Experiences of the Rural Poor in Bolivia

Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Development as Freedom in a Digital Age Development as Freedom in a Digital Age Experiences of the Rural Poor in Bolivia by Björn-Sören Gigler © 2015 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000; Internet: www.worldbank.org Some rights reserved 1 2 3 4 18 17 16 15 This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The fi ndings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily refl ect the views of The World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. 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Interior photos by the author. Used with permission. Further permission is required for re-use. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been requested Endorsements Praise for Development as Freedom in a Digital Age: Experiences of the Rural Poor in Bolivia “In his fi rst-class study, Gigler provides strong counter-point to a persistent poison: That ICT and development scholarship is all too often atheoretical, methodologically unsound, and marginalizes people by putting all the focus on technology. Gigler fi rst makes an important theoretical contribution by taking the capability approach of Amartya Sen and purpose-adapting it to position humans at the center of their information ecology. Then through a series of remarkably comprehensive survey and focus group studies, he establishes the social, cultural, economic, and informational contexts of the indigenous com- munities of Bolivia he is working with. The results of this theoretically sound and methodologically rich effort is a fulsome collection of results nuancing many qualities of ICT use: How social context does matter, what role do info- mediaries play, how does access progress to use, and more.” MICHAEL L. BEST Director, United Nations University Computing and Society “Gigler’s in-depth study is the perfect antidote to the misleading notion of technology as a silver bullet for development. His rigorous analysis of exten- sive primary data demonstrates that technology access improves people’s lives not by replacing existing information channels and community resources, but rather by building on and amplifying them—and illuminates the fascinating v vi Development as Freedom in a Digital Age mechanisms by which this occurs. In the literature on ICT for development, this book is a true tour de force.” MARK WARSCHAUER Professor of Education and Informatics Associate Dean, School of Education University of California, Irvine “Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) have changed our lives and they will continue to change our world over the coming years. While ICTs have had a huge impact in wealthy countries they are also tremendously signifi cant in poorer, developing countries. This study provides a careful and in-depth analysis of the effects of ICTs on poor and marginalized people in Bolivia. ICTs appear to promise much as a route to poverty alleviation, but this study provides a balanced assessment of what impacts it can have. Using a notion of “informational capabilities” it concludes that ICTs can have positive impacts on the well-being of poorer people but it highlights that whether and how it does so depends on the role played by various intermediaries in the ICT chain. This excellent study provides a methodological benchmark for how we might assess the contribution of ICTs to the global effort to reduce poverty, inequality, and vulnerability.” J. ALLISTER MCGREGOR Professor, Institute of Development Studies, Sussex “This book creatively applies Sen’s capability framework to assess the effects of information technologies in human development. Gigler’s approach is original, focusing on the key role played by intermediary organizations, which sit between the technological innovations themselves and their use on the ground. He relies on an extraordinary amount of original data, collected via surveys and focus groups, to study the effects of intermediary organizations, and thus understand the conditions under which the spread of information and communication technologies can enhance people’s informational capabilities and contribute to social development. The book is a must-read for scholars and students of ICTs and development.” KEN SHADLEN Professor in Development Studies Department of International Development London School of Economics “Sorting out the role of digital information and communication in international development has been a diffi cult task for scholars and development practitioners amid facile and false predictions about the power of ICT. Dr. Gigler’s closely observed and richly theorized examination of ICT use in Bolivia advances our knowledge of the ways in which “informational capabilities” can be gained even by the poorest of the poor to increase their social Endorsements vii and economic well-being. Drawing from and extending Sen’s capability framework, systematic analysis of a mountain of carefully drawn empirical data and an understanding of intermediate organizations and infl uences, Gigler charts a realistic yet promising path for ICT development projects and research. Highly recommended for anyone serious about international development in the digital age.” JANE FOUNTAIN Distinguished Professor Director, National Center for Digital Government University of Massachusetts, Amherst “Dr. Gigler tackles one of the biggest misconceptions in Information and Communication Technology for Development—that access equals empower- ment. As one of the leading scholars of Sen and the “capabilities approach,” Gigler deconstructs technology for development projects into information fl ows and needs, capturing the power relations and politics inherent in any initiative. Through the Alternative Evaluation Framework, Gigler addresses the insuffi ciency of more commonly employed models and suggests a more- complete treatment of human capability. He adds “information capital” to his six dimensions of human capabilities, updating traditional sustainable livelihood frameworks to recognize information as a critical asset for those in poverty. By calling for explorations of access, communication, indigenous knowledge, and digital literacy, Gigler provides a mechanism for capturing more meaningful metrics and creating more thoughtful interventions in order to actually determine how well we are closing the so-called digital divide.” REVI STERLING Director, ICTD Graduate Studies ATLAS Institute University of Colorado, Boulder “Björn-Sören Gigler’s fascinating

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