel. It has no “Powering the people to take moving parts, is relatively quiet and energy sector. charge of their lives is what generates little or no air pollution. renewable sources of energy As global demand for energy increases The challenge however is to make such are all about”. substantially, so do the alarming levels of resources available and affordable for - S.K. Chopra, pollution caused by the use of fossil fuels. the most marginalised communities. Additional Secretary, This calls for optimization of generation Ministry of 3.5 Research-based Data on Delivery of energy through well-known sources of ICTs for Development Non- Conventional and also for conservation in the Energy Resources, utilisation front as short-term measure. As in the case of any new intervention Government of India The long-term measure calls for the for change, research is an important discovery of new sources, preferably component that enables the renewable energy for commercial determination of the situation as it was before the programme was implemented, exploitation. and the quantum and nature of the Mr. Chopra stated that achieving MDGs change that is effected as a result. In means that we have to reach a level of the context of ICTs for development, the

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 24 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

problems of cost and access are and early 2004. APDIP focussed on the surmounted by a general scepticism in delivery of ICTs for development - in the community - ICTs are often seen as three main areas, policy advice for tools that are used by the powerful to countries, access related questions and exploit the poor and disadvantaged. issues, and utilisation for development. Research helps to establish a rational The study determined the extent to basis for an ICT intervention; it helps which ICTs are used, documented case to draw a systematic understanding of studies and best practices, identified the critical needs of the community. This challenges, and selected indicators that means that ICT projects can then be were relevant for human development customised to meet identified needs of in order to construct a composite index. the community leading to greater Analysis of human development and effectiveness in implementation. In achievement of MDGs in the nine addition, a post-implementation survey countries showed considerable diversity can help to educate the various project among countries and yet also showed partners, and most importantly the how ICT can break barriers to human community, regarding the extent to knowledge, participation and economic which the project has been successful. opportunity. It established that ICTs can This can be a great motivator for up help advance human development by scaling the intervention to other alleviating poverty, enhancing communities as well. education and improving healthcare. It Shahid Akhtar, APDIP (Asia Pacific also identified some challenges in the development information Program) at application of ICTs, such as availability LJNDP, Thailand, described a large study of information in local languages, lack that was conducted for over one year of access to telecommunications and in Asia, covering 9 countries in 2003 high costs.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Combating Poverty & Food Insecurity

ICTs and MDGs: Context, Relevance and Interlinkages

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 26 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Combating Poverty & Food Insecurity Identifying Opportunities for Livelihoods

has helped to reduce the consumption Contextualising the poverty rate substantially. India has Concerns reduced its poverty rate by 5-10 percent MDG 1: To halve the proportion since 1990; most other countries of people suffering from registered a significant reduction in hunger by 2015. poverty over the period except for In absolute numbers, this Pakistan where poverty has stagnated means reducing by 400 million at around 33 percent – using national the number of people poverty lines. Although most countries who are undernourished (1990 in the region have a well developed estimates). tradition of household surveys, challenges still remain on Target 1: Halve, between 1990 measurement of consistent poverty and 2015, the proportion of trends - India’s National Sample people whose income is less Survey has undergone some changes than one dollar a day. in methodology in the most recent Target 2: Halve, between 1990 round which has created a debate on and 2015, the proportion of measuring poverty trends in the 1990s. people who suffer from hunger. Looking beyond consumption poverty at other indicators of social progress, the 4.1 South Asian Scenario region has had encouraging success in Combat Poverty some areas: for example, mortality in children under five has reduced If projected growth remains on track, substantially between 1990 and 2002 global poverty rates will fall to 12.7 (from 130 to 95, per 1,000), especially per cent – less than half the 1990 in Bangladesh (144 to 73, per 1,000) level – and 363 million more people will and appreciable gains have also been avert extreme poverty. And while Highlights achieved in total enrolments and poverty would not be eradicated, that completion rates. At the same time, would bring us much closer to the day South Asia, with GNI per capita challenges remain in key areas such as when we can say that all the world’s at $460, is home to nearly 40 child malnutrition, maternal mortality, people have at least the bare minimum per cent of the world’s poor and gender balance in education and to eat and clothe themselves.1 living on less than $1 a day. health outcomes: nearly half of all India has reduced its poverty South Asia, with GNI per capita at $460, children under the age of five are rate by 5-10 per cent since 1990. is home to nearly 40 per cent of the malnourished and youth illiteracy is world’s poor living on less than $1 a high – 23 per cent for males and 39 per day. Since 1990, the region has cent for females. The resurgence of experienced rapid GDP growth, tuberculosis and the threat of HIV/AIDS averaging 5.4 per cent a year, which are also a cause for concern.2

1 http://www.developmentgoals.org/Poverty.htm 2 http://www.developmentgoals.org/South_Asia.htm

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 27

Combat Hunger ! Globalisation, urbanisation and changing food systems Progress in eradicating hunger has been ! Changing profile of hunger and slow and the situation has been changing diets in developing worsening in some regions. The Food countries and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) ! Economic costs of hunger: billions estimates that only few countries in the in lost productivity, earnings and Asia-Pacific region are on course to meet consumption the MDG hunger targets. ! Impact on small farmers in It is known that even though enough developing countries food is available in the world to feed While sustained growth is necessary for everyone, about 17 per cent of the total poverty reduction, concomitant population of developing countries is improvement in institutional service still undernourished. Rural areas in delivery mechanisms will be essential South Asia, housing more than 70 per for achieving progress in all other cent of its population, also have a high dimensions of the MDGs. concentration of hungry people. This Possible Strategies means that nearly half the South Asian The Food and Agriculture Organisation population suffers from malnutrition. has suggested a twin-track strategy Women and children, particularly girls, (FAO, 2004) that can be used as a are especially disadvantaged. More possible roadmap for action directed to than half of the female population in eliminate hunger and poverty. South Asia is malnourished and This table is illustrative of the fact that malnutrition causes about two-thirds of the elimination of poverty and food all deaths of children under the age of insecurity and the provision of five in South Asia. The continued livelihoods for all can only be achieved disempowerment of women in the rural in conjunction with a host of other society is the biggest hurdle to ensuring objectives, which include natural food security and eliminating hunger.3 resource management, education, and Some other important issues are: asset redistribution.

Track 1 – Strengthen Productivity Linkages – Maximising Synergy Track 2 – Provide Direct Access to Food and Incomes (World Food Summit Goal) ! Mother and infant feeding (including ! Low-cost, simple technology (water ! Alliances against hunger. management, use of green manures, crop nutritional supplements). ! Primary health care, reproductive rotation, agro-forestry). health and HIV/AIDS prevention. ! School meals and school gardens· ! Rural infrastructure Unemployment and pension benefits. ! Legal reforms (including the Right to (roads, electricity, etc.). Food). ! Food-for-work and food-for- ! Improved irrigation and soil fertility. education. ! Asset redistribution (including land ! Natural resource management (including reform). ! Targeted conditional cash transfers. forestry and fisheries). ! Education for rural people, especially ! Soup kitchens and factory canteens. ! Market and private sector development. women· ! Food banks. ! Food safety and quality· ! Clean drinking water. ! Agricultural research, extension ! Support to rural organisations. ! Emergency rations. and training. ! Local food procurement for safety nets.

3 “Improving Access to Food” by Manish Kumar,17 November 2004, http://southasia.oneworld.net/article/ view/96866/1/7

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 28 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

4.2. Issues that Emerged from Multi-stakeholder Partnerships the Discussions Some Positive Aspects

The primary concern that came up in ! The private sector and corporate the thematic sessions was about houses can bring in their knowledge sustainable development, and the and expertise in entrepreneurial contradictions inherent in the dominant matters. development paradigm – It seemed that the challenge here was to ensure that ! There is a need to involve small and in any development intervention, the medium business people – apart Sunit Shreshta poor communities retained control over from the large multinationals about their natural resources, over the whom many reservations have been priorities that needed to be addressed expressed - to really make a success for food security and livelihoods, and out of a whole range of e-commerce, over the means to achieve these ends. as well as other social business Technology needs to be subservient to initiatives. these concerns, only then can it be ! Multi-stakeholder partnership is acceptable as a tool for development. also about intergenerational Some of the issues that were raised are partnerships – how does the listed below: younger generation with its talent Sunit Shreshta, External Affairs for applying and developing Need for People’s Ownership Director, Thai Rural Network: “We are technology, partner with the older not technology people. We generally ! The ownership of natural resources generation to solve real human go for a human approach. We look at should be with the communities, issues? the problems and then build particularly in the context of the ! Building trust with the community alliances with business people or World Trade Organisation (WTO). is crucial. Secondly, reduction of technology houses in Bangkok who Discussions about poverty expenses needs to be the first can provide the appropriate e- alleviation should include focus on priority. Last and most important, commerce technology, satellite land reforms, the Public Distribution the community must be able to technology, or simple CD ROM System and even the export import measure themselves in terms of making technologies.” policies of the nation. their own success in the new ! The poor communities should be initiative. the partners and not the recipients Some Negative Aspects of knowledge. Participatory ! There is enough evidence to show approaches facilitating the that in the so-called partnerships generation of knowledge by the poor between the big businesses and the themselves, will be far more useful governments, it is the poor that than research emanating from remain disadvantaged. It is wrong Universities and research to assume that these partnerships laboratories. would genuinely work towards the ! The poor should be involved in the reduction of poverty. determination of development ! Technology can lead to the rich goals, processes and indicators. taking advantage of the poor, and ! Local knowledge, resources, we should not allow to let that cultures, values need to be happen. We need to ensure that acknowledged and enhanced. the corporates, in the process of

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 29

providing knowledge sharing in interior locations to the central mechanisms, do not end up offices to ensure proper monitoring capturing the supply chain. of distribution systems, that food really reaches each and every nook ! ICTs for development has adopted a and cranny in the country. market led approach, and laid an emphasis on an information base ! The food reaching the consumer and skills of local communities to is of good quality. earn their livelihoods. In the short ! The prices are really ‘fair’ to all run, this seems like a win-win classes of consumers. situation, because the corporates ! That not only the dominant food get local produce for their global grains, rice and wheat, but also market and local farmers get cutting edge information and an other staple foods, and pulses, and in fact all other foods that assured income. But looking at the constitute the right portfolio for situation through a development basic nutrition and good health framework, the control over the ICT should be brought under the infrastructure, the communication gamut of the public distribution channels, etc are not with local communities in these initiatives. This system. is a zero sum game in the long run. ! Similarly, in the presentation of the E-choupal, the main concern ! There is a need to thoroughly verify was that since ITC, the initiating the facts associated with genetically agency, had a vested interest in the modified (GM) crops and foods market, there was a need to monitor before any upscaling. Any decision if the information and products must take into consideration the received by the poor farmers concerns expressed by the Indian through this channel were indeed Council of Medical Research about benefiting them, and that it was the possible ill effects of GM foods. not another exploitative cycle Especially, when such crops could which took away from them the have disastrous consequences for control over their indigenous small and marginal farmers. knowledge, practices, and Monitoring Development Initiatives techniques. The presentations evoked serious 4.3. ICTs as a Tool for Combating concerns regarding the monitoring of Poverty and Food Insecurity government agencies and private To what extent are ICTs a tool for initiatives that claimed to provide poverty alleviation, was a question that excellent service to farmers at the the delegations considered in detail. grassroots level. Several questions were There has been a fair amount of raised with regard to the Public experience, both good and bad, from Distribution System (PDS) and it was the use of ICTs. And it was felt that felt that the Government needs to set there is a need to harness experiences in place some mechanisms, which will from the communities that were present ensure that: at the discussions and from others too, ! There are effective channels of on the positive as well as negative communication from the PDS centre aspects of ICTS on poverty alleviation.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 30 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Pre-Requisites life, and to improve the sustainability and viability of rural livelihoods. They ! The study of specific ICT interventions needs to include also provide detailed roadmaps that can questions of financial viability and be used for setting up economically sustainability. viable knowledge centres, or knowledge commons. The common factors in these ! ICT interventions should result in initiatives have been the active an overall enhancement in the participation and ownership by the livelihood of farmers, and not just community itself, creation of user- crop yield enhancement or cost specific content in local languages, use reduction. of multi-media including computers, ! While the overall focus needs to be Internet, radio, local newspaper, public on poverty reduction, we also need address system and so on. It has also to be open to the use of ICTs included innovative use of local wherever relevant and useful. personnel and resources, expansion from market information sharing to other ! ICT interventions can be upscaled areas such as capacity building, best if there is an existing and accounting, governance and healthcare. vibrant base - a cooperative, or a Clearly, the potential for future use is community based organisation, a enormous. collective or a Self Help Group. The role of the Governments, NGOs and ! A study of ICT initiatives by MCAP Delhi established that the other intermediary agencies is to initiatives to improve livelihoods provide an enabling environment in need to adopt terms of infrastructure, approaches that software, adequate and are integrated and Highlights relevant training, and dynamic, they need ICTs can be used in rural, maintenance and to be supported by agro-based settings to make a support services. appropriate and marked improvement in the quality Areas of Concern affordable ICT of life, and to improve the tools, proper power sustainability and viability of rural Moving ICTs to the backup, people, livelihoods. They also provide villages would give content and detailed roadmaps that can be access to big infrastructure. used for setting up economically businesses, national Successful viable knowledge centres, or and international, to knowledge commons. initiatives have capture and acquire all ensured a balance the living resources amongst these factors and evolved that the poor people have and unless and fine-tuned their strategies over this issue is addressed, the talk of MDGs a period of time, with corrective action based upon community is insincere. It is imperative to protect experience. the interests of the various communities. Therefore, it will be in Possibilities place to say that while ICTs hold great All the presentations showed potential; they need to be used in such conclusively how ICTs can be used in a way that the users of technology and rural, agro-based settings to make a not the providers will determine the marked improvement in the quality of nature and functioning of the system.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 31

Other concerns relating to multi- initiatives with a view to understanding stakeholder partnerships, global the possible roles that ICTs can play in development policies, trade agreements, the sector. The contribution of the also should be taken care of. Innovative different initiatives was evaluated in methods of dealing with these at local terms of crop yield enhancement, cost and global collective forums need to be of cultivation reduction, and sale value. addressed, as there is scope for linking Even the time saved through ICT appropriate grassroots communication initiatives was imputed a value, since Sarath Fernando and ICT strategies in an enabling way it enabled the farmers to contribute for this purpose. more to the quality of the value chain. ICT initiatives like e- An Alternative View of Development Choupal (Indian Sarath Fernando, Movement for National Land and Agricultural Reform Tobacco Company, (MONLAR), Sri Lanka, recommended that in South Asia, where there are Madhya Pradesh), “The MDGs, with their long a large number of farmers with small landholdings, they should be allowed Helpline (Chandra drawn targets, reflect a access to the basic resources that they need - land, water and biodiversity. Shekhar Azad lack of intention to touch He stated that the only workable solution was to allow the poor to University of the main causes leading to decide for themselves and to prioritise their requirements of food security Agriculture and Technology hunger and other and livelihood. (CSAUAT), Kanpur problems. At the The role of multinationals was seen in a critical light, as global setups and Ikisan conference where these aiming for unlimited economic gain at the cost of poor people’s livelihoods (Nagarjuna decisions were made, did and ecological degradation. group, Andhra they discuss how Pradesh), and globalisation leads to an Use of ICT in Agriculture Village Knowledge Center (VKN), M S increase of poverty the Swaminathan Research Foundation world over?” Mruthunjaya Kumar, Director, National (MSSRF), Chennai, were included in Sarath Fernando, Centre for Agricultural Economics and the study. MONLAR Sri Lanka Policy Research (NCAP) India, shared some findings that emerged out of a The study conclusively proved that the small pilot study, conducted by the agricultural sector had drawn significant centre, focusing on various ICT benefits from the various ICT initiatives

Say No To Poverty - Wear The White Band In 2005! The Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP), the biggest ever global mobilisation to hold governments accountable for the promises they made to eradicate poverty, was launched in January 2003 at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil. GCAP is a worldwide alliance of hundreds of organisations. These include grassroots organisations, trade unions, women’s groups, NGOs, civil society and faith groups, committed to push world leaders to live up to their promises and make a breakthrough in reducing poverty. During 2005, the alliance will call on world leaders to fulfil their commitments on trade justice, more and better aid and full debt cancellation. It is also demanding transparency and accountability from all governments in their plans to eliminate poverty and reach the Millennium Development Goals. At OWSA’s Annual Regional Meeting, 2005, Basu Dev Neupane, Nepal, representing the GCAP Asia Team introduced GCAP and invited all represented organisations to join the campaign for a concerted effort against poverty. GCAP intends to focus on three key ‘White Band Days’: 1. The G8 summit in UK, July, 2005 2. The UN MDG +5 summit in New York, September, 2005 3. The WTO Ministerial in Hong Kong, December, 2005 The white band is a symbol of the united call to end poverty once and for all.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 32 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

launched across the country. It also farmers to get into a lot of social highlighted some limitations which mobilisation activities, such as livestock affected the performance of ICTs and management, water, women’s which need to be flagged for attention empowerment. They are now considering in future initiatives. The limitations e-healthcare, and e-governance as other include inadequacy of subject matter, examples of services that could be lack of location-specific or user-oriented accessible through the E-choupal. These information, lack of capable facilitators services are supported at the ITC end and lack of infrastructure. through linkages with numerous other agencies possessing the requisite skills He concluded with the observation that - like web casting facilities and soil the ICT strength of India can be testing labs. extensively used in agriculture, to reverse decelerating growth rate as well For ITC, the model resulted in significant as increase the risk-taking ability. reduction in the cost of procurement. By buying from the farmer directly, the E-choupal – Enhancing Shareholder cost of spillages and loss is reduced. Value, Reducing Poverty The company was able to determine the M.S. Rao, Indian Tobacco Company quality of the food grain, so it was also (ITC) India, made a presentation on able to provide value-added services to E-choupal, a rural ICT initiative, their customers overseas by providing developed by his company, which linked food products of a superior quality. ITC directly with rural farmers for the also entered into the wheat flour (atta) procurement of agricultural/ business and was able to source wheat aquaculture produce, and at the same effectively and offer better products in the domestic market as well. time was sustainable and replicable as well. E-choupal is a business model Village Knowledge Centre that succeeded in linking up two Senthil Kumaran, Associate Director of objectives – one to enhance shareholder MSSRF India stated that it was not value and the other to reduce poverty technology per se that made a as an allied social objective. difference but how and for what purposes it was used. The MSSRF vision In the effort to take information directly of “Knowledge should reach every home to the farmers, ITC considered keeping and hearth” is embodied in the a computer with Internet connectivity extensive experience gained while in a farmer’s house. There were three setting up the Village Knowledge Centres advantages to this approach - all the (VKCs) in Tamil Nadu. The highlights of information was consolidated real time the experience were: and on time, it kept the cost really low, ! Several consultative and and it was a friendly way to approach participative efforts in the the community. community, initiating and involving The farming community benefited the local rural people, women and economically from the pricing men, in the project. This led to a information that was provided on sense of ownership in the rural E-choupal. It was also a one-stop shop community. where they could access a whole range ! Creation and updation of relevant of information, products and services. content to suit local requirements. ITC used this as a platform to encourage This proved to be the central hub

