(Acacia): the Case of Uganda
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
FINAL REPORT INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR DEVELOPMENT (ACACIA): THE CASE OF UGANDA DATE: JANUARY 2003 PREPARED FOR: THE IDRC EVALUATION UNIT AUTHOR: DR ZM OFIR, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, EVALNET, PO BOX 41829, CRAIGHALL 2024, SOUTH AFRICA (F) CONTRACT NUMBER: 10714 PROJECTS INCLUDED: The Acacia National Secretariat for Uganda (Project number 055475) The Development of an Integrated Information and Communication Policy for Uganda (Project number 100572) Policy and Strategies for Rural Communications Development in Uganda (Project number 100577) The Development of Operational Guidelines for the Uganda Rural Communications Development Fund (Project number 101134) CONTENT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...................................................................................................................................................................4 GLOSSARY OF ABBREVIATIONS ..................................................................................................................................................7 PREAMBLE: Some Key Events that shaped the Development of ICTs in Uganda ......................................................................8 Chapter I APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY...........................................................................................................................11 I.1 Introduction: The Study............................................................................................................ 11 I.2 The Consultant .......................................................................................................................... 12 I.3 Project Selection ....................................................................................................................... 12 I.4 Methodology ............................................................................................................................. 13 I.5 Types of Policy Influence .......................................................................................................... 16 Chapter II THE ICT POLICY ARENA IN UGANDA ...................................................................................................................18 II.1 Uganda in Brief ......................................................................................................................... 18 II.2 Factors that encouraged the “Policy Window” ......................................................................... 19 II.3 The Ugandan ICT Policy Community......................................................................................... 32 Chapter III Project 1: THE ACACIA NATIONAL SECRETARIAT...........................................................................................33 III.1 The Acacia Program .................................................................................................................. 33 III.2 Acacia in Uganda....................................................................................................................... 35 III.3 The Acacia National Secretariat ................................................................................................ 36 III.4 The Policy Intent....................................................................................................................... 37 III.5 The Policy Influence.................................................................................................................. 39 Chapter IV Project 2: THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION POLICY ...............................................................................................................................................................................................46 IV.1 The Project................................................................................................................................46 IV.2 The Policy Intent....................................................................................................................... 47 IV.3 The Policy Influence.................................................................................................................. 48 IV.3 Other Results of the Project...................................................................................................... 52 Chapter V Project 3: POLICY AND STRATEGIES FOR RURAL COMMUNICATIONS DEVELOPMENT ......................54 V.1 The Project................................................................................................................................54 V.2 The Policy Intent....................................................................................................................... 56 V.3 The Policy Influence.................................................................................................................. 57 Chapter VI Project 4: THE DEVELOPMENT OF OPERATIONAL GUIDELINES FOR THE RURAL COMMUNICATIONS DEVELOPMENT FUND ............................................................................................................................61 VI.1 The Project................................................................................................................................61 VI.2 The Policy Intent....................................................................................................................... 61 VI.3 The Policy Influence.................................................................................................................. 63 Chapter VII SYNTHESIS OF THE POLICY ROLE OF ACACIA IN UGANDA ......................................................................64 VII.1 The Acacia Design ..................................................................................................................... 64 VII.1.1 Comments on the IDRC Inputs and Initiatives ................................................................................... 65 VII.1.2 The Policy Influence Mechanisms...................................................................................................... 66 VII.3 The Actual Policy Influence of the IDRC ................................................................................... 72 VII.4 Factors that Facilitated Opportunities for Policy Influence ...................................................... 78 VII.5 Barriers to Policy Influence....................................................................................................... 79 Chapter VIII POLICY AND THE GENDER DIMENSIONS OF ACACIA ................................................................................80 VIII.1 The Context............................................................................................................................... 80 VIII.1.1 Developments in Africa .................................................................................................................... 80 VIII.1.2 Gender in Uganda............................................................................................................................ 82 VIII.2 Policy and Gender in Acacia ...................................................................................................... 85 VIII.3 The Acacia Projects ................................................................................................................... 86 VIII.3.1 The Acacia National Secretariat ........................................................................................................ 86 UGANDA VIII.3.2 The Development of a National ICT Policy......................................................................................... 89 VIII.3.3 Policy and Strategies for Rural Communications Development in Uganda ............................................ 91 VIII.3.4 The Development of Operational Guidelines for the Uganda Rural Communications Development Fund 93 VIII.4 In summary............................................................................................................................... 93 ADDENDUM 1: Extract from Terms of Reference .................................................................................... 95 ADDENDUM 2: Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 100 ADDENDUM 3: Key Informants.............................................................................................................. 105 ADDENDUM 4: Project Tombstone Data................................................................................................ 109 ------------------------------------------- Final Report for the IDRC: Contract No. 10741 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Uganda is one of the poorest countries in the world. In 1986 it emerged from two decades of turmoil and trauma under various destructive political regimes. After coming to power in 1986 the government of President Yoweri Museveni immediately embarked on a series of macroeconomic and social reforms aimed at stabilizing the country and initiating development across all sectors of the economy. Between 1990 and 2000 Uganda’s real GDP growth averaged nearly 7% per year. Privatization of state-owned entities and trade liberalization encouraged the growth of information and communications technologies (ICTs), especially during the late nineties. In this environment a variety of policy initiatives related to ICTs started to emerge, facilitated by the following: The strong commitment of the government and the people of Uganda to the development and modernization