Global travellers on the digital dirt road: international mobility, networks and ICT diffusion in Ghana Linnet Taylor Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Sussex September 2012 2 I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be, submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree. Signature 3 UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX Linnet Taylor Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Global travellers on the digital dirt road: international mobility, networks and ICT diffusion in Ghana This thesis focuses on the intersection of human mobility and technology diffusion in Africa. With Ghana as a case study, it looks at how the diffusion of internet access and use are influenced by international mobility. The research is based in the literature on the diffusion of innovations, international knowledge transmission, migration and development, and Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D). It begins from the hypothesis that international mobility may contribute to lowering barriers to internet penetration in developing countries by facilitating flows of resources, including equipment, finance, skills and knowledge. The research is based on four different datasets: a survey of the internet cafes in the North of Ghana and in Accra; an online survey of users in northern internet cafes; a network study incorporating internet cafe owners and managers in higher-value-added areas of the IT sector, and in-depth interviews with policymakers and donor organisations involved in ICT4D interventions. The data was analysed using a combination of fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and network analytic techniques including visualisation, statistical analysis and qualitative analysis. The findings show that international mobility makes an important contribution to the base of adoption capacity for new technologies in poor and remote regions. It enables entrepreneurs and IT workers to address market gaps that restrict access to material and financial resources; by providing access to international circuits of knowledge and ideas which help individuals gain a foothold in the IT sector, and by facilitating local private-sector provision of the internet through internet cafes which serve the hardest-to-reach populations. The thesis concludes by suggesting potential entry points for ICT4D and migration policy in developing countries regarding the efficiency and effectiveness of ICT4D interventions, the role of the private sector in promoting internet usership, and the role of mobility in building adoption capacity in low-income areas. 4 Acknowledgements This thesis could not have been written without the help and support of a group who deserve my everlasting gratitude. First my two main supervisors, Richard Black and Rachel Sabates-Wheeler, for their support, insight, kindness and patience during a four-year journey that has taken several unexpected turns. They have been generous and demanding in equal measures, and I have been extremely lucky to work with them both. Thanks also to Allister McGregor who stepped in at the last minute and provided valuable feedback and insights. My thanks also to those in Ghana who helped me produce this research. Abdul-Latif Issah, a brilliant, brave and dedicated research assistant, set me the ultimate example of takashi . Without him I would have been lost. Ken Kubuga, Karl Kubuga, John Paul Tanye, Vitus Achagituni, and Kobby Dadzie provided me with guidance, insights and practical help in the research. Without Doris Acharibia I would have never ridden a motorbike through the middle of Bolgatanga market, and without Cesare Poppi I would not have ridden one around Wa with malaria. In Accra, Kwaku Ofosu Appea, Herman Chinery-Hesse and, of course, Auntie are good friends who went to great lengths to help me find both interviewees and my footing. For help and feedback I am indebted to Andres Mejía-Acosta, Jamie Goodwin-White, Ismael Rafols, Benoît Rihoux, Oliver Bakewell and participants at the 2011 workshop run by Jon Kvist and Patrick Emmenegger on QCA methodologies. I would not have reached this point without Terry Buckley, who taught me the value of evidence, and how to seek the individual processes involved in historic changes, one action at a time. His understanding of the democracy of good scholarship has always informed my search for the right questions. My gratitude also to my fellow DPhils at Sussex and IDS, with special thanks to Hannah, Christina, Inês, Fran, Siobhán and Thea. Finally, I thank my family. My parents, Elwyn and Simon, for their unwavering support and love, and also my new Dutch family, who have been kind and generous in welcoming me to a new country. Last of all Dennis and Olivia, who inspire me both to do, and to be, better, and to whom I dedicate this work. 5 Acronyms AISI African Information Society Initiative ANT Actor-Network-Theory BPO Business Process Outsourcing CIC Community Information Centre (fs)QCA (fuzzy-set) Qualitative Comparative Analysis GASSCOM Ghana Association of Software and IT Services Companies GDP Gross Domestic Product GINKS Ghana Information and Knowledge Sharing Network GNI Gross National Income GoG Government of Ghana HR Human Resources ICT Information and Communication Technologies ICT4D Information and Communication Technologies for Development IICD International Institute for Communication and Development ISP Internet Service Provider IT Information Technology ITU International Telecommunications Union NGO Non-Governmental Organisation OECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development R&D Research and Development ROI Return on Investment SME Small and Medium Enterprises SMS Short Message Service SNA Social Network Analysis UN United Nations UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNECA United Nations Economic Commission for Africa URL Uniform Resource Locator WB World Bank 6 Contents Acknowledgements................................................................................................................................ 4 Acronyms .............................................................................................................................................. 5 1 The scope of the research: ICT diffusion, development and human mobility ........................... 13 1.1 Research problem ......................................................................................................... 13 1.1.1 ICTs in developing countries ................................................................................. 13 1.1.1 Private vs. public internet provision ....................................................................... 15 1.1.2 Country case study: Ghana .................................................................................... 15 1.1.3 Barriers to ICT access in Ghana ............................................................................ 15 1.1.4 International mobility in relation to ICT diffusion ................................................. 18 1.2 Research questions ....................................................................................................... 20 1.3 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 22 1.4 Thesis outline ............................................................................................................... 23 2 Perspectives on technology diffusion: adoption, access and implications .................................. 25 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 25 2.2 The diffusion of technological innovation in developing-country environments ............. 26 2.2.1 Adoption capacity in developing countries ............................................................ 29 2.2.2 Market gaps and ICT access .................................................................................. 31 2.3 Links between ICTs and development ........................................................................... 32 2.3.1 ICTs as an instrument of economic development ................................................... 32 2.3.2 Contributions to human development .................................................................... 34 2.4 International mobility and its relationship to technology diffusion ................................. 36 2.4.1 Social networks and transnational knowledge transmission .................................... 39 2.5 Exploring links between mobility and technology diffusion .......................................... 42 2.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 47 3 Methodology ................................................................................................................................ 52 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 52 3.2 Data collection .............................................................................................................. 56 7 3.2.1 Internet cafe survey ............................................................................................... 57 3.2.2 Problems and limitations in the internet cafe survey .............................................. 61 3.2.3 Network survey ....................................................................................................