E-Governance for Rural Development: a Case Study on Union Information and Service Centre (UISC) of Bangladesh

The “digital divide” between urban and rural areas has introduced a significant issue in equal access to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in developing countries such as Bangladesh. This inequitable access to ICT has implication for productivity and economic growth of the country. To bridging the gap, Government of Bangladesh has taken initiatives to introduce various ICT interventions in its rural and regional areas. Union Information and Service Centre (UISC) is one of those initiatives which are expected to bring the opportunity for rural communities to better access to ICT. However, no studies have been reported to investigate its potentiality for rural communities in offering accessing to information and technology. This study attempts to investigate this issue from actual beneficiary perspective. The main objective of this study is to provide a synopsis of the roles UISC could play in various socio-politico-economic sectors in the vicinity of countryside of Bangladesh. This paper confers the significance of free access to both technology and information through a case study conducted in rural areas in Bangladesh.

[1]  Petr Benda,et al.  ICT helps to overcome disabilities , 2011 .

[2]  Liangzhi Yu,et al.  Understanding information inequality : Making sense of the literature of the information and digital , 2006 .

[3]  Marianne Georgsen,et al.  Telecenters: A one-stop learning hub in rural Bangladesh , 2011 .

[4]  Sarah J. Tracy.  Qualitative Research Methods: Collecting Evidence, Crafting Analysis, Communicating Impact , 2012 .

[5]  Lukman Ibraheem Diso,et al.  Information policies and government guidance in Nigeria: what hope for rural communities? , 1994 .

[6]  Richard Heeks.  Reinventing Government in the Information Age: International Practice in IT-Enabled Public Sector Reform , 2002 .

[7]  A. Kumar,et al.  Sustainable Telecentres? Two Cases from India by R.W. Harris Independent Consultant, Hong Kong , 2003 .

[8]  Jessica Dart,et al.  A Dialogical, Story-Based Evaluation Tool: The Most Significant Change Technique: , 2003 .

[9]  Lukman Ibraheem Diso,et al.  Library and information science education in Nigeria: Curricula contents versus cultural realities , 2007 .

[10]  Rose B. Okiy,et al.  Information for rural development: challenge for Nigerian rural public libraries , 2003 .

[11]  Wanda J. Orlikowski,et al.  Research Commentary: Desperately Seeking the "IT" in IT Research - A Call to Theorizing the IT Artifact , 2001, Inf. Syst. Res..

[12]  Bangladesh,et al.  Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2004 , 2005 .

[13]  R. Heeks.  The ICT4D 2.0 Manifesto: Where Next for ICTs and International Development? , 2009 .

[14]  J. Bertrand,et al.  Systematic review of the effectiveness of mass communication programs to change HIV/AIDS-related behaviors in developing countries. , 2005, Health education research.

[15]  Juliet Willetts,et al.  The most significant lessons about the Most Significant Change technique , 2007 .

[16]  Yahya Ibrahim Harande,et al.  Information Services for Rural Community Development in Nigeria , 2009 .

[17]  Jessica Dart,et al.  A Dialogical, Story-Based Evaluation Tool: The Most Significant Change Technique , 2003 .

[18]  Kazi Mostak Gausul Hoq.  Role of information for rural development in Bangladesh: a sector-wise review , 2012 .

[19]  Farzana Akther,et al.  Rural Community Development Strategy beyond the Access to Information: The Role of Tele-Centers in Bangladesh , 2012 .

[20]  Richard Heeks,et al.  Understanding Success and Failure in Information Age Reform , 1998 .