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] 104

R

AISING ISSUES OF

inequality, joblessness and poverty should

need no justification. We live in a world of deep seated and

frequently rising inequalities. Two in five people live in

poverty today, struggling to survive on less than USD2 a day.

According to International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates,

close to 185 million people are without a job.

1

A further 550 million

work in poverty.

2

In total, some 2.8 billion people lack decent, digni-

fied and human standards of living when dependants and family

members are added to unemployment or underemployment statis-

tics. The figures become even more tragic in the face of the

unprecedented amount of wealth created in the world economy

over the past few decades. Globalization is evolving in such a way

that what is added to the wealth of the world does not reach those

most in need of it, yet it enhances the advantages of those in high-

skilled, productive, freely chosen and decent employment.

It is essential to remind ourselves that the ultimate goal of any

endeavour by the World Summit on the Information Society

(WSIS) ought to be the elimination of inequalities and the erad-

ication of poverty. Information and communication technology

(ICT) is a means to this end. We must establish a firm link

between ICT and economic growth, else we are doomed to fail in

our commitment to building “a people-centred, inclusive and

development-oriented Information Society” that would contribute

to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),

as stated in the declaration that marked the end of the first phase

of WSIS in Geneva.

The missing link between ICT and development is indeed the

connection between ICT and decent work. The eradication of

poverty in a sustainable manner requires the creation of decent

work opportunities for all. As stated in the ILO report

Working out

of Poverty

,

3

work is the best – perhaps the only – sustainable

route out of poverty. By extension, identifying the relationships

between ICT and decent work would be the main goal of the

(ILO), resulting in a successful outcome for WSIS. Building this

link underscores the importance of the social, as well as the

economic, dimension of technological development, which is

encapsulated in the relationship between ICT and the world of

work.

Divides

The differences between the rich and the poor cross many divides.

The digital divide is but one of the various dimensions of inequal-

ity. Information technologies are, like all other technologies, tools.

They are as valuable as the use given to them. This, in turn,

depends on the capacity of users. Giving untrained workers or

managers access to data processing and communications equip-

ment will not improve their incomes, their productivity or their

working conditions unless other actions are taken to bridge the

human capital gap. At the same time, the more gifted will be able

to exploit investments in ICT immediately. Since the well

managed adoption of ICT leads to greater competitiveness, these

tools can widen existing social and economic gaps.

Enterprises are among the critical beneficiaries of ICT. Their

operations depend, in most cases, on existing infrastructure.

There is, in fact, an infrastructure divide that encompasses much

more than communications; there are wide gaps in available

transportation systems; the quality and availability of energy

sources in much of the south is a cause for concern; there are

wide divergences in financial structures and services; there are

large differences in the availability of business development

services and in arbitration mechanisms. There are, in short,

numerous infrastructure-related factors that limit the ability of

enterprises to reach markets or to acquire intermediate goods.

When firms encounter these difficulties they cannot access or

compete in large markets; when this happens, employment

creation is sluggish and the jobs created are neither highly produc-

tive nor well remunerated. Economic activity is frequently

orientated to survival rather than capital accumulation, thus

perpetuating the vicious circle of poverty. The chasm separating

enterprises predates the digital divide. The latter only widens the

gap, creating diverging employment prospects.

It is assumed throughout the WSIS documents that technology

has a positive or, at least, a neutral effect on social conditions: there

are no costs involved. Unfortunately, the introduction of ICT has

real costs and can lead to wider – not narrower – social and

economic gaps. This is true both at individual and enterprise level.

Individuals without information processing skills are at greater risk

of either being made redundant or not finding a job. Enterprises

unable to exploit the benefits of ICT risk losing market share, with

consequences for their profitability, and eventually their survival.

This will lead to job losses and increased poverty. And this can

happen if no efforts are made to help smell and medium sized

enterprises in particular to adapt to new technological paradigms.

Social effects of ICTs

ICT is deeply embedded not only in economic growth, but also

in social development. It touches upon every area of our lives.

As a revolutionary new set of technologies, ICT is unique in many

ways. Owing to its generic nature, ICT has affected all industries,

every service in the economy and many occupations and

employment structures in our contemporary world. Earlier revo-

lutionary technologies, such as electrification or mechanization,

were also pervasive in that sense. The pervasiveness of ICT is,

however, unique in affecting every firm and organization as well

as every function within them, and doing so at an ever more rapid

pace. Most research, development and design work, the majority

of market research, back office activities, and many production

processes have become dependent on the use of ICT. Occupations

have disappeared, to be replaced by others requiring more educa-

tion; linotypists have been replaced by digital page layout

The social dimension of ICT

The International Labour Organization