Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Web 2.0 and Social Media challenges : Could you help me convince my boss?



Pete Cranston is director of Euforic Services Ltd. He is an ICT, Communication and Digital Media specialist, with long experience as a facilitator and trainer.

A 3-day write-shop took place at CTA in Wageningen (NL) on 24-26 March, 2014. The purpose of the event was to to update the curriculum which is used to run "Web 2.0 and Social Media Learning Opportunities". In the discussions institutional barriers towards adoption were identified.

Giacomo Rambaldi, the organiser of the event, asked him: "Could you please help us in convincing bosses that it is worth investing in the adoption and institutionalisation of Web 2.0 and Social Media"?

Let's hear what he had to say ....

Web 2.0 and Social Media success stories: By-passing the middlemen



Mr Johnson Opigo is an ICT Consultant and trainer, Web Designer and Developer based in Nigeria. Among others he has been running Web 2.0 and Social Media trainings on behalf of CTA and UNITAR.

Interviewed during the 3-day write-shop (Wageningen, 24-26 March, 2014) on updating CTA's curriculum used during the Web 2.0 and Social Media Learning Opportunities Johnson summarises the power of Web 2.0 and Social Media and recalls a success story of their adoption and deployment in in the framework of the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GES) implemented by Nigeria’s Minister for Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, which ended four decades of corruption in the fertilizer sector, eliminating the middlemen and scaling up food production by nine million metric tonnes in the first year.

Sunday, December 8, 2013

L'an 2025 de la révolution @gricole



On rapporte qu'Albert Einstein aurait dit : « Je ne pense jamais au futur – il vient bien assez tôt. » Comme il avait raison !

Il ne fait aucun doute que le pouvoir transformatif des TIC nous fait vivre un développement exponentiel !

Tentez l'aventure et embarquez-vous pour l'an 2025 de la révolution @gricole.

Thursday, December 5, 2013

State of Play: Violence and Video Games



Is violent video gaming influencing people's behaviour and inducing aggressive behaviour? The scientific world is split on this. Watch this video to better understand the dilemma.



Friday, November 8, 2013

The @gricultural Revolution




We increasingly hear about innovation taking place in Africa and other countries in the South. ICTs appears to be in the driving seat.

Do these testimonies reflect localised initiatives or are there any significant trends at national and continental level? Are we at the edge of a second agricultural revolution?

Let's see what the numbers are telling us ....

Year 2025 of the @gricultural Revolution




Albert Einstein is quoted having said: “I never think of the future - it comes soon enough.” How true he was!

There is no doubt that the transformative power of ICTs makes us live in exponential times !

Let’s give it a try, and jump to year 2025 of the @gricultural revolution.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Maximizing Mobile, a World Bank Report


Executive summary

This report analyzes the growth and evolution of applications for mobile phones, focusing on their use in agriculture, health and financial services, as well as their impact on employment and government. It also explores the consequences for development of the emerging “app economy”, summarizing current thinking and seeking to inform the debate on the use of mobile phones for development. It’s no longer about the phone itself, but about how it is used, and the content and applications that mobile phones open. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 1: Overview

The report’s opening chapter provides an overview of the broad trends shaping and redefining our understanding of the word “mobile.” Developing countries are increasingly well placed to exploit the benefits of mobile communications, with levels of access rising around the world. The chapter explores how the bond between mobile operators and users is loosening, as computer and internet companies invade the mobile space. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 2: Mobilizing the Agricultural Value Chain

Increasingly, specialized mobile services are providing localized information about price, weather and climate, pest control, cultivation practices, and agricultural extension services. Chapter 2 examines the emerging uses of mobile services in agriculture, as well as remote and satellite technologies that are assisting in food traceability, sensory detection, and status updates from the field. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 3: MHealth

Chapter 3 examines some of the key principles and characteristics of mobile Health (mHealth), and how mobiles are helping transform and enhance the delivery of primary and secondary healthcare services. It reviews on-the-ground implementations of medical healthcare apps to draw key conclusions as to how mHealth can best be implemented to serve the needs of people, as well as identifying the major barriers to be overcome. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 4: Mobile Money for Financial Inclusion

Chapter 4 looks at the use of mobile money as a general platform and critical infrastructure underpinning other economic sectors. It shows the benefits and potential impact of mobile money, especially for promoting financial inclusion. It provides an overview of the key factors driving the growth of mobile money services, the barriers and obstacles hindering their deployment, and emerging issues that the industry will face over the coming years. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 5: Mobile Entrepreneurship And Employment

This chapter explores the enormous potential of mobiles for employment, not solely in terms of job creation, but also their ability to facilitate entrepreneurship – especially in populations otherwise disconnected from the economy, encourage development of transferable technical and business skills, match jobs with workers and create opportunities for microwork. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 6: Making Government Mobile

Governments are beginning to embrace the potential for mobile technology to put public services literally into the pocket of each citizen, create interactive services, and promote accountable and transparent governance. Chapter 6 identifies a range of uses for mobile technology in government that supplement public services, expand their user base, and generate spinoff services. Read More (PDF) »


Chapter 7: Policies for Mobile Broadband

The final chapter distinguishes between supply-side policies (which seek to promote the expansion of wireless broadband networks) and demand-side policies (which seek to boost take-up of wireless broadband services) in the mobile broadband ecosystem. The chapter provides policy recommendations for expanding mobile broadband infrastructure that would address the key bottlenecks of both supply and demand sides of mobile broadband. Read More (PDF) »


Part II: Key Trends in The Development Of The Mobile Sector

Part II of the report brings together a range of mobile indicators for over 150 economies. It also reviews the main trends shaping the sector, while a new analytical tool is also introduced for tracking the progress of economies at different levels of economic development in widening access, improving supply and stimulating demand for mobile services. Read More (PDF) »

Full Report