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Recommendations for a Successful ICT Strategy 1. Content development: Need for content that is generic to specific. Requirement at the local level needs to be addressed and this can be done through consultative, participatory processes. 2. Unified dissemination: Research and development institutes need to create synergy in content development and delivery. Research, extension and farmer linkages have to be established to minimise information losses. 3. Capacity development programmes: Regional/ intermediary institutions need to identify emerging training needs and impart training for various stakeholders. 4. Bridging the divide: Strategic deployment of ICTs should address socio-economic dividers (age, gender, holding, geography) by using local content in local languages, and also by ensuring that information systems are customised to the specific needs of different categories of users. 5. Strengthen monitoring and feedback: ICTs should be deployed in community knowledge gathering and to elicit people’s feedback in a continuous loop, for research/development projects and to facilitate democratic governance. 6. Attract private investments: Keeping in view its mandate, the Government needs to provide enough space for other players, such as NGOs, private sector and other civil society organisations to leverage their relative advantages, and competitiveness. 7. Location specific knowledge bank: The information bank should contain information that is specific to the needs of different categories of users. It should be accessible to all. Therefore there is a need to document the most common sets of questions, create a library of responses, and to provide a mechanism to identify key issues for action.

for information sharing in the projects, community based tourism, and community. they also partner with GKP on “To understand the developing programmes for young situation better, we looked ! Fanning out of the VKC to provide at the information flows space for other community activities entrepreneurs. He detailed their work on between farmers and all such as the formation of Self Help Shevalai, Rural Knowledge for the units that they Groups, vocational training and Development, project, for the benefit of interact with, and found capacity building. the congregation. them to be opaque, ! Creative use of alternative He described how, after 50 years of diffused. We realised that communication media like public scientific farming the situation in rural this is where the gaps address systems, electronic display Thailand now is that they have non- come in and the farmer boards, local newspapers and radio sustainable livelihood, mass migration gets exploited. Every – for disseminating critical into big cities, total natural resource person in this chain information to the village. destruction. The local community actually makes money leaders – who call themselves Rural except the farmer. So we Thus the VKC became integral to life in Scholar Network – focus on using local decided to use a model the villages, so much so that they were content and local knowledge, and after where information could able to use it to save lives at the time synthesising it with scientific content reach the farmer directly; of the Tsunami in December 2004. from experts, develop appropriate at the same time the The Thai Rural Network knowledge and technologies. TRN is agents were retained in Virtual University Project. helping this group of farmers by the system for a different purpose - to consolidate innovatively using ICTs to achieve Sunit Shreshta, External Affairs Director, from the smaller farmers.” their goal. Thai Rural Network, Thailand represented - M.S.Rao, an entirely different CoP; a group of The most significant aspect of the TRN ITC e-choupal, India young people, working in the rural areas project was that they were able to build of the country and calling themselves a CoP of farmers, local leaders and Thai Ruralnet (TRN). They are involved scientific experts - local, national and in different ICT interventions for international - and finally, a synthesis development projects, like agricultural of ideas from this community was input

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 34 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Essentials for setting up a rural knowledge centre 1. Initiating social mobilisation and need assessment 2. Engaging community participation 3. Determining connectivity 4. Creating content 5. Setting up the Rural Information Hub and knowledge centres 6. Management of the centres 7. Monitoring and evaluation 8. Services, should be a multipurpose centre. 9. Partnership and capacity building 10. Ensuring sustainability

back into the knowledge base of the the system can lead to a workable set community, to be disseminated in the of answers to the problem. whole area. Thus they were able to use Apart from the above, the community a CoP around managing soil quality, and has another digital database that convince farmers in the area to take up provides locally centric information and organic farming. They have now taken which is constantly updated to reflect up other issues like alternative energy the true situation of the community. sources, alternative crop farming and Anybody who joins the network can livestock management. access the information. This data can TRN is trying to create an expert system be exported in various ways – it can be to replace the rural scholar or expert in put on a CD or accessed in an interactive the field so that in the future, the rural web format and for those who do not people can interact with the system and have ready access to a computer, it can get the information they need, based even be used in the form of a printout, on a database that has been newsletter etc. developed by experts. By providing various feasible and realistic options that the rural people can choose from,

4.4. Conclusion

The key issue was livelihood, while food production and distribution were key components. It emerged that knowledge based interventions held definite potential in the area of food production. However, there is an urgent need to decentralise authentic agricultural know-how and ease its availability for the benefit of the farmers at the grassroots. Given new challenges and constraints that face the world today, there is a need for creative perspectives and innovative solutions to the problems of food insecurity and poverty. Enterprise is also a very critical requirement, because countries can no longer be content with food security in terms of buffer stocks alone -with intense international competition because of free trade, we have to be both competent (price wise and quality wise) and secure in terms of food production.

ICTs can help in bringing together a host of players from around the world, to share experiences, learn from each other and to empower the poorest communities, enabling them to access better technologies, better markets, also to avoid the risks and pitfalls of dependence on MSPs and ICTs while utilising their benefits. We also need to continue this discussion beyond this forum.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Educating All for Social Empowerment

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 36 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Educating All for Social Empowerment Possible Strategies

Contextualising the Concerns Sub-Saharan Africa. The Millennium Development Goals set a more MDG 2: Achieve universal primary education realistic, but still difficult, deadline Target: Ensure that, by 2015, children of 2015 when all children everywhere everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able should be able to complete a full to complete a full course of primary schooling course of primary schooling.25 MDG 3: Promote gender equality and empower Among the various priorities for women achieving Education for All (EFA), Target: Eliminate gender disparity in primary emphasis was given to ensuring quality and secondary education preferably by 2005 and education and eliminating gender in all levels of education no later than 2015 disparities to ensure social empowerment. Other priorities included early childhood care and education, MDG & EFA : Linked Goals universal primary education, youth and The Millennium Goal on Education is also adult literacy. closely associated with Education for All South Asia needs to make significant (EFA) targets. The 1990 Conference on progress in almost all areas if it is to Education for All (EFA) pledged to achieve its MDG targets. According achieve universal primary education by to a UNDP report, in South Asia, the 2000. The World Education Forum goals of achieving universal primary (Dakar, 2000) adopted the Dakar education and gender equality are Framework for Action, reaffirming the expected to be reached only after 2020. vision of the World Declaration on Primary Education Education for All adopted ten years earlier24. All developing regions have made progress towards the goal of achieving 5.1. South Asian Scenario universal primary education for all The 1990 Conference on girls and boys, but some 121 million EFA pledged to achieve children are still out of school – 65 universal primary million of them girls, with a education by 2000. But in disproportionate number in Africa and 2000, 104 million children South Asia. In South Asia, also, in were still out of school, spite of a significant progress over the 57 per cent of them girls decade, completion rates remain low, and 94 per cent were in with less then three quarters of children developing countries – enrolled at the final grade of mostly in South Asia and primary school at the appropriate age.26

24 (Jomtien, 1990). 25 http://www.developmentgoals.org/Education.htm

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While there have been successes in the transmission of information, some of actual numbers of children who are which should be specialised to meet the enrolled in primary schools, demands of a chosen profession, and retention rates are quite low and only sharpening of some general intellectual about 35 per cent actually complete abilities, beginning with reading, primary education. Further, there are writing, arithmetic and include While there have been vast regional differences, both information acquisition and successes in the actual regionally and internationally in the processing abilities. numbers of children who actual provision of primary education. However, achieving Universal are enrolled in primary This uneven distribution and access to Primary Education calls for basic schools, retention rates primary education is one of the greatest improvements in the delivery of are quite low and only challenges in making primary education education. Some factors that could about 35 per cent actually and literacy universal. contribute to this are: complete primary Gender Equality and education. Further, there ! Better-trained and empowered Empowerment of Women are vast regional Highlights Highlights Highlights teachers. Highlights Highlights South Asia is the region farthest behind differences, both regionally ! High quality teaching and learning and internationally in the the target of eliminating gender materials. disparities in primary and secondary actual provision of primary education. Across the region, 40 per ! Optimum teacher-pupil ratios. education. cent of women are literate compared ! A conducive, enabling learning with 65 per cent of men. In Nepal, only environment. 20 per cent of women are literate. Sri ! Accessible and affordable education. Lanka stands out in the region in this respect because girls’ enrolment rates ! A safe environment, especially for exceed those of boys27. girl children to attend school. Progress on gender equality targets is limited and uneven. The world is still The Essentials of an Education System far away from achieving gender parity One basic question that needs to be addressed right in the beginning was and will miss the education parity target whether the current paradigms of education actually address the real need for 2005 - with the ratio of girls to boys or outcome of education – which is to empower an individual to be a in secondary education just 0.77 in South productive member of the society. Along with critiquing current systems, Asia. The ratio of literate women to men goals, indicators and methods of education, there was an effort to look is still low around the world, and trends at alternative solutions too. suggest that South Asia is especially off 28 track . MSPs in Education Perspectives on quality Designing and delivering educational education for all systems that will meet all the required “A quality education is one that satisfies standards is quite a daunting task. It basic learning needs, and enriches the is evident that this cannot be seen as lives of learners and their overall a task for the Government alone. Once experience of living.” This implies the again, there is a need for blending

26 Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Progress towards the Millennium Development Goals,1990-2004;http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi/techgroup/goals_2004/ GOAL_2 web_2004_FC4rev.pdf 27 http://www.undp.org/surf-kathmandu/thematic/poverty/mdg/gender%20MDG-sa.pdf 28 Report of the Secretary-General on implementation of the Millennium Declaration.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 38 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

together the capacities and resource just with regard to computers but of various stakeholders in creative ways. also local cable operators, cyber Existing partnerships between cafes, private tutors in cities Government, private sector and civil giving guidance to children in society organisations and even parents small towns; these instances have were critically examined. The following worked in small pockets. observations were made: ! We need to keep experimenting ! “Despite the Tapas Majumdar with new technologies by committee report recommending that identifying issues and measuring a substantial investment be made to their impact. improve primary education, the ICTs for Ensuring Education for All central and state machinery is ! ICTs can be used to provide a reducing the allocation for primary rational basis for decision making, education improvement, and at the for creation and management of same time delaying the allocation an enabling environment as a pre- and deployment of funds. In this condition for quality education, context I do have a question about for improving child performance governments being part of MSPs. As and professional capacity for the private sector, there is building. atrocious profiteering in education ! The problem in managing quality all around so I am sceptical about education lies partly in the multi-stakeholder partnerships.” numbers, the geographical - A delegate comments. dispersal of schools and the ! India has a long tradition of private relative isolation in which these investment in education. Yet, the practitioners operate. ICTs can be Government and private sectors of use in such situations. have not been able to come ! ICTs can be used for providing together in an integrative manner. training in relevant technology, ! We do find some examples and software and skill upgradation. models of Government – private ! ICTs are a great tool for sector – CSO partnerships that will empowerment of women and make for models of quality marginalised communities. They education for all. are seen as an additional skill, and ! We need to acknowledge parents as also as an enhancement of status. one of the partners in the learning Concerns: ICTs in Primary Education process. CoPs on Technology and ! ICTs aided learning must go hand- Resources for Education in-hand with classroom learning and the principles of innovative, ! We need to create an effective CoP interactive teaching and learning around the sharing of good and bad must be seamlessly integrated into experiences, of new ways and new both. Teachers still play a vital technologies for teaching and role in ICT mediated instruction, learning. and therefore they need to be ! It is necessary to think of creative appropriately trained to facilitate ways of using resources– this is not this process.

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! Training materials and new teaching development, with regards to aids and technologies cannot specific issues of educating, substitute face-to-face instruction, training and skill building for particularly in primary education. women and marginalised communities. To achieve the above, ! We need to match the medium to the purpose, the end-user, there is a need to go to communities availability, accessibility and cost. that have pre-existing organisational Each situation needs to be evaluated structures and experience base and before the solution - whether radio, partner with them. two-way video, satellite-based ! We could look at ICT integrated instruction, computer-based models for delivery mechanisms, be instruction, or face-to-face it for agriculture, education, health instruction – is determined. or livelihoods; alternatively, we Social Transformation could look at specific, and distinct ICT enabled delivery solutions for ! ICTs in primary education, or in each department. distance education, need to factor Other important concerns that need in the cultural aspects, where the attention are access to content, social and cultural reality is that open sourcing and dissemination of a girl child gets much less time, critical information. encouragement and resources for education than the boy child. Here 5.2. Creating an Agenda of Synergy the government has much less control. Prof. R. Govinda, of National In order to deliver education that is Institute of Educational Planning and equitable, ICTs need to complement Administration (NIEPA) India efforts to transform society for recommended that the Government look equitable access. at national reform and education processes from the development ! When we talk about women having perspective. We must invest in access to technology it greatly knowledge building on learning outside depends on where the information classrooms, rather than on learning is placed; some years ago, if there within the format of schools and was a television in a village, it was colleges. That is where the lessons of typically kept in the panchayat empowerment would be learnt, enabling building, and women did not go a shift from reducing economic poverty there. Today, we speak of women’s to reducing capability poverty. collectives and women’s It was suggested that educational organisations having access to reforms should begin with three technologies. They can now have their own space, and they can take “Indian higher education is facing its gravest crisis and this whole talk of benefit at their own pace and time. India being the third largest technological manpower is a myth; we have In short, political and social the potential to beat the world but we are doing everything possible to empowerment goes hand-in-hand undermine that power. We think that the Government is the repository of with access to technology. all wisdom and competence and we also think that non-government sector means the profit making sector – there is no country that has allowed Skill Upgradation education to be a profit making centre – it has to be private, non-profit – ! It is essential to sensitise people and great Universities must come up but for that an enabling environment working in the field of ICTs for is required.” JayaPrakash Narayan, National Advisory Committee, India

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categories that he considered 5.3. Creative Solutions illustrative and yet basic to the goal of The Bhartiya Yuva Shakti Trust social empowerment and education. Experience They are: Lakshmi.V.Venkatesan, Founding ! Non-literate youth and adults: Trustee, Bhartiya Yuva Shakti Trust These include those who have not (BYST) India, added ethical values and been able to acquire sufficient skills social conscience to the ‘education for for participating in development empowerment’ framework. She also programmes, especially for looked at the steadily increasing improving their quality of life. numbers of uneducated unemployed,

Namrata Bali Namrata ! Out of school children, and youth as a direct outcome of the disconnect especially adolescent girls and between the education of young women. people and the real, economic environment. ! Children in school: These children “ICTs need to complement are defined here as neglected She used the BYST experience to other initiatives for local because they are without access to illustrate that educational empowerment at grassroots quality learning so they are likely empowerment is only possible through level, to enrich and continue to add to the pool of non-literates. creative, out-of-the-box thinking. traditions of Value Education, While it is commonly said that retaining indigenous It was also stressed that even while unemployment amongst youth is the knowledge, values and working with these specific categories, problem, it is important to realise that practices and enabling food we need to create interfaces for it is the youth themselves, who are security, income security and synergies between various groups the solution to this problem. social security” working on these issues. Possible - Namrata Bali, Trustee interventions are: BYST worked on a simple premise – OneWorld South Asia. that most unemployed youth were ! Youth literacy: Empowering, life- waiting to be given a chance. Indeed, long learning capacities, with focus on increasing productivity by all they needed was a kick-start, in providing quality education, the form of some money and some including training in ICT. mentoring. So they were given a small amount of money to implement a ! Gender equity and women’s empowerment area: The example of business idea that they came up with. the Mahila Samakhya (Women in Mentoring was organised by Education) programme in India was appointing experienced people from cited as a great example of such organisations like the CII, Escort, interventions. Bajaj and also the Small Scale ! There is need to link basic education Industries Associations located in Lakshmi.V.Venkatesan with poverty alleviation efforts, various Indian cities. The business where the focus should be on community was found to be quite enhancing the capacity of the poor, willing to share its knowledge and to access services, addressing the expertise as part of its social issue of capability poverty as responsibility. Several young people against income poverty. To bring with brilliant business ideas benefited about a reform in education, it is necessary to have a vision of multi- from simple practical guidance and sectoral, integrated, long cycle support of their mentors, achieving reform, rather than crisis great success, irrespective of their management approaches. educational background.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 41

