ICT update

ICT Update is a bimonthly printed bulletin, a web magazine, and an accompanying email newsletter that explores innovative uses of information technology in agriculture and rural development in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.

It is published in English and French by the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation ACP-EU (CTA) in Wageningen, the Netherlands, with each issue focusing on a specific theme. The print magazine is widely distributed amongst policy makers in Brussels and across Europe, and to embassies and sector stakeholders in developing countries. CTA is an institution of the ACP Group of States and the European Union, in the framework of the Cotonou Agreement and is financed by the EU.

Recent themes (Issue 73) have included e-agriculture strategies – 'Harnessing ICT strategies for ACP agriculture', 'e-agriculture strategies: the case of Ivory Coast', and 'Orange–A telecom operator in West Africa' with stories covering the Caribbean Community is transforming its agricultural sector into a competitive and sustainable system of agricultural production and services in which ICTs will play a vital role, ICT-triggered knowledge revolution in India: Agricultural digital networks help to break down the barriers that stand between localised rural economies and globalised markets. It also focuses on the success of a mobile app – its high adoption rate and actual use – largely depends on the degree of involvement of the end user during the development stage. Mark Kamau, Kenyan web solution expert at the iHub UX Lab in Nairobi, believes a user-centric approach to mobile app development is critical to building a sustainable ICT-based solution and many more.

Issue 72 have included Open access & open data – ‘A Kenyan university is drawing attention to its research via its open access strategy’, ‘A publisher works with scientists in ACP countries on open access publishing’ and ‘Open data initiatives in developing countries are triggering local innovations’ with stories covering on what openness means and how Open access publishing can help researchers in the developing world to participate more actively in the scientific community. It also focuses on initiatives in Africa to open up access to research results are helping countries there face development challenges and bridge the knowledge gap with industrialized countries.

Issue 71 have included Small islands and e-resilience – 'ICTs are helping small islands overcome geographical isolation', 'A programme in the Caribbean is boosting the mobile innovation sector', and 'ICTs are improving natural disaster management in the Pacific' with stories covering a Pacific-wide online discussion which looked at the use of mobile phones and how fast-improving internet access will bring about change in the region; The Caribbean Mobile Innovation Project, launched by info Dev, aims to help mobile app innovators in the region bring their mobile apps, services and content to the market and build growth-oriented startups into successful enterprises; and an ICT-based development framework: ICTs delivered through an appropriate development framework can help overcome the physical boundaries that limit small islands’ capacity to conduct economic, political and social transactions.

Issue 33 have included 'Traceability – From farm to fork', 'Urban agriculture', 'Film-making farmers', and 'Coping with climate change', with stories covering the use of participatory video, mobile-to-web messaging and online video-sharing by farmers and fishers in the Niger Delta to document the destruction of their lands and waters by oil companies; the use of VoIP by Jamaican amateur radio operators to extend their reach when aiding emergency communications during hurricanes and other extreme weather events; and web applications to track labour standards along the supply chain from South African wine-grape farms to Tesco supermarket shelves in the United Kingdom.

ICTupdate archive

Archive

External links

See also

References

"ICTupdate". Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA). Retrieved 13 June 2013. 

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