Knowledge and Development

Paper presented at the2nd International ICT Conference

“Abu Dhabi Summit on Information and Communication Technology”

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates : 19 March 2006

Abdul Waheed Khan Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information

UNESCO

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“Development is about advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life.”

UNDP

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Importance of change

Social change

Demographic

change

Economic change

Cultural

Change

Political

Changechange

Educational

Knowledge

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Millennium Development GoalsGoal 1

Eradication of extreme poverty

and hunger

Goal 8Developing

a global partnership for development

Goal 2Achieving universal primary

education

Goal 3Promoting

gender equality

Goal 7Ensuring

environmental sustainability

Goal 6Combating HIV/AIDS,

malaria etc.

Goal 4Reducing

child mortalityGoal 5

Improving maternal

health

Knowledge

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The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) commit the internationalcommunity to a vision of development that vigorously promotes human development as the key to sustaining social and economic progress in all countries, and recognizes the importance of creating a global partnership for development.

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“Today, the search for knowledge continues to produce an ongoing revolution in the health and wealth of humankind.”

Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek editor

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What is Knowledge?

Data Information such as lists (e.g. phone list) or records in a database or spreadsheet

Information Organized data that can be communicated

Knowledge Information (i.e. organized data) that can be used to achieve some result

Wisdom Selection of appropriate knowledge for a specific task

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"Knowledge is like light.Weightless and tangible, it can easily travel the World, enlightening the lives of people everywhere.“

World Bank World Development Report

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Central Role of Knowledge for Development

Knowledge

Economic Growth

Cultural Enrichment

Social Development

Political Empowerment

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“The ability to create and maintain knowledge infrastructure, develop knowledge workers and enhance their productivity will be the key factors in deciding the prosperity of the knowledge society.”

Abdul Kalam, President of India

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A World of Contrast

IgnorancePoverty

MarginalizationExclusion

KnowledgeProsperityGlobalizationInclusion Knowledge Divide or Digital Divide

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Knowledge Societies

Human Needs and Rights

Knowledge Societies

PluralismHuman Needs and RightsHuman Needs and Rights

Knowledge SocietiesKnowledge Societies

PluralismPluralism

KnowledgeCreation Dissemination UtilizationPreservation

Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge

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Knowledge Creation

“Half a hectare of land and one year of labour were required to feed one person in 1900 whereas that same half-hectare now feeds 10 persons on the basis of just one and a half days of labour”.

UNESCO Science Report

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Knowledge Creation

• Central role of science for knowledge creation

• Unique opportunities of Science to: – meet basic human needs– reduce poverty– protect the environment– improve the quality of life– enhance sustainable development

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Knowledge creation:Gaps in investment in R&D

GERD/GDP in Arab States (2000)(UNESCO World Science Report 2005)

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Knowledge Preservation

• Preservation of indigenous knowledge

• Preservation of digital knowledge

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Knowledge Dissemination:Role of technology

• To reach 50 million people:- Radio: 38 years, - Television: 13 years- Internet: 4 years

• Countries connected to Internet:– 1990: 20– 2000: All

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The Multi-Platform WorldThe Multi-Platform World

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Knowledge dissemination:ICT for Development

Source: ICT4D-Connecting People for a Better World, Editors: G. Weigel and D. Waldburger (2004)

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Human Capitals andProductivity

ReducedPoverty

Macro Economic

Growth and

Development

Family Health andNutrition

Personal Development

Societal Development

Education

Linkage of Education to Poverty Reduction & Development

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Knowledge Dissemination:Major Challenges

• Increasing access

• Providing educational inputs of good quality

• Making educational opportunities available at affordable cost

• Enhancing the relevance of educational provision to societal and individual need

• Providing opportunities for lifelong learning

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Knowledge Dissemination:Meeting the Challenges

• Business unusual

• Using mix approaches (new and traditional technologies)

• Developing enabling environments

• Creating public/private partnerships

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Knowledge Utilization

Knowledge, once created and disseminated, needs to be used wisely in order to enhance economic and social well-being.

• Essential factors for knowledge utilization: – Universal access– Skills and capacity (Basic literacy, Computer literacy,

information literacy, e-learning…..) – Cultural and linguistic diversity– Relevant content

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Guiding Principles of Knowledge Societies

• Freedom• Inclusiveness• Diversity• Empowerment

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