5.4. Experiments in the field of promote learning. The issues raised Distance Learning were the need for a vision of classroom processes, and the role of the teacher Improving the Quality of in ICT mediated instruction. Because Distance Learning the problem in managing quality lies John Kurien, Director, Centre for partly in the numbers, the Learning Resources (CLR) India geographical dispersal of schools and described his organisation as an the relative isolation in which these R.Govinda innovative civil society organisation practitioners operate - ICTs can be focussed on developing pedagogically used in continuing professional sound learning resources. It has been support to teachers and other involved in early childhood and educators – whether from SCERT or elementary education since 1983, DIET or block resource centre improving the quality of education that personnel. young, poor children receive in Shyam Menon, Proctor, University of “The objective of education is not municipal and rural schools in several Delhi, India, highlighted the so much to acquire knowledge; states of India as well as some areas importance of matching the medium focus must be on building outside the country. Kurien used a to the purpose. For instance, satellite- capacities to access knowledge.” film to convey his message. English based instruction proved effective - Prof. R.Govinda, NIEPA is being introduced in every school for when applied to adult education, all children - poor, rural, urban slum, tertiary education and functional tribal - because it is believed to be education, which are essentially essential for survival. The Centre terminal education with a mission therefore devised an innovative Dhir Jhingran mode, but the same is not applicable pedagogy and technology to teach to primary education, which is where English in government schools where early learning takes place through the medium of instruction was Marathi direct human engagement between a or some other local language. The supporting adult and a learning technology used was one that has youngster. been completely neglected in our country, which is the use of radio. This proved to be a cost effective method “In the context of computer aided learning, or ICTs in primary education, we for improving the quality of primary should not think that training materials could substitute for face-to-face instruction. education, especially in areas where In the final analysis, there is no replacement for teachers who are reflective, who the teachers weren’t fluent in English. are motivated and attitudinally sensitised. So let’s not pursue this as an end in itself but let us look at where it can help, what is the general direction it can Improving the Quality of Education take, how this can fit in, what technological innovations can help us reduce cost, in Schools and how we can make it an integral part of our improvement agenda. Dhir Jhingran, Director, Ministry of - ”Dhir Jhingran, MHRD, Government of India Human Resource Development (MHRD) Government of India, stated that the Promoting Gender Equitable Skill Upgradation through ICTs main purpose of ICTs in education was to provide a rational basis for Anita Gurumurthy, Founder Member and management of the provisions and Director IT for Change, India, situated conditions of quality education, for skill building in the development improving child performance, framework, where even access to the professional capacity building, and to right information and the capacity to

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 42 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are seen to be constantly more mainstreaming of women in industry important in our society. Traditionally, boys and men have dominated access to through access to knowledge. The local computers and computer science education. Thus, primary and secondary schools women started their journey of may have an important role as an equalising force in securing access to and empowerment with the formation of co- knowledge about computers for all, irrespective of gender and socio-economic operatives, facilitated by an NGO, status. Apart from this, ICTs also hold enormous potential for developing Amader Gaon. The women were included informal skill based livelihood options for women. in all developmental activities related But there is ample evidence that without a gender-sensitive programme design, to health, education, law and also ICTs. ICT-enabled education is unlikely to result in an equitable learning environment. They were encouraged to watch, learn, Although an increasing numbers of women are now using new communication react and adapt. Thus skill building was technologies and the Internet in their work, the following issues identified in the in the context of interaction with the last seven years remain critical for most women: environment, and this resulted in ! Access and know-how continuous capacity building, increased

! Education, training and skills development participation, increased role in the

! Industry and labour management of projects. ! Content and language 5.5 Organised Strength ! Power and decision-making as a Pre-Requisite for ! Privacy and security Accessing Technology Gender Evaluation Methodology, APCWNSP, http://apcwomen.org/gem. Drawn from the Women have always been excellent UNESCAP document “Issues, Policies and Outcomes: Are ICT Policies Addressing Gender communicators, and this is borne out Equality?” in their relationships within the family and in the community. With use it are seen as critical skills. This appropriate technology and training, also includes the skill to engage with upscaling of this inherent capacity different social institutions with becomes possible. The presence of confidence, to recognise and organised strength is seen as a articulate one’s interests and then prerequisite for empowering women protect those interests in multi- and encouraging them to take the risk stakeholder interactions. She felt that of using new technologies. Once they the time is right to channelise have access, their status and learning from local alternate models credibility in the community goes up, and small pilot initiatives into the and they get an identity of their own. mainstream institutions. Historically, however, technology belonged to the privileged, and Empowering Women through transferring the reigns to women Models of Participation presupposes the latter’s organised The example of women’s SHGs strength, as well as their social and in Bangladesh illustrated the political empowerment.

5.6. Conclusion

While ICTs hold great promise in terms of their ability to reach out to a large number of people in various attractive ways, access, availability and cost seem to be major hurdles that need to be overcome. Further for meeting the MDGs, use of ICTs for education needs to go along with social transformation and capacity building, creation of an enabling environment, training and skill building, and finally equity in employment opportunities and benefits thereof.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Health Water and Sanitation for All

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 44 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Ensuring Health and Improved Access to Water and Sanitation for All Possible Strategies

MDG 4: Reduce child mortality. improved water and sanitation reduce child mortality, malaria and diseases like Target: Reduce by two-thirds, between l990 and 2015, the under-five diarrhoea. Nearly two million children mortality rate. die every year from preventable MDG 5: Improve maternal health. infections that spread due to dirty water Target: Reduce by three-quarters, between l990 and 2015, the maternal or improper sanitation facilities. mortality ratioz. 6.1. South Asian Scenario MDG 7: Ensure environmental sustainability. Reducing Infant Mortality Rates Substantial progress towards reducing Contextualising the Concerns child mortality since 1990 suggests that goal four will be met in Northern Africa, Millennium Development Goal (MDG) seven – Ensuring environmental sustainability Latin America and the Caribbean and – puts environment as the key to human sustenance as environment provides South-Eastern Asia. Progress has been the materials and the services that sustain human development. Better less significant in Southern Asia and environmental management or natural resources management generates negligible in Western Asia, sub- income for the poor and the marginalised sections as well. Saharan Africa and Oceania. Sub- Targets: Saharan Africa continues to have the highest level of under-five mortality. ! Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and Estimated at 174 deaths per 1,000 live programmes and reverse the losses of environmental resources. births in 2002, the rate is nearly twice ! Halve by 2015 the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe that of the next highest region, drinking water and basic sanitation. Southern Asia, and over twenty times the rate in developed countries. ! Have achieved by 2020 a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers. Close to 11 million children under the age of five died in 2002 alone and 97 per cent of them were from developing Even though the United Nations had countries. Levels of under-five mortality affirmed the Right to Water in 2002, vary widely across countries–from 4 to lack of clean water and poor sanitation over 280 deaths per 1,000 live births. is causing a large number of health The latter is equivalent to over 28 per problems globally. It is known that cent of children dying before reaching

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 45

the age of 5. Forty-three countries in achievement of the goals for maternal the developing regions account for 90 mortality. Trend data on this indicator per cent of the world’s under-five are available for 52 developing deaths.9 countries, accounting for about three quarters of the world’s births. During A way out is for the Government to the decade from 1989 to 1999, these increase public spending on health countries registered a modest progress Bhushan Ambedkar services and focus on access to safe overall, improving at an average rate of water, better sanitation facilities and only 1.7 per cent per year. Region wise, improvements in education. Education improvement was greatest in countries for girls and mothers is linked to a of the Middle East and North Africa, decline in infant and child mortality. significant in Asia, and moderate in Improving infrastructure like roads and Latin America and the Caribbean. By modern communication is vital to contrast, countries of Sub-Saharan Bhushan Ambedkar of provide quick access to health facilities. Africa registered a decline.11 Watershed Technology India, Reducing Maternal Mortality demonstrated a user-friendly MMR, particularly in South Asia and software programme that Complications during pregnancy and Africa, is very high because of simplified complex calculation childbirth are still a leading cause inadequate reproductive health care for of costs in rural watershed of death and disability among women, lack of skilled attendants, poor projects. This results in women of reproductive age in transportation facilities in rural areas, significant saving of time and developing countries. It is estimated absence of doctors/skilled midwives and money and has found that some 529,000 women died from poor availability of life-saving widespread application and such complications in 2000 and interventions such as antibiotics and appreciation across the country. millions suffered from various surgery. Only about 56 per cent women disabilities. These deaths were almost in developing countries give birth with equally divided between Africa and Asia, the assistance of a trained midwife or which together accounted for 95 per doctor. cent of the total number.10 Providing for Sanitation In recognition of the potential of the Though estimates indicate that some skilled attendant indicator to serve as progress was made in most of the a proxy for monitoring progress in developing regions, between 1990 and maternal mortality, a report of the 2002, sanitation coverage remains low. Special Session of the United Nations In 2002, access to improved sanitation Highlights General Assembly recommended in July in the world was estimated at 58 per Close to 11 million children under 1999, that countries should use the cent, leaving 2.6 billion people the age of five died in 2002 alone proportion of births assisted by skilled without access to adequate sanitation and 97 per cent of them were attendants as a benchmark indicator for facilities. If the 1990-2002 trends from developing countries. monitoring progress towards the hold, the world will miss the Forty three countries in the developing regions account for 90 per cent of the world’s 9 Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistics Division, Progress towards the Millennium under-five deaths. Development Goals,1990-2004; http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi/techgroup/ goals_2004/ Goal_4-web_2004FC2_rev%2027%20OCT.pdf 529,000 women died from 10 Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistics Division, Progress towards the Millennium pregnancy related complications Development Goals,1990-2004; http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi/techgroup/goals_2004/ in 2000. Africa and Asia together Goal_5-web_2004_FC2_FP%20rev%2027%20OCT.pdfv accounted for 95 per cent of the 11 Maternal Mortality in 2000 - Estimates Developed by WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA, http:// total number. www.childinfo.org/eddb/mat_mortal/index.htm

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 46 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

sanitation target by more than half a childhood development, billion people. The situation is of complementary feeding, serious concern in sub-Saharan Africa identifying the signs of Maternal and southern Asia.12 Mortality Ratio (MMR) or Infant Mortality Ratio (IMR), strategic Another point of concern is that the gap communication, and women’s between rural and urban areas remains inclusion and participation. This extremely wide, particularly in South calls for massive communication Asia, with poor or virtually no sanitation campaigns in local language, facilities in rural areas. pictures, paintings, street theatre Providing for Water and ongoing negotiation with the women, the family members and Access to safe drinking water and basic with the community. sanitation is an indispensable component of primary health care and ! WHO is setting up a CoP based on human development and a precondition Internet tools around community for success in the fight against poverty, health practices, IMR and MMR, and hunger, child deaths and in achieving they invite experience sharing gender equality. The world is on track about interventions on the ground. to achieve the MDG target of halving ! There were two programmes in by 2015 the proportion of people India, which were rural centred. without sustainable access to safe The Primary Health Care drinking water, but sub-Saharan Programme implemented in 1944 Africa, in spite of impressive progress, and the Community Development lags behind.11 Programme which was started in The world is on the Etawah district, (Uttar track to achieve the The Governments, particularly in Pradesh) as an experiment by the MDG target of developing nations, should adopt Ford Foundation, and later applied halving by 2015 the development strategies that are bold in India in 1952. Both proportion of people enough to meet the Millennium programmes had all the without sustainable Development Goal (MDG) targets for components of social mobilisation, access to safe 2015, while high-income countries Highlights Highlights Highlights Highlights Highlights communication and strategies for drinking water. should increase official development an all-round development of assistance (ODA) for aiding the villages. While planning new developing countries. strategies, why should we overlook initiatives that have been applied Also, improved governance related to successfully earlier? water issues as well as integrated water resource management will play an ! We need to acknowledge and reward important role in improving access to best practices. For example, in water and sanitation for all. India, 40 local governments were given awards for 100 percent Building CoPs of Best Practices sanitation.

! NGOs and communities can create ! China has an excellent informational CoPs, pushing an agenda of early database system that goes till the 11 Maternal Mortality in 2000 - Estimates Developed by WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA, http:/ www.childinfo.org/ eddb/mat_mortal/index.htm 12 Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistics Division, Progress towards the Millennium Development Goals,1990-2004; http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi/techgroup/goals_2004/ GOAL_7-web_2004_FC3rev.pdf

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 47

village level and is accessible to all participation in planning and the citizens. In India, we still have implementation, should be set in to see such decentralisation of place. information despite having well ! There is need for capacity building established self governing bodies at all levels. like Panchayats at the village level. ! It is critical to seed all knowledge All developing countries need to in a locally relevant context in order learn from the example of China to give the community an after all information is power. opportunity to recognise that the Building Multi-stakeholder information is of value to them. Partnerships ! Enabling women with information ! We need to look for NGO and knowledge systems that break community-private sector existing patterns of discrimination partnerships with innovative ideas and deprivation will help to change the situation. The male members like promoting rational drug use, should also be addressed for establishing standard treatment bringing about a change at the guidelines, setting up community community & house hold level. drug revolving funds, and working out discounts for essential drugs. ! Social mobilisation is needed to build awareness and engage ! At the outset, all stakeholders need communities in conservation of to critically look at the solutions natural resources and in sanitation. like the proposed Integrated Water This cannot happen without Management scheme, Sardar Sarovar access to information. Therefore, Dam and the Narmada dam. knowledge sharing is an important Ultimately, solutions for water component in this. distribution cannot violate the basic ! A commitment towards reducing principles of sustainability and IMR/MMR by the people themselves Incorporate Conservation equity. We also need to seek out will help in reducing the problem. in Education areas for cross-border dialogue and Basic knowledge related to water, cooperation in the distribution of ! There are many local practitioners health and sanitation should be natural resources like water. of traditional and alternative forms of healing. Their skills need to be included in the school curriculum. ! We need to take advantage of upgraded and they need to be resources at local level to support included in the MCH and Family Government’s efforts, and to Welfare programmes so that they monitor the quality and join the ranks and become part of accessibility of services. the community that supports health services. ! Different organisations working in the community need to harmonise 6.2. Challenges in Water and complement one another’s Resource Management “The government and other activities. Sudhirendar Sharma (South Asia Water stakeholders should realise that everyone has to be provided with Community Participation Consultant) India, was direct in his diagnosis of the water distribution and water. Even if the poor cannot pay ! There is a need for empowerment delivery systems. According to him, for water, they still cannot be of local stakeholders, and this most of the water used by the deprived of water, and this is non- includes women and disadvantaged communities is sourced from ground negotiable.” groups. Inclusive institutional water. And this is still a community Jasveen Jairath, Director South Asia frameworks, ensuring people’s resource. But now the Government is Consortium for Water Studies

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 48 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

trying to take control over it by fuelling not more money, not privatisation, not state conflicts, intra-country disputes, more taxes! and even disputes at local, village, There is one non-negotiable principle district levels. in the distribution of water, and that All the existing Government policies is – water for livelihoods for the poor have been derived from the earlier water gets the highest priority. And this is policies and therefore the problems true even for those who cannot pay persist. India has largely an informal for water, they still need a certain water policy because nearly 60 per cent quantity of water, and policy, of the water in use is groundwater. The programmes and people need to premise that whoever owns the land also ensure this. owns the groundwater is causing a massive depletion in the water levels. 6.3. ICTs for Improving Access to Health, Water and Sanitation In the future the urban centres will drive the demand for water because it is In improving access to health, water and estimated that nearly 40 per cent sanitation services, ICTs can be used for: people will be in the urban centres of ! Information collection in the India. These population concentrates primary healthcare system, so that will drive the policies that determine it becomes possible and easy to feed the use of water. The impact that the in the data, store it, and also above will have on the rural centres is retrieve it. yet to be seen. ! Putting together a community Thus, there is a need for rational, register, which is likely to give a equitable water management systems better view of the programme in a and policies. These policies will have to specific area. be formulated, not in a top-down manner, but in a consultative manner, ! Preparing lists of essential drugs, including all stakeholders and keeping hazardous, irrational, banned drugs in mind the sustenance of ecological and brands – this list can be made systems and resources. accessible at all health centres. Use-based computation of ! Ensuring transparency, disease water distribution surveillance, accountability and

Meera Shiva Meera Having cogently presented the problems drug logistics. inherent in India’s water supply and ! ICT can improve people’s sanitation systems, Jasveen Jairath, understanding of environmental South Asia Consortium for Water Studies issues and their policy implications. India, posited that what we need is a We need a multi-sectoral Appropriate tools for dissemination use-based analysis of water – detailing approach in which health of information to a broader who uses how much water and for what care focuses on preventive audience will facilitate increased methods that entail an purposes? – Having done a diagnostics awareness and participation of all active participation of the based on this information, the use stakeholders. This leads to more community. pattern needs to be fitted to the inclusive policies and quantum available. This will also lay the environmentally sustainable ground for regulatory mechanisms in outcomes. pockets of excess usage. Active community participation would be the ! ICT tools can provide help in largest resource used in this exercise, creating and updating scientific

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 49

and socio-economic data on water an integrated health management bodies like - wetlands, lakes, water programme that takes socio-economic quality and quantity. Geographic factors and health issues into account. Information Systems (GIS) can Key recommendations for the use of ICTs help researchers map and compare as a tool included a multi-modal the changes in the water bodies approach, focus on gender equity, and predict problems and even devise community ownership, participation and solutions to these. access, focus on capacity building and support of health workers, sound ICT strategy for Reduction of IMR communication strategies using and MMR: A Case Study traditional media, and most importantly, Based upon some primary data and case a user-specific approach. At the same studies gathered in the course of a time, application of research-based focussed intervention in Orissa, intervention, use of appropriate Lalitendu Jagatdeb, from the Population technologies, multi-stakeholder Foundation of India; enumerated the participation and a multiple service major problems leading to IMR and MMR as lack of awareness and knowledge, model, including involvement of local barriers to access, gender issues, governance institutions were attitudes of people, poverty and recommended as a part of scientific malnutrition, low female literacy and, institutional mechanisms that were last but not least, a lack of transport likely to make a difference. facilities. These are common problem Examples of ICTs in Water areas for strategy formulation requiring Management and Sanitation multi-sectoral concern. In India only urban areas have Communities that are below poverty sanitation facilities and our water line, women, children and other stressed areas have been steadily disadvantaged groups need to be rising. In Delhi, nearly 10 per cent addressed. Empowerment of women, encouraging participation and decision- of the population is suffering from making, providing accurate information water borne diseases. The Yamuna about health status, empowering them River in Delhi has become a waste to demand for the availability and water pond. access to services and Ajay Pradhan, Managing encouraging them to Highlights Director, DHI (India) utilise services that are In Delhi, nearly 10 per cent of Pvt. Ltd. (Water and available – these were the population is suffering from Environment), shared some of the key areas water borne diseases. The his experiences in the that the delegates Yamuna River in Delhi has use of ICTs for water felt needed to be become a wastewater pond. management. He claimed addressed. that the main criteria for Some groundwork was suggested before distribution of water included implementing an ICT strategy, and this economic efficiency, social equity and included understanding the causes for ecological development. For these to high incidence in a specific location, be met, there needed to be a fine understanding the ongoing programmes, balance between the use of water as current health service scenario, existing a resource and water as a component information systems and then designing of livelihood.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 50 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

ICTs are important tools that can help ! Design of improved hand-pumps in the decision-making process in: Orissa, robust enough to function even during the cyclone. ! Ensuring transparency by making information available for the people. ! Design of a sanitation system for villages in North India. ! Enabling decision-making through the use of Decision Support ! A comprehensive information Systems (DSS). system for a Chinese province with 14 cities, some components of ! Creation of user-friendly, language which were: independent, easily understandable graphic user interfaces. " Mapping the river basin " Water availability in the region ! Application of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to look " Water distribution system at water availability in a scientific " Simulation for future and accurate manner. development

! Creation and implementation of " Surveillance and early warning scientific Water Resource System system models. " Monitoring quality of water Examples of successful ICT applications " Waste water management that were cited included: " Institutional capacity building

6.4. Conclusion

CoPs have existed all over the region through the decades, and what we need to do now is to bring them together, and also to bring to the local people, the benefits of the new technologies.

