ICTS AND EMPOWERMENT IN ASYMMETRICAL POWER RELATIONS: A CASE OF UNION INFORMATION AND SERVICE CENTRE (UISC) IN BANGLADESH

VOLUME 27 • NUMBER 2 • DECEMBER 2016

  • Mohammad Sahid Ullah

Abstract

The   empowerment  of   global  citizenry   through  Information       and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has drawn ample attention among development planners since the 1990s. Proponents of rural and community empowerment are encouraging governments in the developing world to take ICT initiatives, suggesting that the investment in ICTs will enable those countries to bypass more gradual development processes in order to engage their citizens on par with the developed world (Dey et al, 201O; Harris, 2016; Takio, 2013). But this notion is flawed for three key reasons. Firstly, it over emphasises the role of technology through simplifying the social, political and economic parameters of development. Secondly, it overlooks the needs, abilities and cultural context within which those technologies were originally introduced and interrelated; third: the importance of the political, social and economic context within which those technologies are now being applied

(Mansell, 2014; Thomas, 2012).

Published
2018-08-07
How to Cite
Ullah, M. S. (2018). ICTS AND EMPOWERMENT IN ASYMMETRICAL POWER RELATIONS: A CASE OF UNION INFORMATION AND SERVICE CENTRE (UISC) IN BANGLADESH. The Journal of Development Communication, 27(2), 22. Retrieved from https://jdc.journals.unisel.edu.my/index.php/jdc/article/view/22