Manual on E-Readiness
THE CHALLENGE OF GLOBALIZATION
An increasing number of
NAM Member countries (NMCs) have capitalized on globalization to achieve
rapid growth and poverty reduction. Participation in the global economy
has strengthened through growth in international trade and movement of
capital and labor. Specifically, policies and institutions were tailored
to facilitate growth based on factor accumulation, particularly in the
early stages of the growth process.
Policymakers must
continue to be alert and responsive to both the opportunities and the
challenges of globalization if NMCs are to continue to capitalize on the
process. There are two major themes. The first is that development
strategies should be modified both to adapt to a changing global
economic environment and to take advantage of the opportunities that
come with globalization. The Asian development approach, emphasizing
rapid technology transfer to create export industries was, and is, quite
successful. Yet, as NMCs move closer to the global technology frontier,
certain modalities, such as innovation based on FDI and R&D, will become
more important. Moreover, the revolution in information and
communications technology (ICT) will continue to create opportunities in
goods and services export markets, but those countries with the
appropriate ICT infra-structure and personnel will best be able to
exploit these opportunities. The second theme is that there are also
risks to a globalization strategy and policies must be formulated to
minimize them. Greater volatility is probably the biggest risk that
accompanies globalization. Therefore various ways should be developed to
reduce the volatility in economic performance that has been associated
with globalization. These include policies to monitor and regulate
capital flows, develop an appropriate exchange rate regime, and minimize
fluctuations in productivity and investment. What is also needed are
range of social programs that can minimize the impact of volatility on
the poorest groups in society.
NMCs have been generally
successful in integrating themselves into the global economic system.
Indeed, they have attracted significant amounts of foreign investment,
while trade is a strong and integral driver of economic growth. They
have also had to develop the necessary policies and institutions to deal
with volatility stemming from large capital movements.
NMCs face a number of
policy issues and challenges. In the context of globalization, the first
challenge for NMCs is to continue to move into areas where global demand
is rising and where the opportunities for those countries with
comparative advantage are manifest. The second challenge is to assess
and manage the risks presented by the evolving global economic system.
The commitment among governments to addressing this challenge is healthy
and encouraging, particularly in light of the difficulties experienced
during the Asian financial crisis.
Powerful economic and
technological forces are at work that are likely to render the world
economy even more globalized in the future than it is today. The
challenge for NMCs and emerging economies elsewhere is, therefore, how
to capitalize on the opportunities for growth and development afforded
by globalization, while at the same time minimizing the risks. In an
obvious sense, this means taking appropriate policies to maintain a
stable macro economy, maintaining prudent financial policies, and
adopting sound regulatory practices. The fundamental challenge is how
governments, in cooperation with the private sector, can develop
capabilities and capacities to determine appropriate policies and
implement them.
Governments should also
be able to facilitate the development of a social consensus on goals and
instruments, and an equitable means for sharing the benefits of
implementing appropriate policies and programs. Governments should also
maintain flexibility to modify their policy stance as circumstances
change.
INFORMATION AGE
It has been said that the
third wave of civilization is the information age, after agricultural
and industrial revolution. This information age puts emphasized of value
in the information itself. The information age and the internet
revolution are driven by the synergy between two virtuous cycles. The
first is the power of any-to-any connectivity with its ultimate form of
the net. Second is the power of universal computing device which follows
Moore laws (device computing power doubles every 18 months). The figure
below show the diagram and path of development of each cycle until they
combine and produce the impact of the net today.
ICT for NMC
Why ICT is important ?
ICT is pervasive, tools for development, can help accelerate growth for
least develop or developing countries. ICT also enables the openness and
stimulate democracy
How can countries exploit
ICT for its benefit? Example has shown that develop countries can ride
on the wave of ICT and create opportunity for themselves to compete at
global level. NMC particularly developing countries can also leverage
ICT and level the playing field for global competition. ICT transcend
the boundaries of traditional level of development and provide the means
for least develop countries to leapfrog.
Knowing the importance of
ICT as set forth above, the set of document aims to assist NMCs in ICT
development and leverage it for their own national benefit while
contributing to the world.
The e-readiness condition
in every country is different. E-readiness is defined as the level of
acceptance and abilities to develop ICT. The capital E follow the
similar naming as in e-commerce and e-business. Every country has to
make self-assessment in order they can develop the right ICT plan. A
comprehensive self-assessment tool can figure out the e-readiness
condition.
ICT development plan must
start with knowing what assets and capabilities do the country have and
what must be done to leverage these advantages. The plan also should
identify what must be acquired in order to improve level of e-readiness.
Therefore a framework for analyzing and determining a level of
e-readiness is a basic before drawing up a plan for ICT. One important
aspect is e-leadership which is basically commitment from top government
level toward ICT deployment
Rather than starting from
scratch, an analytical framework for calculating a country’s IT
capability developed by Peter Wolcott (University of Nebraska), Seymour
Goodman (University of Arizona) and Grey Burkhart will be adopted for
the self-assessment tools as a model for evaluating a country’s
e-readiness. This studies however does not provide questionnaire for
assessment, rather they rely on qualitative judgment for scoring. What
we are developing here is list of question combining qualitative and
quantitative data to aid assessment.
Next is the manuals which
are aimed mostly to policy maker. The manual is divided into three
level, depending on e-readiness level. There are different emphasize for
each level but the objective is to support ICT development.
The manuals shall provide
guidelines for countries to improve or optimize its e-readiness.
Self-assessment of e-readiness is provided on separate document as a
framework to determine the level of each country. Various factors were
taken into account in this self-assessment. Some of these factors were
later becoming key factors, which need to be considered in improving
e-readiness. Some were prerequisite and played crucial role as they had
to be available even for the initial level.
Last title is general
manual on ICT which cover computer and network. It will dwell on the
history and development of both field as well as future assessment. The
topic covered range from computer evolution and operating system
evolution. Other topic discussed is internet history and development.
The last topic covered is network computer in the future. |