It has been seen that ICTs have great potential to solve problems related to health, water and sanitation, but they are only enabling tools; they will not bring any miraculous results by themselves. It is necessary to go to the village level to understand the communities, their traditions and culture before determining the manner in which new technologies will be implemented there. ICTs are also not a substitute for political empowerment, so people should be aware of their rights to basic resources and should ensure that technology does not become the monopoly of a powerful minority.

ICTs can support communication initiatives at the ground for bringing about behaviour change. They can also support the creation of appropriate learning materials that will inculcate healthy life practices at the school level itself.

Thus, there is need for a forum where people can pool in their suggestions for:

! Enabling transparency in the framing of the Water Policy.

! Establishment of regulatory systems in the implementation of health, water and sanitation systems.

! Looking beyond computers and the Internet at other communication means.

! Looking for crosscutting linkages from the issues of health, water and sanitation for improved quality of living, education and freedom from poverty, hunger and diseases for achieving our goals.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Combating Epidemics

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 52 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Combating Epidemics Possible Strategies

MDG 6 people living with the disease approaching five million. ! Halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS More than half of those newly infected with HIV today are between 15-24 years ! Halt and begin to reverse the incidence old. The spread to the general of malaria and other major diseases population is borne out by the rising number of cases among pregnant women Contextualising the Concerns and their infants.

Globally, the AIDS epidemic has caused over 20 million deaths since it began and has About one million people die each year orphaned more than 14 million children. With no available cure in sight, 42 million from malaria and 1.8 million from people were living with HIV/AIDS at the end of 2002. This disease has ravaged families tuberculosis. As traditional treatments and communities and, in the hardest-hit countries, has reversed decades of progress for malaria have lost their effectiveness in public health, economic and social development, education, and food security. in the last decade, the threat of malaria is greater than ever in affected regions, although comprehensive data on the 7.1. South Asian Scenario incidence of the disease are not South Asia ranks second, after Sub- available. Once again, sub-Saharan Saharan Africa in the number of newly Africa is the region most affected. infected population with HIV/AIDS. In Tuberculosis infection rates are also on 2003, 36 million adults and 2 million the increase in that region whereas they children were living with HIV/AIDS – have been reduced by a small margin in 14 more than 98 of them in developing most other areas. countries and 66 percent in Sub- Strengthening Surveillance and Saharan Africa. There were almost a Monitoring of Epidemics million new cases in South and East A few Asian nations have been Asia, where more than 7 million people collecting systematic information on are now living with HIV/AIDS. trends in HIV-related behaviours for Prevention programmes reach fewer several years, and several more have than one in five people who need started recently. Behavioural trend data them. Comprehensive prevention collected through Behavioural could avert 29 million of the 45 Surveillance Surveys (or BSS) are million new infections projected by increasingly being integrated into core 2010. Five to six million people need HIV surveillance activities in the region. HIV treatment in low and middle They act as an early warning of potential income countries, yet only 7 per cent— risk for HIV, in helping to explain the or 400,000 people — had access by end trends in HIV prevalence in sub- of 2003. India has the second largest populations at high risk of infection, number of people living with HIV/AIDS, and reflect the success of HIV after South Africa, with the number of prevention programmes over time.15

14 Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Progress towards the Millennium Development Goals,1990- 2004 http://millenniumindicators.un.org/unsd/mi/techgroup/goals_2004/GOAL_6-web_2004_25Oct.doc

15 Family Health International: What Drives HIV in Asia: A Summary of Sexual and Drug-Taking Behaviors (2001)

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 53

Currently, the key issues of concern issues of gender relations, poverty, include: gathering and consolidating access and rights. data, providing rapid access to HIV/AIDS is now being seen as a information that policy makers and developmental issue health planners need for monitoring and in the gender and surveillance, responding to and rights framework, preventing disease outbreaks, sound and not as a medical resource management, and tracking of public health issues. and health problem. So the recommended 7.2. Prevention and Care for strategy is to work Affected Persons towards change at Health care is now being viewed very normative level in much within the rights perspective. The smaller groups right to health requires availability, leading to accessibility, acceptability, affordability behaviour change at and quality with regard to health care individual level. as well as the underlying preconditions There is a need for of health. continued research The stigma around diseases like HIV/ for new preventive technologies such AIDS is one of the greatest obstacles in as microbicide and AIDS vaccines. Free the campaign against it. Testing for the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring disease not only allows counselling and if implemented rightly, will have a treatment of patients, but also helps positive effect. There is also a need ensure that the epidemic will not spread to look at access and adherence to to their families and children. As far as the ARV (anti-retro-viral) regimes. treatment, care and support are Finally no strategy can work without concerned, patients can live useful lives the commitment from political, if the disease is detected early enough governmental institutions, NGOs, CSOs – and they receive the needed drugs. to reinforce, strengthen and Public policies are needed to support encourage all preventive strategies. and care for affected people living with The need is to maximise the visibility HIV/AIDS and other similar diseases. of all campaigns and to improve the We need policies that will reduce the stigma, encourage testing and timely dignity of those living with the virus preventive or curative action. and the bottom line is to ensure the involvement the affected at all stages Strategies for Combating HIV/AIDS of care, support and prevention. Ravi Varma, Population Council India, A Gender Perspective described the extent of HIV prevalence in India, rightly terming it a rapidly Suneeta Dhar, Regional Programme Coordinator, Gender/HIV, UNIFEM India, evolving epidemic. He presented the felt that epidemics like HIV/AIDS, epidemiological facts and listed the Tuberculosis and Malaria and their factors fuelling the epidemic. He stressed the need for evidence-based impact in psychosocial, cultural and strategies addressing issues at different medical terms need to be understood in levels, from behaviour, practice and the larger context of multiple epidemics attitudes at individual level to structural in our society today. There is a need to

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 54 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

look at the structural elements of ! Greater involvement of women people’s lives especially those of sexual scaling up networking and advocacy minorities and figure out what makes activities them vulnerable to ! Improvement of delivery epidemics. To take mechanisms a specific instance, Most importantly, only a rights based it is essential to pay approach can work, and all attention to the stakeholders need to understand this. increasing Various issues need to be addressed feminisation of simultaneously, including poverty, poverty within livelihoods, work and income. Gender which women and dimensions need to focus on engaging girls are forced to a wide range of partners including seek livelihoods in men, acknowledging that gender is the context of sex everybody’s issue, and acknowledging work, migrate, or be women not as victims and trafficked. It is also commodities but as potential leaders. important to look at the epidemic of violence – domestic Political Will and and marital, which have inadequate Social Mobilisation legal provisions because they are Bobby John, Massive Effort Campaign perceived to be in the private and not (HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria and Other the public domain; but nonetheless Diseases of Poverty) India, had a clear are the reasons that make young boys and hard-hitting message about and girls vulnerable even within a diseases of poverty. He started with an family setup. Furthermore, the illustration of Tuberculosis, which is a complicity of families in the curable disease with an existing trafficking of children – is quite well framework for detection and cure. Once documented. The most critical aspect on treatment, it takes about 3 weeks in the entire HIV/AIDS discourse is for a patient to be non-infective. It is the participation and involvement said that one person can infect about of affected people in all strategic 15 persons through coughing. Therefore, planning and decision making for getting the patient on treatment is the prevention and care. Drawing from most important step for prevention as extensive work in the North East of well as cure. The last T.B. drug was India, Suneeta Dhar shared formulated in 1963, and it seems that UNIFEM’s findings on what women the policy makers are not interested in who are living with HIV/AIDS are providing incentives for drug research. recommending. Key points were India is a major supplier of cheaper ARVs as follows: to the rest of the world, yet the pharmaceutical industry does not seem ! Greater participation of people to be interested in taking advantage of living with HIV/AIDS, and more say this opportunity. Similarly, in the case in decision making of Malaria, it is not a scarcity of ! Strengthening of community solutions; it is a lack of the will to outreach implement them.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 55

So, it seems that the basic requirement some of the simple testing, is for political will and social prophylactic treatment, or cure mobilisation. The Prime Minister has options can be made available, recommended a social vaccine for several sensitive issues regarding HIV/AIDS, and what is needed here is consent, confidentiality, stigma will to determine the right time to need to be addressed. administer this vaccine. We need to ! Horizontal Integration of different administer it through our education services for prevention, detection, system, by teaching life-saving cure and care in HIV/AIDS with skills to the children who will those for other diseases (e.g. desperately need it in the next few malaria, HIV/AIDS). years of their lives. ! Integration across time: We need Community Participation to to look at a continuum of services Promote the Use of Health Services and the adoption of the life span approach. ! Communities need to get together to ensure the accountability of ! It appears that the same population health institutions providing various is vulnerable to all these diseases; services. therefore we need to look for ! Strategies and campaigns around linkages between strategies for TB, HIV/AIDS need to be addressed Malaria and HIV prevention. Further within the gender and rights there is evidence to show that there framework, and not as a mere is a pre-disposition of people with medical or health problem. This HIV towards TB and Malaria. At the will ensure greater understanding same time, of issues from the service specific key provider’s side and greater access issues that and participation from the differentiate community. responses to a particular ! Behavioural change is very critical disease, for for the success of any programme instance the to control epidemics, so the creation linkage of sex, of an enabling environment through sexuality and awareness-raising, sensitisation and moral information sharing is an important behaviour component. with HIV also ! People need to be made aware of need to be the benefits of new projects and pinpointed programmes so that they come into and addressed the system out of informed choice. separately. Integration of Programmes for Operations Research and Combating Epidemics Data Collection

! Vertical Integration linking the ! Operations research will be needed community with prevention and to help put together enough data care programmes for epidemics like on the best ways to respond to the HIV/AIDS with Primary Health Care demands. Data collection is an services. Whereas this means that important part of all strategies

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around epidemics. We need Monitoring and evaluation longitudinal studies that trace the ! Need for efficient management circumstances of people’s lives and information systems in health care enable us to understand the institutions and public health constraints, for example, in the case delivery systems. of migrant populations, how can we ensure their continued access and 7.3. ICTs for Combating Epidemics participation in programmes for treatment and care? We also need There was no debate on the question of to think of innovative ways to get whether ICTs would be useful in the community involved – like strategies for combating epidemics. community groups to keep a tab The need for appropriate technologies on one another to continue the in all strategies was well treatment, to ensure that the acknowledged. Some of the areas that drugs are available at the centre, were enumerated by the delegates, and so on. from their own personal experiences ! We need to institutionalise systems in the field, are listed below: wherein NGOs or CSOs can validate ! Patient data collection, treatment the data collection done for the data and referrals for increasing National Sample Survey, or the the efficiency of delivery Family Welfare Survey. Also NGOs mechanisms. This also makes it working in that area should also be easy for the patients to set up validating it since they work on the appointments, remember and plan spot i.e. at the block level, follow-up action and so on. grassroots level, or the village level. ! Streamlining hospital administration. Capacity Building

! Emerging needs call for capacity ! Regular monitoring and surveillance building at various levels. This data collection. includes the following: ! Capacity building of personnel. " Expanding health providers’ skills (multipurpose health ! Monitoring of service delivery. providers). ! Communication from block level to " Enhancing behavioural the district or state level and vice skills, raising awareness versa. and sensitising health practitioners at all levels. ! There is a need to continue " Improving the performance exploring innovative and of all health systems, potentially powerful ways of using offering a minimum new and appropriate technologies package of services for Information, Education and including the new elements Communication (IEC). It may also of reproductive health). be useful to revisit strategies that " Increasing the orientation have proved to be useful in the past; of the health system as a for example, communication whole (people as well as strategies that were successfully processes) towards higher used in the case of leprosy may be efficiency and performance. explored for HIV/AIDS and TB also.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 57

Areas of Concern Delhi were linked to computers at the OPD counters and the back end. Data ! When shifting to computerisation of health records, strategic entry was done on regular basis and partnerships and teamwork with included all details of the patient and hospital managements – both public their medication and treatment. To make and private sector – are required. it sustainable, they charged Rs.5/- from those who could afford it. In addition ! Issues in computerised data they felt that they would need to link collection are timeliness, accuracy, it up with several other facilities such security and confidentiality of as education, e-governance and sensitive data. Also, data collection education – this should make it Bobby John systems should be in sync with financially viable. international standards and systems like ICD (WHO’s International At the time of the presentation, they Classification of Diseases). had entered 45,000 patient records, and patients and doctors were finding it ! Misuse of computers for frivolous easier to follow lines of treatment, set or anti-social purposes, threatened up appointments, and even go for shift of focus of the doctors from referrals. There is great potential for the patient to the data recording the system fanning out to aiding process, from the community to processes at the level of PHCs

posh offices with computers. and CSCs, managing inventory, Victor Vincent ! While Internet is effective in performance monitoring systems and spreading information, it also poses so on. The information is confidential serious challenges in terms of the and protected by a user name and available information being password so it is not open to public, incomplete, inaccurate or likely to corporates or businesses. be misinterpreted or misunderstood. Health Management A competent moderator may be Information Software required to rectify, clarify or supplement such information. Anjali, GTZ Basic Health Project, Himachal Pradesh, described a ! ICT strategies need to be consonant successful initiative aimed at capturing with the local culture, and with the basic health oriented data and making characteristics of the intended it available, both at the source and at audience. the state level, in short time frames that ICTs for Better Health Services make for meaningful decision making. The claim was borne out by an example Athar Haque, President, E-Healthcare of how a diarrhoeal outbreak was Foundation India, presented the arrested in Kangra district. The scenario of information management in computerised system enabled the hospitals across the country and shared timely capturing and communication his experiences about two pilot of information regarding the outbreak interventions being implemented in to the district CMO’s office. The officials Sirsa and Madhubani in India. The were then able to locate the disease system captured patient data and made right up to the household level and take hospital systems simpler for rural immediate curative and preventive population to use. The servers at New action well in time to prevent its spread.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 58 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

In the past, due to the rough terrain community to the incidence of and difficult manual procedures, it was epidemics, and also to determine the difficult getting correct information to cause of a disease, its progress, the state office even in months, and treatment, and outcome and how it can there was much repetition of effort, be prevented. It is also important to inaccuracy and delay to contend with. look at the positive and negative roles Data Collection for Better played by the informal health sector and Strategic Intervention alternative health centres in the Renu Addlakha, Fellow, MacArthur management of these diseases and to Foundation India, stressed on the factor it into the overall prevention and need to have explanatory models cure framework. Thirdly, social factors emerging from dense longitudinal such as the stigma around diseases studies from different parts of the and the impact of social vulnerability country, to determine the responses on preventive and curative aspects of the individual, family and also need to be taken into account.

