Revisiting the Magic Box: Case studies in Local Appropriation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs)

"New information and communications technologies (ICTs), the Internet and mobile telephony in particular, are greatly transforming how we work, organize and communicate with each other. ICTs radically change relationships between individuals and groups in organizations and societies. Some communities have already identified what features of these new technologies they can appropriate to address their needs and how they can do that using the limited financial, infrastructural and human resources available to them.

Local appropriation of ICTs' broadly means that rural communities are able to make use of, adapt, sometimes own, but certainly benefit from information and communication technologies."

This book aims to illustrate how different groups of people in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Uganda are appropriating ICTs to make positive changes in their communities. The Women of Uganda Network (Wougnet) discuss the constraints still facing the information-sharing network in Africa while the Costa Rican internet radio station, FIRE, delivers community radio to the international community by broadcasting local women's voices to global audiences via the internet. A third case study from Mexico looks at the challenges facing community radio stations as they try to network and integrate new ICTs against a backdrop of an unclear regulatory environment. Finally, the book offers some guiding principles for successful appropriation of ICTs as well as discussing indicators for evaluating ICT interventions.

Click here to download the book in PDF format [380 KB].