7.4. Conclusion

ICTs are essential tools for implementing strategies for combating epidemics for achieving the MDGs , specifically in the areas of aiding research for surveillance and monitoring; tools such as Behaviour Surveillance Surveys and Geographical Information Systems are being used in several parts of the world and they act as an early warning of potential risk for diseases and can help in strategies for prevention and care. ICTs are also important in the context of IEC strategies. Finally, the application and implementation of appropriate strategies needs to be grounded in the context of locale specific realities and requirements. However, social, cultural and attitudinal factors which hinder the efforts for prevention and care need to be addressed, and the gender and rights framework needs to be seen as central to all work in this arena.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Governance: Key to Transparency and Accelerated Development

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 60 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Governance - Key to Transparency and Accelerated Development Possible Options

emphasised that a new vision and Contextualising the Concerns architecture of humane governance, The Millennium Declaration acknowledges that democratic and participatory built upon the principles of ownership, governance based on the will of the people best assures the rights of men decency and accountability, have and women to live and to raise their children in dignity; free from hunger become imperative and that humane and from the fear of violence, oppression or injustice. It also explicitly governance must lead to broad-based states that good governance and transparency with open, equitable, rule- economic growth and social based and non-discriminatory multilateral trading systems is essential for development.17 creating an environment that is conducive to development and to the elimination of poverty. 8.2 Reforms for Good Governance 8.1 South Asian Scenario ! Political reform is at the heart of all intervention - the bureaucracy The crisis of governance in South Asia is like a horse, if the rider is badly is the cause for its lower Human chosen, or has bad intentions, the Development Index, according to the horse will not perform well no Human Development Report (1999) of matter how well bred it is. Even Civil the Mahbub ul Haq Development Services reform needs political will. Centre. The legitimate goal of development is to build human ! The active engagement of civil capabilities and enlarge human society and citizens in the choices, which is the task of good governance is necessary to make governance. An overview of the effective reform happen. situation in South Asia identifies the ! Training and capacity building has causes of the crises of governance: made women in local governance democracy is fast turning into an institutions more capable, so much empty ritual in many Asian states, so that in Karnataka and other crushing burden of taxes on the poor, states, where the second and third endemic corruption, illogical priorities round of elections have taken place, in core human development concerns, more than 40 per cent women have snapping of link between the governed and the government, between the been elected, even beyond the public and the policy makers. It is reserved seats – this is a positive

17 From the Dashrathmal Singhvi Memorial Lecture 2002 (Part II) on “Human Rights – The Essence Of Constitutional Governance” by Justice J.S.Verma, Chairperson, National Human Rights Commission, former Chief Justice of India, 16th December 2002 at India International Centre New Delhi.

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trend and it is clear that women are to get together and understand where going to change governance in the the levers of change are, understand the next 10 -12 years. goals and make them happen.

! Women bring a fresh perspective We need to look at effective solutions and some critical values to public based on collective wisdom and life. They also have the capacity to experience, and replicate them across innovate, manage and deliver, and the country. The removal of monopolies in order to empower and enable wherever feasible, introduction of rules them to achieve their potential, of competition, choice and voice even their active presence and where monopolies continue to exist, contribution in governance is strengthening of local institutions, a essential. fair, swift, accessible, simple system of justice, right to information, citizens ! We put a lot of energy into charters with penalties for non- lawmaking but there is still a need performance, ombudsmen to keep a for mechanisms to strengthen public check, and strategic use of ICT in understanding for a better specific areas where it is likely to get implementation. This is a gap that spectacular dividends with minimum needs to be bridged. There is the effort and investment; were some of the example of UK, where once an act recommendations that were made. is passed the Government gives some time before actual N.Vijyaditya of National Informatics implementation, during which Centre India, emphasised that e– agencies and individuals get to learn governance was a slow process and about the act, understand how it involved change-management, more impacts them, what is expected of than anything. It was not only about them. technology but also about people, understanding, accepting and adopting ! Policies need to be liberal, at the same time discriminating from one these technologies, which is a time situation to the other. Higher consuming process. education needs an enabling He spoke about a few government environment, with private sector initiatives towards e-governance like the non-profit organisations taking the Bhoomi project and the passport lead, whereas the health sector system, where even the best needs more effective public systems technologies and systems were often with some element of competition, slowed down by certain procedures that choice and voice. were still being handled manually. He Governance Perspective: claimed that the Government is aware Reflections from India of these shortcomings and is trying to put in place measures to ensure better service JayaPrakash Narayan, member of the delivery. He also cited the example of National Advisory Committee India, virtual courts and bunching of cases for stressed that while e-governance has quick resolution. the potential to make systems and services user-friendly, accessible and 8.3. Learning from transparent, it will not make up for other International Experiences basic limitations and maladies inherent Kamal Singh, Head of the Governance in the current political system. What we Unit of the British Council of India, need is fundamental governance reform. discussed some positive aspects of the In a democracy, it is up to the citizens UK public sector reform.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 62 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

The financial management initiative in Technology Development Group (ITDG) UK has transformed democratic, civil Sri Lanka, related their experiences in service departments to more efficiency- Africa and Latin America. The led business-like agencies where the community women were able to frameworks are quite clear on what the empower themselves through the ministers will do at the policy level and application of ICTs to develop the civil society will do at the delivery communication and advocacy material level. The whole agenda has been to which they used to inform policy achieve better results and better value makers about their situation. The for the public sector. It has also meant initiatives proved that in order to effective performance management both empower women and enable them to achieve their potential, their active

Dil Piyaratna at organisation and individual level. presence and contribution in Since effective governance requires governance is essential. citizen’s active engagement in decision making, the UK wants to use technology Dil Piyaratna, Senior Project Manager, to enhance the democratic process Information and Communication which will facilitate, broaden and Technology Agency Sri Lanka, spoke on deepen participation, to share the e-governance initiatives in Sri knowledge and build capacities of Lanka. The e –governance services that are being provided were highlighted by people to participate actively and her which include licenses and fruitfully in the implementation of acts. certificates, jobs, payment of utility bills Sudhir Ahluwalia, Head, Global and taxes, transport and tourism, Consulting Group of TCS, Delhi, said that health, agriculture, fishing and access was the biggest hurdle to education. NIC is helping with the entire effective e-governance. He cited the process. The Government looks at example of the US Government’s e- development indicators in all sectors for governance programme, which spent this programme and uses tele-centres USD 60 Billion a year on e-governance. and e-libraries to bridge the digital In spite of that, success has been patchy divide. and usage and access remains a concern. 8.4 Enabling Women’s Access, in OECD countries, also reflects Representation in Governance a similar concern with most European Institutions countries having an access rate between 11 per cent to 50 per cent. In a world where more than half the population constitutes women, the A three-way partnership was question of women’s representation in recommended, involving coordination governance in the world in general, and between Government, private sector and in South Asia, specifically, remains civil society; where the civil society needs debatable. Thus, the interests and voices to function as the vital link that ensures of about half the population are not that e-governance delivers to all users, a reflected in the decisions that are made, better quality of life. He pointed out that and as such, the legitimacy of ICTs need to be used as a tool to facilitate governance becomes questionable too. the kind of organisational changes, Following is an overview of the current modernisation and reforms that effective situation based on research and analysis e-governance entails. conducted by the South Asia Partnership Vishaka Hidellage, Intermediate (SAP) International18.

18 Compiled by Indrani Ray-Ghosal, based on “Reviving Democracy: The Emerging Role of Women in Decision Making, A Study of Women’s Participation in Governance in South Asia,” South Asia Partnership International. http://action.web.ca/home/sap/south_asia_resources.shtml?x=62676

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Country Provision Impact Some positive changes

Bangladesh Provisions were made Women’s representation Bangladesh has seen an for reserved seats in the dropped from 11.2 enhancement of national parliament but percent in 1996 to 2 women’s political this provision ceased in percent in October 2001. credibility among voters. April 1, 2001. India 73rd and 74th A million women are Participation in Indian Constitutional Amendment members of these local politics has passed in 1992 provided for institutions in each of the enhanced the elected 1/3 representation of two elections held since women’s self respect women in the three tiers the early 1990s; an and independent of local government and estimated 6 million thinking. 1/3 of their chairpersons women have been to be women. positively impacted by this legislation. Nepal Local Government Act Women are ensured at Nepal has witnessed a provides for one-woman least a minimum level of greater awareness of representative in each of representation; however, women’s fundamental the nine ward committees local government is rights. of the Village Development nearly defunct as of now, Committee and one-woman partly as a result of the representative in the District Maoist insurrection there. Development Committee. Pakistan Provision for reserved seats Re-introduction showed Pakistan has a fairly for women in the National marked increase in active participation of Assembly and Provincial women’s representation women in political Assemblies (expired in 1988 debates. and reintroduced in 2002). Sri Lanka Quotas/reserved seats for women do not operate in Sri Lanka at any level of governance.

Clearly, there is notable success at the country have demonstrated that local level of participation. NGOs, “…women do make a crucial difference grassroots organisations, and women to politics. Despite this ‘success’— or activists have played a significant role perhaps because of it — women in in influencing policy and supporting politics are regarded as a threat. women to face this challenge. Increased Women’s representation in Parliament representation of women in local is only about 8 per cent, and women’s governance is seen to have increased voices in legislative change still do not awareness around the issues of women’s make themselves heard. The National rights, raised the credibility of women in local governments, and increased Perspective Plan 1988-2000 women’s participation in political recommends 33 per cent reservation for debates. women in all elected bodies. Yet the Women’s Reservation Bill, or the 84th However, there still exists a low level Constitution Amendment Bill, 1998, of representation of women in South providing for reservation for women in Asian governance at all levels. Take the case of India. More than 3,00,000 Parliament and state Assemblies is still elected women representatives in mired in a diversionary debate about Panchayati Raj institutions across the caste-based reservation.”19

19 From ‘Legislating for change: Articulating women’s rights’ by Laxmi Murthy http://infochangeindia.org/ features88.jsp

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 64 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Promoting E-governance Since the 80s, various Central Government departments have been undergoing computerisation. Some of the successful initiatives are illustrated below: NICNET National Informatics Centre provides technological solutions for the whole range of IT needs. The Centre has been supporting almost all the government institutions through customised software development, designing of advanced management information systems in various sectors including health, statistics, education, law etc. The backbone network of NICNET provides Internet to state and district headquarters. Collectorate 2000 The Collectorate 2000 (C2K), conceptualised by the AP State Unit of National Informatics Centre, is a complete software package for automating the business processes at all the district collectorates. Collectorate 2000 streamlines several processes like tax payments, land record processing, welfare schemes, and general rules and proceedings. Smart Nagarpalika Through the Smart Nagarpalika package, local self-government bodies can capture information from the citizens, enabling creation and processing of records. Smart Nagarpalika helps automation of common manual processes in municipalities like issue of birth and death registration certificates, water taxes, property tax, accounts system and general administration. Reservoir level and The RL&CMS of Central Water Commission maps level of reservoir data automatically and capacity monitoring disseminates the data through Internet to the planners and decision-makers. systems (RL&CMS) Sachivalaya Vahini This is a Government-to-Government (G2G) application started in 2002 and implemented in all the departments of the Karnataka secretariat. Sachivalaya Vahini is aimed at the creation of an online Secretariat, storing, maintaining and processing of large volumes of data. Bhoomi The State Government of Karnataka has computerised land record processes in the state.

8.5 Possible Strategies20 support systems for elected women and potential women leaders. In the long In the short term, strategies include continued implementation and increase term, we need to include education, in reserved seats/quotas in training and communication that bring governments, adequate party tickets to attitudinal changes to eliminate gender women, entrusting women with ‘key’ discrimination and reverse low portfolios, training and capacity participation of women in governance. building of women and communities and We need to address the special needs

SOME CIVIL SOCIETY INITIATIVES IN E-GOVERNANCE

! Voter Awareness Campaigns Catalyst Trust, Chennai; Lok Satta, Hyderabad; PAC,Bangalore

! Capacity Building for Advocacy National Centre for Advocacy Studies (NCAS), Pune

! Public Interest Litigation Common Cause, Delhi, PUCL

! Jan Sunwais (Public Hearings) Mazdoor Kisaan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), Rajasthan; Parivartan, Delhi

! Campaign for Effective Citizens Charters Praja, Mumbai, Lok Satta, Hyderabad

! Public-Private Partnerships BATF, Bangalore

! Budget Analysis and Advocacy Disha, Ahmedabad, Proof, Bangalore

! Community-media partnerships Express Citizens Forum, Pune These initiatives have served to strengthen grassroots advocacy by blending the potential of technology with the zeal of advocacy.

20 Compiled by Indrani Ray-Ghosal, based on “Reviving Democracy: The Emerging Role of Women in Decision Making, A Study of Women’s Participation in Governance in South Asia,” South Asia Partnership International. http://action.web.ca/home/sap/south_asia_resources.shtml?x=62676

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and constraints of women and girl implementing change management. It children to increase their access to needs to go into leadership and education. Legislations that strategic planning, infrastructure discriminate against women need to be planning for personnel, data systems, reviewed and removed. Governments institutional infrastructure, finances and need to set up institutions such as technological infrastructure. Ministries for Women’s Affairs, Women’s Bureaus and National Committees/ 8.7. ICTs for Good Governance Councils for Women that provide explicit The parallel thematic sessions on e- support systems to women. governance and on women’s participation to accelerate the pace of 8.6 Role of E-governance in development raised a number of Singh Kamal Accelerated Development questions and also offered citizen- The main objective of e-governance is friendly solutions. There were a number to simplify the government procedures, of instances where ICTs and e- enabling the Government to reach to governance initiatives had increased its citizens directly without excessive efficiency of services, increased the interference from bureaucracy and transparency of delivery mechanisms, red-tapism, resulting in improved and simplified processes to the great services for the people. The e- relief of users. At the same time, there governance model envisages three main were instances of e-governance target groups – namely, Government initiatives that had not worked and itself, citizens and the business; termed therefore should be watched for in as Government to Government or G2G, implementing new e-governance Government to Citizens or Citizens to programmes. government G2C/ C2G, and Government The key points that came up in the to Business or G2B. E-governance discussions with regard to the heralds the possibility of greater applicability of ICTs in governance responsiveness of governments to were as follows: changes and trends in global policy, advocacy, businesses and markets and ! E-governance can make systems opens up possibilities for accelerated and services user-friendly, development. accessible and transparent; it can help in making systems deliver Although these are good beginnings, faster and at reasonable quality. Governments need to aim for a shift from models that merely address “service ! ICTs can reduce or eliminate provision” (e-governance); they need to corruption. It can increase the galvanise citizen-government interfaces involvement of the citizens in and enable drafting of plans, policies governance. The Vishakapatnam and agenda-setting in truly democratic initiative is an example, where forums (e-democracy). ICTs were used to enhance the In recent years, a number of civil society transparency and accountability of initiatives have used a variety of tools government services delivery to try and improve the quality of mechanisms, to provide interactive governance. services like opinion polls, collect revenues and so on. For implementing a robust and sustainable e-governance ! ICTs do away with departmental strategy, governments need to barriers for better convergence and begin the reengineering process for synergy.

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! ICTs can help build channels for creation need to be coordinated information sharing, alliance with implementation. building among women in ! Availability of appropriate leadership through forums and technology, adequate infrastructure, networking. readiness for change, appropriate ! ICTs can be used for capacity models of procurement and building of citizens and Panchayat engagement to select the right members in improving the quality partners to finance maintain and and efficacy of local governance sustain government effort, and institutions. appropriate models of access – Areas of concern these are enablers for e-governance and need to be set in place for such ! ICTs do bring people together, initiatives. offering opportunities for sharing ! We need to look out for e- and learning around the globe, governance initiatives that are however, e-governance has not purely technology driven without reached local levels; and unless it being connected to real people and reaches the villages, the digital their needs and problems. Other divide will not lessen. The most factors that need the attention of disadvantaged have the lowest levels implementing agencies are the of access and miss out on many of absence of inter–agency the benefits; we need innovative coordination, budgetary allocations solutions that factor this in. between departments, and ! In order to upscale successful developing a skill base among the attempts at e-governance, software poor for effectively participating in development and infrastructure and benefiting from e –governance.

8.8 Conclusion

South Asia needs to shift from service delivery to consultative modes of partnership, which reflect active citizenship; it also needs to improve the accountability of Governments. Various instances prove that e-governance can help to make significant improvements in these areas. We also need to encourage and accelerate the pace of e-governance initiatives in newer and as yet unexplored territories.

However, the successful introduction of e-governance projects involves detailed processes of knowledge sharing, re- engineering and change management at all levels. Countries need to look out for opportunities for successful multi- stakeholder partnerships between citizens, government systems and private sector organisations to improve service delivery in governance. As they go along, they need to institutionalise learning from the good practices as well as from the mistakes to ensure efficiency and success. More and more responsibility needs to be taken up by the people rather than the governments.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 3

Road Ahead

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 68 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Road Ahead Propelling ICTs towards achieving MDGs

The meeting concluded with renewed partnership base and with a new commitment to realise the Honourable framework of shared knowledge and Finance Minister’s call, in his budget practices for meeting our goals. speech, to translate outlays into The Draft Delhi Declaration was placed outcomes so that funds allocated for before the house. It summarised the development do benefit the targeted discussions and concerns that had been people. Emphasis on the Government’s voiced in the two day meeting: commitment to alleviate poverty and focus on health, education, livelihood Some basic concerns that were and gender equality strengthened the reiterated once again, were as follows: resolve of the development community ! We need to be unambiguously and raised hopes for effective committed to an alternative partnerships for meeting the MDGs. paradigm of development that is Mission 2007, the ‘Every Village a sustainable, equitable and Knowledge Centre’ initiative of MSSRF, environment friendly. Bangalore India, along with OneWorld ! The goals and the means to achieve South Asia, New Delhi India, is an them – both must be in the hands example that has inspired the hopes and of the poor. The poor must decide. efforts of many development professionals in the region. It is now ! Focus should be on the issues, and time to capitalise on the positive ICTs should be an enabling tool. ICTs outcomes of this initiative, and forge cannot be the starting point for ahead with renewed commitment to discussions on poverty, hunger and scale up over an extended strategic other such issues.

9.1. Draft: DELHI DECLARATION 2005 on BUILDING CoPs

“While development has been on the international agenda for a very long time, the articulation of the MDGs has given a much-needed focus and time frame. However, the pace of progress towards achieving these goals in South Asia has not been satisfactory, because of a variety of constraints relating to policy, infrastructure, resources, technology, capacity and multi- stakeholder participation. We believe that concerted people-centred action and scaling up successful examples through sharing of experiences and knowledge can accelerate the pace of progress. We further believe that sharing knowledge and empowering people can best be achieved by connecting communities and forming multi-stakeholder partnerships. Our actions should revolve around people, their context and their needs and therefore the emphasis should be on locally relevant content in local languages, and ownership of the programs by the local communities. While technologies can be a double-edged sword, it is important to deploy appropriate ICTs intelligently and innovatively. Our efforts to achieve the MDGs must be holistic and should cover all aspects of livelihood, and they need to be constantly monitored in terms of actual benefits accruing to the communities. It can only help when we develop appropriate, measurable indicators to evaluate progress and also a mechanism to check if local priorities are met and concerns addressed. We believe the Mission 2007 initiative in India is an example of a large Community of Practice which is inclusive and reflects the commitment of a range of stakeholders including the Government, industry, academia and the civil society, and worthy of emulation in the entire region.”

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Voice of Dissent

Sarath Fernando, from MONLAR Sri Lanka, reiterated his concern that the time frames set by the mdgs, for ending poverty and hunger, were seen as “irrelevant, meaningless and unjust towards the hungry in the world.”

He saw multi-stakeholder partnerships as partnerships with the people who are creating hunger and poverty in the world – it was clear that they would be The decision-makers and that the alliance would not be beneficial to the hungry and the poor.

There was disagreement about the agenda of using ICTs for achieving the MDGs, because he felt that it would only serve to create a bigger market for MNCs. A discussion on reducing poverty and hunger cannot start with ICTs.”

He proposed that the agenda and time frame of reducing poverty and hunger in the world should be given over to the poor, who are victims of the processes of big businesses and unscrupulous politicians around the world. “Let them form CoPs to fight against those injustices and structures of exploitation,” he said. Voices of Concurrence

One of the delegates referred to the thematic discussions where different ways of using ICTs for development were explored. He saw the Millennium Declaration as a background for working towards a commonly accepted goal, and ICTs were the tools to be used for the same. He also stated that whether or not the MDGs were achieved, was in our own hands, the Millennium Declaration only provided a direction to move ahead in. Another delegate spoke about the tremendous potential and resources available to the development sector today, and the need to utilise these resources in an effective manner. Proposed Changes in the Declaration

One delegate suggested the following changes in the declaration, which would represent the concerns expressed in the forum:

1 Many saw the MDGs as far too ‘modest’ in their ambitions. It was suggested that “achieving these goals” be replaced with “achieving even these very modest goals”.

2 Secondly, inter-sectoral partnerships can be valuable, at the same time they can also be exploitative towards the vulnerable groups. This can be addressed by using the phrase “appropriate stakeholder partnerships” or “non-exploitative partnerships” instead of multi-stakeholder partnerships.

Another delegate suggested a change in the words, “The articulation of the MDGs has given us the much needed focus and time.” This suggests that until now all or many of us were working without focus or goals, and that would indeed be a wrong assumption to make. Voices of Caution

A delegate summed up the concerns by saying that ICTs definitely have a potential for development, but whether this potential is used for creating poverty or for alleviating poverty is questionable, and there should be no ambiguity in the declaration regarding that. Another participant expressed serious concerns about the entire development agenda, questioning whether, “We were headed for a world dictated by IMF, World Bank or WTO or was it possible to work towards an alternative world of development.”

The need to hold Governments responsible for achieving the Millennium Declaration was also expressed. Discussion Group on ICTs and MDGs

It was proposed that we start a discussion group on the issue of the use of ICTs in development, MDGs, MSPs and the Delhi Declaration as well. It was also suggested that the proposed discussion group needs to consider issues such as the TRIPS agreement – questions of patent, intellectual property rights, and copyright issues. Also we need to look at how the declaration links up with existing programmes and projects for development.

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! Partnerships can be valuable, but would require immense technological they can also be exploitative and and institutional support need to be we need to resist this. supported by global sharing and facilitation and this could be done by 9.2. Key Outcomes institutions and technologies. A need For the delegates, the speeches and was also felt for a strategy of debates at the meeting helped to convergence, bringing together all introduce the acronyms namely CoPs, thematic concerns for meeting MDGs, ICTs and MSPs. The responses that overarching goals. It can be done in the acronyms elicited were both the form of partnerships and appreciative as well as critical. At the collaborations, and through a mix- end of the meeting, most participants and-match of traditional and advanced were aware of the critical nature of the communication technologies. MDGs in the context of the current 9.3 Evaluation of the Meeting global development scenario, and the importance of ICTs , CoPs and MSPs for The ARM 2005 was also enriched by the meeting these goals; many found this feedback received from some of the to be an important area of learning. delegates at the conclusion of the Thus it served to bring people from meeting. The key learnings that the different sectors and from various parts delegates took back with them, suggested of the region together to a common topics for future discussion, and areas for level of understanding about the critical improvement are listed below. issues raised. Key Learnings There was resonance on the urgent need ! It was an opportunity to learn about for all-round sustainable development various knowledge and ICT in the region, and this will be possible initiatives in the country. only with the concerted and cooperative effort of various stakeholders working ! Several instances of creative out- together. Focus of civil society needs of-the-box solutions for combating to be on holding Governments poverty were discussed during the accountable for meeting the various sessions. There is a need to learn international targets that they have from these examples and upscale committed themselves to, including these initiatives if we want to achieve the MDGs, empowering people to the kind of growth envisaged in the access knowledge and use it for MDGs plus. creating better lives. A gender and ! ICTs are the first truly democratic rights framework needs to be central technology, with a revolutionary to all action on the ground. Bottom potential for eradicating poverty up definition of indicators and and for improving education. They monitoring of progress are other tasks will work if they are accessible and that communities and organisations affordable. These questions need to must undertake together. be addressed. We also need to look It was also agreed that there was a need at the content and its application. to build CoPs that would be devised, ! ICTs should be seen as a complete created and managed by local people, range of communication tools both incorporating local knowledge in local traditional and modern, not only as languages. At the same time, these CoPs computers and Internet.

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! IT policy should be flexible so that ! How to build capacities of people better technologies are available at in using new technologies. an affordable price. ! Technical aspects of knowledge ! There is a role for everyone – centres. namely, the Governments, private ! How to make ICTs accessible and sector and civil society - in addressing affordable to women, in particular. development issues, and there is a need for synergies amongst them for Areas for Improvement resolving these issues. Some of the issues raised by the ! Knowledge and information can participants regarding the difficulties enable and empower communities they faced during the meeting or to understand and articulate their recommendations for improvement are Arunachalam Subbiah needs, ideas and to protect their listed below: own interests. ! Gender issues should be put on the ! Participatory approaches centre stage while discussing MDGs. facilitating the generation of All the MDGs are concerned with knowledge by the poor themselves, gender disparities in one way or the will be far more useful than top- other and so there is a need to down approaches of the Universities tackle this aspect explicitly. and research laboratories. ! It was felt that representation of Furthermore, the poor communities grassroots experiences was still very should be seen as partners in the limited. creation of knowledge and not as mere recipients. ! We should be giving priority to problems on the ground, such as ! There is a need to learn from the existing COPs that are doing famine, drought, poverty and not excellent work in their own spaces so much to ICTs. The grassroots need and bring them together to a point food not technology, water not of convergence. computers, livelihood not radio, shelter not IT. ! Technology and tools can enhance the efficiency of CoPs. Online CoPs ! Low or inadequate South Asian will enable wider outreach and focus and more focus on India. therefore, access to more resources. ! It was difficult to understand all Topics for Future Dialogue that was said in English; there was a need for translations in Hindi and ! How to use ICTs, including digital other languages. and traditional media as tools to increase efficiency in development ! Presentations were too rapid and projects. lengthy and it was felt that the content should be less but easily ! How to lobby for investments in understandable. R&D to reduce cost of technologies. ! Additional reading material should ! How to make technologies available have been made available either and accessible, even in remote areas. before or during the meeting, to ! How to demystify new technologies explain some of the concepts and for easy understanding and acronyms used at the meeting – for effective use. example MDGs, CoPs, MSPs, ICTs.

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Steps Ahead development practice – this discussion group could discuss the OWSA along with other NGOs, CSOs and role the youth could play for making individuals can facilitate or support this a difference to the community. process by empowering local communities with knowledge and tools. ! Sharing experiences of new OWSA sees its role in moderating and technologies: We need to keep steering these processes to ensure that experimenting with new ICTs are used as effectively as possible technologies. We also need to to strengthen partnerships in the region ensure that the impact is that are directed towards sustainable measurable, through baseline development. surveys and other monitoring tools. Formation of CoPs This information needs to be shared so that others do not reinvent the It was proposed that we start a wheel. discussion group to look at the following questions: ! Capacity Building and Knowledge Sharing: The key component of ! How do we view the use of ICTs in development? capacity building was identified as the capacity to access knowledge, ! How do we want to look at the and this in turn is linked with the MDGs, whether as common right of access to knowledge, as milestones of progress, or goals to well as attitude change for which civil society can hold empowerment. There is a need to Governments accountable, or goals pool together resources for capacity that we can enhance for the entire building and empowerment of development community to agree local communities, women and upon and meet. disadvantaged people and to enable ! How to define the contours of MSPs them to make informed decisions so that they are benefecial. How do that enhance the quality of their lives. we make sure they are not While the list of areas that need exploitative? attention in this respect is endless, ! The Delhi Declaration – to identify some specific areas that were some crucial problems and the mentioned during the thematic means to solve them. sessions for collective attention were:

It was also suggested that the proposed " To access information discussion group needs to consider about rights and issues such as the TRIPS agreement – entitlements. questions of patent, intellectual property rights, and copyright issues. " To share strategies for Also we need to look at how the ensuring service delivery declaration links up with existing and also for ensuring high programmes and projects for quality of service delivery development.. – this is true for educational institutions, Some delegates expressed the need for health delivery systems, e- forming CoPs in the following areas: governance initiatives, ! Collective knowledge and skills of water and sanitation youth for development: Youth in distribution mechanisms in

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the government, the PDS conditions, and new market and so on. Governments challenges, they need to adapt and service delivery quickly by sharing new ways of organisations need to practicing traditional occupations, ensure transparency and as well as discovering and adapting accountability in all their new trades for livelihood. delivery mechanism. Governance

" Teaching people how to use ! CoPs for development of effective technology for their own monitoring indicators and for benefit creating region-wide mechanisms " Re-orienting communities for evaluation of governance towards strengthening systems. existing knowledge systems ! CoPs to improve service delivery in and practices, enriching governance; e-governance has the and continuing traditions potential to make systems and of value education, services user-friendly, accessible retaining indigenous and transparent; it can help in knowledge, values and making systems deliver faster, at practices and enabling food reasonable quality. security, income security ! CoPs to increase the involvement and social security. of the citizens in governance. ! Dissemination and Communication: Communities involved in One crosscutting concern that came Vishakapatnam initiative is an up in all thematic discussions was example, where ICTs were used to the formation of CoPs for the enhance the transparency and dissemination of knowledge, accountability of government services delivery mechanisms, to resources and technologies. These provide interactive services like CoPs will need to address the central opinion polls, collect revenues and concern of access – reaching out so on. the benefits of new ideas and initiatives to the “last person”. ! CoPs to create channels for information sharing and alliance 9.4 Thematic CoPs building among women in Food Security and Livelihood leadership through forums, dgroups ! Communities need to form CoPs to and networking. fight against injustice and ! CoPs for sharing best practices - this exploitation. This is an excellent includes looking at other national, way of challenging the unethical regional or international practices undertaken by big experiences of governance reform businesses and unscrupulous and adapting them to create models politicians, who are actually that will work in our own situation. impoverishing the world through ! CoPs for sharing resources for excessive marketisation and capacity building of citizens and environmental degradation. panchayat members to improve the ! As communities confront shifting quality and efficacy of local ecological balances, environmental governance institutions.

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! CoPs to determine affordable and " Capacity building and effective technologies for ensuring empowerment of teachers universal access. Unless ICTs reach and trainers, the villages, the digital divide will not lessen. The most disadvantaged " Inclusion of teachers in the will continue to have the lowest process of educational levels of access to technologies and reforms. more importantly, to the benefits " Enhancing women’s access that they bring. to education, skill building, training and empowerment. ! CoPs to monitor the progress in bringing people and technology " Ensuring the relevance of together and using ICTs for education and training to governance. real life situations and to Combating Epidemics livelihoods. " The problem in managing ! CoPs are needed for opening up the channels of communication around quality education lies partly diseases. The greatest issue here is in the numbers, the the stigma around these diseases. geographical dispersal of One way to reduce it is to use a schools and the relative gender and rights framework when isolation in which addressing the issue of HIV/AIDS practitioners operate. ICTs for changing attitudes. This will can be of use in such enable service providers to situations, and CoPs can understand the issues better, and help in bringing together the community to access and successful strategies for the participate in prevention and care same. Participation of local initiatives. cable operators, cyber ! There is need to share innovative cafes, use of public address methods and resources for IEC systems, and mentoring by programmes, surveillance and industry practitioners, are monitoring, treatment and all examples of creative care – around these diseases. solutions that have been Education for All applied in different situations. ! There is need for effective CoPs for sharing experiences about the use Water, Health and Sanitation of new technologies for the purpose ! The basic issue here is of of education. This includes: empowerment, rights, and " Ensuring that initiatives entitlement of the health by Governments and private functionaries as well. Enabling institutions and CSOs, women with information and CBOs, NGOs deliver knowledge systems that break on targets of quality existing patterns of discrimination education and deprivation will help to change " Introduction of new the situation. The male members of technologies such as radio, the household also need to be CD ROMS, satellite addressed to bring about far

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reaching changes at both the ! People in the South Asian region household at community level. need to share knowledge that leads There are several instances of to good health practices. This successful interventions of this includes empowerment so that kind and they need to be upscaled communities adopt a preventive rather than curative approach to throughout the region. health, and can acknowledge and ! There are many local practitioners strengthen indigenous processes of traditional and alternative and practices for holistic well being. forms of healing. Their skills need People need to share information to be upgraded and they need to so that they can actively reverse the be included in the MCH and Family marketisation andcommercialisation of health systems. Welfare programmes so that they join the ranks and become part of South Asian communities need to hold the community that supports Governments accountable for health services. commitments made relating to conservation of the earth’s natural ! CoPs need to be formed by resources and to ensure equitable communities to ensure reduction distribution of water and sanitation in IMR and MMR. facilities.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 76 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005 Launch of the MDG Tune

At the Millennium Summit in September 200l, the states of the UN reaffirmed their commitment to work towards a world in which sustaining development and eliminating poverty would have the highest priority. The MDGs grew out of the agreements of world conferences organised by the United Nations. During its fourth Annual Regional Meeting, 2005, OWSA launched its MDG tune to celebrate a melody that symbolises the essence of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), as interpreted by a grassroots community member and essays the spirit behind its mission of “Voicing the Voiceless”. Kiran Bedi, winner of the Ramon Magsaysay award and Civilian Police Advisor to the United Nations (UN) Department of Peacekeeping Operations and Shankar Ghose, President, Charkha Development Communication Network, released the tune formally. The tune was composed by a member of one of Oneworld’s grassroots partners and was accompanied by a song in Hindi. The composition was rendered during the function and expressed beautifully through a Kathak recital. Farooque Abdullah, former J&K Chief Minister, and Javed Abidi, disabled rights activist, also graced the occasion with their presence. This tune will be used in multiple ways as an instrument for advocacy and awareness, to mobilise various organisations and motivate them to forge powerful CoPs for achieving the MDGs in general and the goals of the communities they represent in particular. In keeping with the spirit of the evening, four grassroots activists from Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Tamilnadu shared their experience at the World Summit on Information Societies International Policy Debate in Geneva in 2005, where they presented a grassroots charter. These women, use varied forms of ICTs – video, phone, wireless, internet and radio in their daily work and through it have successfully changed the lives of people in the communities they work for. These women shared their perspectives and concerns with policy makers, decision makers in governments, civil society groups and the media.

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APPENDIX 1: MLLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goals Targets

1.Eradicate extreme ! Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion poverty and hunger of people whose income is less than $1 a day

! Halve, between l990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger

2. Achieve universal ! Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and primary education girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling

3. Promote gender equality ! Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary and empower women education preferably by 2005 and in all levels of education no later than 2015

4. Reduce child mortality ! Reduce by two-thirds, between l990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate

5. Improve maternal health ! Reduce by three-quarters, between l990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio

6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria ! Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of and other diseases HIV/AIDS

! Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases

7. Ensure environmental ! Integrate the principles of sustainable development into sustainability country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources

! Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water

! Have achieved, by 2020, a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers

8. Develop a global partnership ! Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, for development nondiscriminatory trading and financial system (includes commitment to good governance, development, and poverty reduction)

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 78 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

OneWorld South Asia 4 th Annual Regional Meeting (ARM): Building Communities of Practice (CoPs) for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) March 03-04, 2005, (Venue: India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110003)

Day 1: Thursday, March 3rd 2005

08:30-09:30 Registration of delegates (Outside The Stein Auditorium) 09:30-11.00 Opening Plenary Session (The Stein Auditorium) Overview of OneWorld South Asia and outline of the Meeting by Dr. Basheerhamad Shadrach, Director, OneWorld South Asia; Chairperson’s address: Achieving MDGs through Knowledge Centers: Dr. Ashok Khosla, President, Development Alternatives Group; Special Message from Hon’ble President of India Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam; Inaugural address: Dr. Mohan Dharia, President, Vanarai Foundation; Special Address: Leveraging the power of ICTs for achieving MDGs through partnerships: Ms. Rinalia Abdul Rahim, Executive Director, GKP, Malayasia; Operationalising pro-poor growth through Communities of Practice (CoPs): Mr. Shantanu Mitra – DFID, Senior Economic Advisor; ICTs and disaster management: Lessons from the Tsunami. Mr. Priyantha Kariyaperuma, Advisor to the Hon. P.M. of Sri Lanka; Vote of Thanks: Mr P Jayarajan, Trustee, OneWorld South Asia. 11:00 – 11:20 Tea (Main Lawn,Hub) 11:20-12:45 Plenary Session II: “ICTs for Achieving the MDGs – Global and Regional Experiences” (The Stein Auditorium) Chairperson: Prof. M. Tawfik, Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka; Key Speakers: India as a knowledge super power – role of ICTs: Mr. Pradip Baijal, Chairman, TRAI, GoI; Food Security, ICTs and Communities of Practice: Experiences of FAO in South Asia: Dr. Daniel Gustafson, FAO Representative in India and Bhutan; ICTs for human development in Asia 2004: Mr. Shahid Akhtar, Programme Co-ordinator, UNDP-APDIP; Moderator: Ms Namrata Bali, Trustee, OneWorld South Asia 12:45-14:00 Group photo session followed by lunch (Main Lawn, Hub) 14:00 - 15:15 Parallel Thematic Sessions: Marching Ahead on MDGs Session A Session B Section C Section D Section E (Jacaranda 1) (Jacaranda 2) (Silver Oak 1) (Silver Oak 2) (Maple) Combating Poverty & Educating All for Ensuring Health & Combating epidemics: Governance – key Food Insecurity: social empowerment: improved access to Possible Strategies to transparency Identifying Possible Strategies water and and accelerated Chairperson Opportunities for sanitation for All: development Chairperson Ms. Dora Warren, Livelihoods Possible Strategies Possible Options Mr. S Sen, Dy. Global AIDS Campaign Chairperson Director General, Chairperson Chairperson Ms. Lalitha Kumar Speakers CII, Delhi Dr. J. Bischoff, Mr. P. Jayarajan, Joint Secretary, Dr Ravi Verma, ASEM, GTZ Trustee, OWSA Rural Development, Speakers Programme Associate, GoI Prof. R Govinda Speakers Horizons Population MCIT, GoI NIEPA, New Delhi Dr. Meera Shiva, Council Speakers Speakers: Ms. Lakshmi V. VHAI Dr Bobby John, CEO, Dr. Mruthunjaya Dr. Jayapraksah Venkatesan Dr Jasveen Massive Effort Against Kumar, Director, Narayan, Member, Jairath, South AIDS, TB, malaria and NCAP Founding Trustee, National Advisory Asia Consortium Other diseases of Mr. Sarath BYST Council for Water Studies Poverty Fernando, MONLAR, Mr. Rohit Nepali, Moderator Dr Sudhirendra Ms. Suneeta Dhar, Sri Lanka Executive Director, Ms. Asish Garg, Sharma South Asia Regional Programme SAP International, Moderator World Link Water Expert Coordinator, Nepal Prof. C P Moderator Gender & HIV, Ms. Kamal Singh, Chandrashekhar, Pradip Saha, UNIFEM Head, Governance, JNU, New Delhi Managing Editor, Ms Renu Addlakha, British Council- Down to Earth Fellow, McArthur India Foundation Moderator Moderator Mr. Joseph Dr.J.B.Babbar Phookat, Medical Officer In- Consumer Online charge, Foundation Family Planning Assocn.of India

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15:15-15:45 Tea (Outside respective halls as mentioned above) 15:45-17:45 Plenary session III: “Towards Achieving the MDGs: Emerging Options” (The Stein Auditorium) Summary Presentation of each of the five parallel sessions above, followed by an open house discussion; Special Presentation: Role of UN system towards building CoPs: - Dr Steve Glovinsky, Knowledge Coordinator, UN Systems in India; Chairperson: Dr. V. K. Dharmadhikari, Scientist-G, E – governance group, MCIT, GoI; Speaker: Mr. Basu Dev Neupane, Millennium Campaign/ GCAP Asia Team; Moderator: Dr Steve Glovinsky, Knowledge Coordinator, UN Systems in India 17:45- 21.30 Exhibition by OWSA partners (Hub & Charminar) 19.30-20.00 Millennium Development Goals Theme track (Astangika) Live performance of MDG tune: Jitendra and Group; Guest of Honour: Dr. Kiran Bedi, IPS; Formal release of MDG Theme track: Mr. Shankar Ghosh, President, Charkha Development Communication Network; Grassroots Voices at WSIS international policy debate in Geneva 20.00 –21.30 Reception Dinner (Hub & Charminar) Day 2: Friday, March 4th 2005 10.00-11.00 Plenary session IV: “ Multi-stakeholder -Partnerships for building CoPs on MDGs: Defining the contours within the ICT domain” (The Stein Auditorium) This session would consist of presentations by policy makers, corporate sector representatives and donor agencies Chair: Dr (Ms.) Syeda Hameed, Member-Planning Commission, Government of India Key Speakers: · Mr. Kiran Karnik. President, NASSCOM ! Mr. Manju Hathotuwa, MD & CEO, ICT Agency of Sri Lanka · ! Mr. S. K. Chopra, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Resources· ! Mr.Basudev Ambedkar Moderator: Prof. Subbiah Arunachalam, Chairperson, OneWorld South Asia Trust 11:00-11:30 Tea Main Lawn (Hub) 11.30-12.30 Facilitating CoPs through ICTs: Parallel Thematic Working Groups (WG) 1 WG 1A WG 1B WG 1C WG 1D WG 1E Jacaranda 1 Jacaranda 2 Mangolia Amaltas Maple Food security and ICTs and distance Reducing IMR and Strengthening Promoting e- ICTs learning: MMR: Perspectives surveillance and governance improving quality on ICT-enabled Monitoring of Chairperson of primary health epidemics through Chairperson Dr.U.Srinivasa education management ICTs Dr. N. Vijyaditya, Raghavan Member, DG, NIC Postal Services Chairperson Chairperson Chairperson Board, New Delhi Prof. N J Rao, Dr. K Srinivasan Dr. Reuben del Speakers: IISc, Bangalore Professor Emeritus, Prado, UNAIDS Mr. Sudhir Speaker IIPS, Mumbai Alhuwalia, Head, Mr. Subhash Zadoo, Speaker Speaker: Global Consulting Manager- Mr. Dhir Jhingran Speaker Mr. Athar Haque, Group, Tata Procurement, FCI Director, MHRD, Dr. Lalitendu President, Consultancy M S Rao, ITC e- GoI Jagatdeb, e-Healthcare Services Choupal Dr. John Kurien, Sr. Consultant, Foundation Ms. Dil Piyaratna, Director, Centre Population Dr.Prakash Senior Project Moderator for Learning Foundation of Venjamuri Manager, ICTA, Sri George C. Resources India Lanka Varughese, Vice Moderator: Moderator: Dr. V. Venkata President, DA Moderator Ms. Sukanya Rath Dr. R Sweety Krishnan, Joint Prof. Shyam Ex. Director, Premkumar, Director Menon Proctor, Nasscom Senior Advisor, Panchayati Raj, Univ. of Delhi Foundation OWSA Centre for World Solidarity Moderator Dr. V. K. Dharmadhikari, Scientist-G, E – governance group, MCIT, GoI 12.30-13.30 Lunch (Main Lawn, Hub)

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 80 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

13.30-14.30 Facilitating CoPs through ICTs: Parallel Thematic Working Groups (WG) 2 WG 2A WG 2B WG 2C WG 2D WG 2E Jacaranda 1 Jacaranda 2 Mangolia Amaltas Maple

Improving Promoting gender Role of ICTs in Prevention and care for Enabling women’s Livelihoods: Value equitable skill improving access to affected persons – ICTs representation in addition through ICTs upgradation through water and sanitation for IEC governance institutions ICTs Chairperson Chairperson Chairperson Chairperson Dr. B S Hansra, ADG, Chairperson Mr Ashok Dalwai, Dr. Sunil Mehra, Exec. Dr Ag. Extn, ICAR Ms.Kumud Bansal Secretary to the Director, MAMTA V.Venkatakrishnan, Secretary, Dept. of Govt of Orissa Jt. Director, Centre for Speakers Elementary Speakers World Solidarity (CWS) Dr. J S Sehra, Education, HRD, GoI- Speaker Dr. B Langkham, Director,Sc-E, DIT, (to be confirmed) Mr. Ajay Pradhan, Secretary, HIV/AIDS, Speaker: MCIT MD, DHI Water and Emmanuel Hospital Dr Vishaka Hidellage, Speakers Environment Assoc Country Director, ITDG Mr. S. Senthil Dr. Anita Dr Ramnik Ahuja, South Asia, Sri Lanka Kumaran Associate Gurumurthy, Moderator: Consultant (Health), Ms. Sumita Ghose, Director, MSSRF, IT4Change, Bangalore Jayapadma, CII, Delhi Asian Heritage Chennai Mr. Reza Salim, Ass. Gramavikas Mr. Vincent Victor – Foundation Sunit Shrestha Director, BFES Media Consultant External Affairs Adviser, OWSA Moderator Director, Thai Rural Moderator: Anjali, GTZ Dr. Bidyut Mohanty, Network; Thailand Ms. Namrata Bali Head, Women’s Trustee, OneWorld Moderator Studies, ISS Moderator: South Asia Dr. Anjali Gopalan, Dr. V Balaji , ICRISAT Exec. Director, Naaz Foundation

14.30-15.00 Tea (Main Lawn, Hub) 15.00 -16.00 Plenary session V: “Building the CoPs : Carving the niche for ICTs” (Main Lawn, Hub) Summary Presentation of each of the five sets of Working Groups (WG) above, followed by an open house discussionm, Launch of Ek Duniya Radio Channel - Chairperson, Dr. Basheerhamad Shadrach, Director, OWSA; Moderator : Mr. Edmund Marsden, Minister, Cultural Affairs, British Council - India. 16.00-16.30 Tea (Main Lawn, Hub) 16.30 -17.30 Concluding Plenary Session: “Building CoPs for achieving MDGs: Delhi Declaration 2005” Venue: : (The Stein Auditorium) · ! Delhi Declaration 2005: Building the CoPs : Prof. Subbiah Arunachalam, P. Jayarajan, Namrata Bali, Trustees, OneWorld South Asia.

! Facilitating the implementation of Delhi Declaration 2005- Mr. Edmund Marsden, Minister, Cultural Affairs, British Council- India·

! Vote of Thanks : Dr. Basheerhamad Shadrach, Director, OWSA.

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 81

List of Participants

Shakti Singh Ghimire Tek .Bahadur Gurung Tabitha Naulak HRERLIC, Nepal Idea Action, Nepal Catalysts for Social Action, [email protected] [email protected] A Kala Consultants Ltd’s Social Initiatives, India [email protected] Ujol Sherchan Dikendra Kandel International Centre for Committee for the Promotion of Public Awareness Israr Ayesha Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Nepal and Development Studies (COPPADES), Nepal Civic Awareness Promotion Society, Pakistan Ahmad shakeel [email protected] [email protected] Civic Awareness Promotion Soceity, Pakistan Kishor Pradhan Jahangir Shah [email protected] Panos South Asia, Nepal Nandakumarpur Joykrishnapur Milan Sangha, India [email protected] [email protected] Dinesh Ghimire Inside Nepal Friendship Organization, Nepal Nadia Khalil Wasantha Samarawichkrema [email protected] The News International OneWorld South Asia, Sri Lanka (Newspaper of Jang Groups of Companies), [email protected] Bailochan (Allen) Tuladhar Pakistan Gurunath Thanthati Nepal Language in Information Technology, [email protected] Steering committee High Level commission Glorious Rural Association for community for Information Technology, Nepal Arif Mirza Empowerment (GRACE), India [email protected] Potohar Organization [email protected] for Development Advocacy (PODA), India Rajubhai Gandhi Ghana shyam [email protected] Science for Development, Nepal Shree Accociates, India [email protected] Nilofer Qazi [email protected] School of Advanced International Studies, Vijay Pratap Singh Vibek Raj Johns Hopkins University, USA ekgaon technologies, India Environment Nepal, Nepal [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Fatima Zehra Pushpendra Jaiswal Mahesh Dahal The News International (Jang Group), Pakistan Vasundhara Pragatisheel Bahudhyogi Sumiti, India Society of Environmental Journalists, Nepal [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Anuraddha Edirisinghe Pete Cranston Indra kumar Info share, Sri Lanka OWIL, UK Nepal Water Supply Corporation, Nepal [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Badar Zaman Anupama Sekhar Rabin Aryal Swat Youth Front, Pakistan [Participating in individual capacity], India Inside Nepal Friendship Organization (INFO Nepal) [email protected] Nepal [email protected] Mian Bilal Naqweeb [email protected] Md. Omar Faisal Strengthening Participatory Organisation-SPO, Ranjana Thapa The Daily Ittefaq, Bangladesh Pakistan Nepal Bar Association (NBA), Nepal [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Munish Puri Farooq Azam Malik Dinesh Kumar Pariyar India The Fame International, Pakistan Dalit Welfare Organization, Nepal [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Ratish Rohit Upendra Malla Tara Farhat Anis Basar Sewak Mandal, India Manabiya Shrot Bikas Kendra Nepal The News International, Jang Group of [email protected] (Regional Representative Organization of Publications, Pakistan Satis c’Bhandaru SAP, Nepal) [email protected] The Leprosy Mission Media Centre, India [email protected] Syed Fahad Razvi [email protected] Sanu Babu Silwal Aalians Internatonal, Pakistan Shantanu Dutta SEJ, Nepal [email protected] Emmanuel Hospiral Association, India [email protected] Noor Muhammed [email protected] Hempal Shrestha Pakistan NGO Forum, Pakistan Mridul Chowdhury Ballanet Asia, Nepal [email protected] (1) e-Policy Centre, Development through Access to [email protected] Shahzad Ahmad Network Resources (D.Net) (2) Ministry of Shalini Tripathi IUCNP, Communication and Knowledge Management Planning, Bangladesh Technology and Unit, pakistan [email protected] Trade Information Promotion System (TIPS),Nepal [email protected] Mohammed Arifur Rehman [email protected] Mohammad Shakeel Abro Strengthening Youth Power in Social Action (UPSA), Bangladesh Praaksh Bhattarai Participatory Organisation-SPO, Pakistan [email protected] Youth Action Nepal, Nepal [email protected] Mallik Ayub [email protected] Laiq Zaman Sangkalpa Trust, Bangladesh Bal Krishna Kattel Participatory Endeavours About Community [email protected] Forest Resources Studies and Empowerment (PEACE council), Pakistan Govinda Shil Action Team (Forest Action), Nepal [email protected] The Financial Express/ [email protected] Irum Noreen Third World Media Network, Bangladesh Narayan Praasad Bhusal Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy [email protected] Association of Environment, (PODA), Pakistan Sayeed Ahmad Agriculture and Tourism, Nepal [email protected] Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh [email protected] Ysmin Faisal [email protected] Pradeep Shali Ghimire Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy Kamal Arsalan WSIS Youth Nepal (Youth Action), Nepal (PODA), Pakistan The Daily News Today, Bangladesh [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 82 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

S M Nazer Hossain Tara Soni Jiji Mathew Integrated Social Development Effort(ISDE), Society For Social Development & CCN, India Bangladesh Management, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Weddikkara Kankanamge Rathnadeera Reza salim Daniel J.P. South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme BFES-Bangladesh, Bangladesh IMME, India (SACEP), Sri Lanka [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Ahmed Swapan Mahmud Manorama Singh Pankaj K S ‘Pushkar’ VOICE- Voices for Interactive Choice & Berojgar Mahila Seva Samiti, India Directorate of Higher Education (Uttaranchal), Empowerment, Bangladesh [email protected] India [email protected] Wesley Khandavalli [email protected] Mohammed Shamsul Alam Akhil Bhartiya Manav Chetna Kala Sansthan Shamsudeen Abdul Rahim (S.A.Rahim) President’s Office, (ABMCKS), India PEN INDIA ( Participatory Employment Net India), People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Bangladesh [email protected] India [email protected] [email protected], Sandeep Tandon Riaz Ahmed Menon Pankaj Rishi Kumar S.m.s. Mahila Vikash Sansthan, India Aasthan Latif Welfare Soceity, Pakistan Umar Talkies, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Nishant Behar Bhawani Shanker Siddhartha Dave Bodh Institute of Research and Development, india Gram bharati Samiti (GBS), India UN Development Prgogramme (UNDP), [email protected] 55, Lodi Esate, N Delhi - 03, India [email protected] Rahul Masih [email protected] Ashok Kumar Paikaray SAVE (Sacred Affinity To Valuable Ethics), india M.Nahas [email protected] Mahavir Yubak Sangh, India C-IT, Centre for It Sevices, India [email protected] [email protected] Prabhu Kumar Vimala Shakti Pratisthan, India L. Ramakrishnan Rashmi Gopal [email protected] SAATHII:solidarity and The Energy and Resources Insitute, India Action Against the HIV Infection in India, India Jaswinder Singh Sandha [email protected] [email protected] Jagriti e-Sewa, India Sanjay Sangvai [email protected] Jayesh Shah Foundation For Humanisation, india National Alliance of People’ s Movements, Maitrayee Mukerji [email protected] Narmada Bachao Andolan, India Institute Or Rural Management, Anand [email protected] (IRMA), India Nihar Ranjan Mishra P.Sonai Muthu [email protected] International Institute for Population Sciences, Social Awareness and Dr V. Venkatakrishnan Mumbai, india Development Organization for Women-SAADOW, Centre for World Sokidarity (CWS), India [email protected] India [email protected] Dhirendra kumar Mohanty [email protected] Gautam Ghosh Jyotirmoyee Mahila Samiti/ Gopal Chandra Mahapatra Bikash Bharati Welfare Society, india Youth Empowerment and Prepare, India [email protected] Social Action Net Work, Orissa, India [email protected] [email protected] Gurunath Thanthati Devika Biswas Glorious Rural Association for Dr. Sunil Gupta Bihar Voluntary Health Association. Community Empowerment (GRACE), India Institute for Lutegrated society Development, India [email protected] [email protected]’ [email protected] India Dhiren Deka Digambar Narzary Anajli Sharma Center For Development Action & Nedan Foundation, India Prayas, India Appropriate Technology (CADAT), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Pauzagin Tonsing Arindam Basu Dinesh Pandya Siamsinpawlpi (SSPP), India Vikahar Paribar Bikash Kendra (VPBK), India Jk Corp Limited, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Rahul Jain Dr. Vinay Das Shamsudeen Abdul Rahim National Informatics Centre, India Samadhan, India PEN INDIA, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Rathinam Arul Noojilla Srinivas Jayapadma R.V Pasumai Thaayagam (Green Mother Land), India Information Technology & Communications Deptt., Gram Vikas, India [email protected] Andhra Pradesh Secretariat, India [email protected] Chitra pathak [email protected] AshiqueAli Khan Directorate of Extension, Upasana Behar Common Care Centre, India GB Pant Univ. of Agri. And Dalit Verg Mahila Vikas Samiti (DVMVS), INDIA [email protected] Tech., Working Office:KVK Majhera, India [email protected] [email protected] Sachindananda Satapathy Ramamoorthy Sivakumar Institute for Social and Economic Change, Sonali Jain Department of Remote Sensing & Geo-informatics, Nagarabhavi, Bangalore, India Foundation For Humanisation, India India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Dr. Laxmi Rahamathullah K.P. Chandrashekhar Shatabdi Subodh Pande Family Health And Institute of business Management &Technology, Mahila Manch Chhattisgarh, India Development Reasearch Service Foundation, India India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Anshuman Verdhan Dr.Vinay Das Anil Pansari Samvedna society for the people, India Samadhan, India Naveengram Agrotechnologies Pvt. Ltd., India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 83

Ranjan K Baruah Rajendra Meher Kaushik Basu North East Progressive Yourth Forum, India Youth Council for Development Alternatives-YCDA, Indian Soceity of Agrbusinees Professionals, India [email protected] India [email protected] [email protected] Shakti Shali Ghimire Rama Roini S arvepalli HRERLIC, Nepal Dr. Chandra Mohan B Indian Society Agribusiess Professionals, India [email protected] Government of Tamil Nadu, India [email protected] [email protected], Biswajet Roy Suresh Kulkarni ACHIEVERS (Advoeacy Centre for Health, Kalpana Chaudhari Centre for Media Studies, India Ideal Envirnment Education, Rassesal & Social Institute For Sustainable Development And [email protected] Research (ISDR), India Justice, INDIA Mamta Srivastava [email protected] [email protected] Indian Society of Agribusiness Professionals, India Kumar Raja Settibathula Sushil Kumar [email protected] Institute Of Human Behaviour And Allied Scient Glorious Rural Association for Hilmi Quraishi (IHBAS), India Community Empowerment (egace) ngo, India ZMQ Software Systems, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Deepak Singh Subhi Quraishi Arpita Kundu IRAM, India ZMQ Software Systems, India Vidyasagar School Work, [email protected] Vidyasagar University, India [email protected] M Padhi [email protected] Madhulekha Bhattacharya Muneer Social Welfare, India National Institute Of Health Family, India Swajita Manorams, Bharati govande [email protected] Marathmoli, Maharastra Women’s Net, India [email protected] M padhi [email protected] Fr. Baby Thomas Muneer Social Welfare, India CEVA (NRO), India Madhu Basu [email protected] [email protected] Economic Rural Development Society (ERDS), India Manimala [email protected] Dr. Suresh.k Kishanrao Books for change, India UNICEF India Country office, India [email protected] Anand Bhole [email protected] Institute For Sustainable Development And Ajit Kumar Ajay Kapur Research (ISDR), India Radiance Media, India Oracle India Private Limited, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Lalit Chaudhary Mr. Dino l Touthang, Mr. Salathiel R Nalli Ms. Nandini Sahai Institute For Sustainable Development And EFICOR (Evangelical Fellowship of India AMIC- INDIA, India Research (ISDR), India Cimmisission on Relief, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Arabinda Laskar Satish Bhandaru ARUNA DEVI INDUKURI the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India The Leprosy Mission Media Centre, India AWARD (Association for Welfare and [email protected] Comprehensive Rural Development), India [email protected] Vidya Viswanathan [email protected] Amrita Dutta Civil Society Magazine, India Independent, India J.V [email protected] ‘Vass’, India [email protected] Jay Sehgal [email protected] Ravi Kumar Verma Sehgal Foundation, India Population Council, India Mr.dominic [email protected] [email protected] Basumatary Centre For Youth & Dr. Paramita Sudhosto Rural Development, India Ravi Kumar verma World Health Organization, India [email protected] Population Associate, India [email protected] [email protected] Thangam Bheemireddy Ambica Dwivedi Uzzwal Madhab World Saviour Ministries Wrlfare Society Educational Consultants India Ltd (A government Butterflies, India (WSMWS), India of India Enterprise), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Dilip Surkar Evageline Dutta Praveen Nair Nehru Foundation For Development Christian Medical Association of India, India Salaam Baalak Trust, India (NFD), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Reena Mathai Luke Ravi Kant Piyoo Kochar Christian Medical Association of India, India Shakti Vahini, India IT for Change, Bangalore, India [email protected] [email protected], [email protected] Balasaheb Dhame Shankar chowdhury Ranga Babu CARD, India UNESCO, India Award, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Sajan Venniyoor Rakesh Kumar Arunima Sehgal Prasar Bharati (Air & Dd), Cr-india Arogyam Centre For Health and Development, India PRIA, Society for Prticipatory Research in Aisa, (Community Radio Network), India [email protected] India [email protected] Amelia Andrews [email protected] Jayachadran Vasudevan National Council f Churches of India, India Ashish Patel UNICEF, India [email protected] Civil Engineering Department, [email protected] Alay Barah Nirma University of Science and Technology, India Bhaswati Das American India foundation (AIF), India [email protected] Centre for Media Studies-social, India [email protected] [email protected] Mamatarani Pattanaik Rajeev Dwivedi Dept.of Public Administration, Utkal University, Dharm Anand Department of management Studies, Indian India SAKSHI, India Institute of Technology Delhi, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 84 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Smt Smita Chugh Sanjeeve Vasudev Ashish Garg Govt. of Jharkhand, New Delhi, India STADD Development Consulting Pvt.Ltd., india World Links, USA [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Ranjana Subberwal Praveen nair Sudha chauhan Concerned Action Now, India Salaam Baalak Trust, India ICMR, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Anil Kumar V.S. Sridhar Dr. V.S.R. Krishnaiah Institute of Human behaviour and Allied Sciences, Catholic Relief Services, India National Informatic Centre, India Dilshad Garden, Shahdara Delhi-110095, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Rajiv Tandon Jayalakshmi Chittoor P Shankar chowdhury USAID/INDIA, India CSDMS, India NESCO, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Dr. Jauhari Lal Priyank Gupta PETROTECH, India Moon Dutt Oxfam Community Aid Abroad, Oiyp 2004, India [email protected] National Foundation For India, India [email protected] [email protected] Mr. Itin Gachhayat OM Prakash Dewal Drishtee Foundation, India Danny Geevarghese Indira Gandhi National Open University [email protected] Panos South Asia, India [email protected], India Ms.Savita Kaul [email protected] Apurva Narain Drishtee foundation, India Agragamee, India [email protected] [email protected] Ram Kishore Gupta Ms. Madhavi Kotwal samson Institute For Research In Medical Statistics, ICMR, ABHAS-Action Beyond help and Support, India Arabinda Laskar India abhasindindia The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India [email protected] Melvin Vernie Clive [email protected] Ms.Savita Kaul Aradhana Society, India Dr. D.C. MISRA Drishtee Foundation [email protected] Indian Society of E - Governance, India [email protected], India Upasana Choudhry [email protected] Ravi Kant Toxics Link, India Bijulal M.V Shakti Vahini, India [email protected] Indian Social Institute, New delhi, India shaktivahini2yahoo.co.in Mala Bhandari [email protected] Social and Development Research and Arvind Mathur Vaibhav Gupta Action Group (SADRAG), India World Health Organisation, India, India Observer Research Foundation (ORF), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Himanshu Jha Supriya Deshpande Birendra Sunaa The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), india National Social Watch coalition, India nationalsocialwatch2yahoo.co.in Center for the Study Social System / [email protected] School of Social Science, JNU, New Delhi, India Bisheshwar Mishra gopal krishna [email protected] Association of voluatary agencies for rural Toxics Link, India [email protected] partha Pratim Sarker development (AWARD), India Bytes for all, India [email protected] Tsering Yangchen [email protected] Neha patel Strategic Alliance of Organisation (SAO), India [email protected] Vikas Kanungo Talking About Reproductive and Sexual Health the society for Promotion of e-governance, India Issues (TARSHI) Ramit Basu [email protected] The South and Southest Asia Resource centre on National Social Watch Coalition, India Sexuality, India [email protected] Rakesh Khanna Tarahat Information Marketing Services Ltd., India [email protected] Asha Sharma rkhanna2tarahaat.com Sanjeev Narula Prerna, India Rural Management Consultants, India Preeti Anand Dhirendra krishana [email protected] Janani, India Industrial management Academy [email protected] Dr. Ajay Gupta [email protected] Rural Management Consultants, India Moushumi ghosh roy Syed Tairq Ahmad [email protected] Independent, India Indian Institute Of Human Rights, India Bhawna Chawla [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Janani, India Rohit Magotra [email protected] ekgaon technologies, India Deepak Sharma Apurva Narain [email protected] Panchatatva Probodhan Trust, India Agragamee, India satyamurti venkataraman [email protected] [email protected] aiamed, India Raj Bhakther solomon ambika Sharma [email protected] Development Promotion Group (DPG) Winrock Internation India, India Arun Seth [email protected] [email protected] BT India Pvt.Ltd, India Bala Krishna Moorthy Vandana Dhingra [email protected] People’s Action For Social Service-pass, India Breastfeeding Promotion Network Of India, India Asha Sharma [email protected] [email protected] presama, India Dr. Motilal Dash Amit Kumar Shubhranshu Choudhary Birla Institute Of Technology & Scheince Aident Social Wrlfare Organisation, India Chhattisgarh-Net, India (BITS) Pilani, India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Prabhjot Sodhi Ramesh Shriram Aggarwal Karna Ram Poonar Centre for Environment Education, India All India Radio, India Urmul Ssetu Sansthan, Lunkaransar [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals 85

Rath Satya Bhusan Hakim Manjhi Abul Hossain Rana READ foundation, India Disha Foundation, India Coastal Development Partnership (CDP), [email protected] [email protected] Bangladesh [email protected] Dr. Saraswathi Sankaran vinay Nangia Deepam Educational Society For Health IIT Roorkee, India Md. Riaz Uddin Khan (DESH), India [email protected] ESTUARY (Environmentally Sustainbale [email protected] Brajesh Sinha Technologies for K G Rajamohan & P Pakkialatchoumy Shikshit rojgar Kendra Prabandhak Samiti (SRKPS), Unclassified Aquatic resources & Yield ), M S Saminathan Research foundation, India India Bangladesh [email protected] [email protected] Aruna Sewa academy Anjali Jain Md. Sydur Rahman Molla [email protected] GTZ Basic Health Project, Himachal Pradesh, India Transparency International, Bangladesh [email protected] [email protected] Pratima R.L.E.K, India Tabitha Naulak Mahmud Hasan [email protected] Catalysts for Social Action, D.NET (Development through Access to network a Kale Consultants ltd. Social Initiavtive, India Resources) Digambar Narzary [email protected] [email protected] Nedan Foundation, India [email protected] Shailesh dhyani Md. Abul Kalam Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra Amader Gram ICT4D Project, BFES, Bangladesh Pakkialatchoumy P [email protected] [email protected] MS Swaminathan research foundation, India [email protected] Sivasubramaniyan Alagesan Nova Sarker Centre For Rural Education And Development Rajamohan KG South Asia enterprise Development facility, (CRED), India MS Swaminathan Research foundation, India World Bank Group, Bangladesh [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Anuurag Jain Arun Jindal Afzal Shah Society for Sustainable development, India Institute Of Integrated Development Through Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy [email protected] Training & Research (IIDTR) (PODA) [email protected] [email protected] N.J. Rao Department of Management Studies, India Avanti Shirpurkar Dr. Anupam K Singh [email protected] Youth for Unity and voluntary Action Civil Engineering Department, [email protected] Nirma University of Science and Technology, India Ranjan Mohanty [email protected] People’s Cultural Centre (PECUC), India sunil Kaul [email protected] The ant (the action northeast trust), India Mhasku Kondhalkar [email protected] Action For Agricultural Renewal In Maharastra Prakash Vinjamuri (AFARM), India Life-Health Reinforcement Group, India Arunendra Pandey [email protected] [email protected] Arz, India [email protected] Subbarayudu J.V Senthilkumar Manivasagam ‘VASS’ (VIvekananda Abyudaya Seva Samithi), India Adhiparasakthi Agricultural College, G.B. Nagar, Maneesha Sharma [email protected] Kalavai, India Sankalp Sanskritik Samiti, India [email protected] [email protected] Madhusmit Pati Jasveen Jairath Bhushan Ambadkar NASSCOM Foundation, India Saci WATERS, India Watershed Technology And [email protected] [email protected] Management Institutte, India Bilal Aziz [email protected] Kamlesh Pandey Bunyad Literacy Community Council, Pakistan Bastar Sewak Mandal, India Selvakumar Nagamiah [email protected] Tuberculosis Research Centre (ICMR), India [email protected] Harinda Ranura [email protected] Mahendra Parida Prime Ministers Office, University of Colombo, Sri C.C.W.D, India Shamanthaka mani Lanka [email protected] Saarthi-a Resource Center [email protected] for communication, India Dr. Saraswathi Sankaran Rinalia Abdul Rahim [email protected] Deepam Educational Society For Health Global Knowledge Partnership Secretariat, (DESH), India Vadivelan Palaniappan Malaysia [email protected] Centre for Ecology and Research & MSSRF [email protected] CHENNAI, India Nanasaheb Jadhav Kwan Liow [email protected] Watershed Technology And Global Knowledge Partnership Secretariat, Management Institute, India Manjit Singh Malaysia [email protected] Abedkar Centre, Panjab University Chandigarh, [email protected] India Chittaranjan Hota Charitha Herath [email protected] Manav Adikar Seva Samiti (MASS), India University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka [email protected] Mr. Pius Anthony [email protected] Don Bosco Institute, India Sanjeev Mehla Sunil Liyanage [email protected] Society for Participatory Research through SEEDS, Sri Lanka Education Mirza Khaled [email protected] and Development (spread), India Sangkalpa Trust, Bangladesh Dil Piyaratna [email protected] [email protected] ICTA, Sri Lanka Smita sharma Ashraf Alam [email protected] Shikshit Rojgar Kendra Prabandhak samiti (SRKPS), Coastal Development Partnership (CDP), Udara Soysa India Bangladesh WSIS Youth South Asia, Sri Lanka [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals Fourth 86 Annual Regional Meeting March 3-4, 2005

Nux Xuan Le Sindhu Nambiath Ranjeeta Buti IT Center- VnCES-TCVN 154-VietPRO, Vietnam Centre for Media Studies-Social, India TERI(The Energy and Resources Institute), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Kaveri Dutt Rajiv Tandon Vishwajeet Ringe Human & Environmental Rights Forum, Malaysia Adayana, USA [email protected] National Informatics Centre(NIC), Health [email protected] Informatics Division, India Punyavana Vishaka Hidellage Ganga Prasad [email protected] Intermediate Technology Development Group ICT Research & Training Centre, (ITDG-South Asia), Sri Lanka CDAC Bangalore, India Ms. Charu Anand [email protected] [email protected] CASP-Plan, Delhi, India Padma Ratnayake [email protected] Asmita M J South Asia Partnership, Sri Lanka ICT Research & Training Centre, CDAC Bangalore, [email protected] Romesh Subramanian India AUS AID, Austraian High Commission, India Hilmy Ahamed [email protected] [email protected] Young Asia Television, Sri Lanka Tony J [email protected] ICT Research & Training Centre, Rumi Mallick Dr. Philip K F Hui CDAC Bangalore, India Center For Science, Development And Media Living Knowledge Communities [email protected] Studies (CSDMS), India [LiKeCom in short], Hong Kong SAR, CHINA [email protected] Mr Jyoti Sanker Mohanty [email protected] People’s Cultural Centre [PECUC], India Pooja Bagga T Buddhika A N Indatissa [email protected] Financial Management Service Foundation, India Energy Forum, Sri Lanka Kavita Upadhyaya [email protected] [email protected] Sewadham (Ujjaini Senor Citizen’s Forum Ujjain), Sebastian. K.S Abhishek Nath India TERI, India [email protected] IPPF, India [email protected] [email protected] Satyen Chaturvedi Archana Sinha ECAT BODHGRAM, India Yogesh Grover Indian Social Institute, India [email protected] The Daybreak, India [email protected] Arindam Das [email protected] Vivek Masih Sting Broadband, India Jayesh Bhatia Diocese of Delhi, India [email protected] [email protected] NR Internetional, India Jitendra Kumar [email protected] Ms. Nimisha Gupta Shiv Shiksha Samiti, India Sting Broadband, India [email protected] Anuradha Sen Mookerjee [email protected] UNDP, India Arun Tandon Rahul Bhimjiani ADHAAR, India [email protected] SOS - Small Organisation Support, India [email protected] Aradhana Yadav [email protected] Dr. Oommen John Indian Social Institute, India Farah Latif Malik The Leprosy Mission Trust India, India [email protected] Insan Foundation Pakistan, Pakistan [email protected] [email protected] Saroj Turker Shree Venkatram Hope Project, India Gautam Ghosh Unnati Features, India [email protected] Bikash Bharti Welfare Society, India [email protected] [email protected] Sushil Kumar Umakant Mishra Ambreen Waheed Institute Of Human Behaviour Action of Students and Youth for Awareness and Responsible Business Initiative, Pakistan And Allied Sciences (IHBAS), India Development (ASYAD), India [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Building Communities of Practice for achieving the Millennium Development Goals