ICTworks by Inveneo

Yesterday, Huawei introduced a revolutionary Android smartphone in the Kenyan market. The tech specs for the IDEOS mobile phone will make any hardware geek drool - 2.8-inch (240x320) touch display, 528MHz processor, 3.2-megapixel camera, 16Gig memory with a microSD slot, HSDPA, Wi-Fi (802.11n), GPS, Bluetooth, and 3G Mobile Hotspot support for up to eight devices. That's hot and all, but...

It is the $100 price that's revolutionary

Huawei and Google have noticed that Kenyan mobile Internet use grew by over 180 per cent in past 12 months and have teamed up to offer the IDEOS for 8,000 Ksh, or about $100 US Dollars, to increase that adoption rate.

At $100, the smartphone goes from just a techno elite bragging right to a phone actually accessible for the wananchi. $100 puts phones in range of schools, medical clinics, and other large organizations that need to equip their staff or clients with affordable, powerful information and communication technologies.

It's the netbook revolution for smartphones.

Do you remember Christmas 2007, when netbooks first appeared? These were small, cheap laptop computers that retailed for $200 yet could do almost as much as high-end $2,000 business elite laptops. Netbooks were born from the One Laptop Per Child program and its "$100 laptop" goal. OLPC's XO laptop never reached the $100 price point, but you can now buy real, respectable laptops for $400.

With the Huawei $100 Android smartphone, we're about to see the same revolution in mobile phones. We're about to see an explosion of cheap, sub-$100 smartphones that rival iPhones in function and cheap Nokias in price. In fact, the $100 smartphone price barrier was first broken when Nokia announced the 2730 Classic and Synchronica released the MessagePhone back in March 2010.

It's gonna change the way Africa gets online

With more, better, cheaper smartphones, the shift from computer to mobile phone for Internet access across Africa will only accelerate, changing the entire ICT industry. 2 out of every 3 internet users in Kenya connect through their mobile phone, which is already driving cyber cafes out of business and I see ISP's loosing business to Android 2.2 (Froyo)-enabled WiFi hotspots.

The shift to cheap mobile Internet devices also means there will be less margin for ICT companies. Gone are the days of selling relatively few high-end laptops or smartphones to elite business clients, with businesses trading on technical skills and support to gain market share. The $100 smartphone era will see businesses compete with lowest price, speediest sale, and cheapest staff. A predicament, not progress. C'est la vie

African Diaspora send over $40 billion dollars in remittances every year, but is that enough to inspire innovation and entrepreneurship across the continent? Project Diaspora doesn't think so, and in response they've started the BizSpring Africa Enterprise Development Program.

BizSpring is a multi-platform effort to leverage capital inflow from Diaspora and global investment for African small and medium sized business growth in Africa. It will consist of on-line networking, in-person innovation and entrepreneurship conferences, and a resource database that tap global skills and motivation to act as a linkage between Africa’s entrepreneurs and innovators with resources to grow and prosper.

The first conference is planned for October 2010 in Lagos, Nigeria and it is branded in the West African sub region as the Adwuma Mbomu Program. This is being co-managed by PD partner, LoftyInc Allied Partners, a West African venture incubator, and it’s Nigerian subsidiary, Touchstone GIS and will be held in coordination with University of Lagos Faculty of Business Administration.

BizSpring is also affiliated with the Monterey Institute of International Studies, Graduate School of International Policy and Management, in Monterey, California, to facilitate introductions and collaborations with additional African educational instutitions.

Across colleges in North America, ProjectFOCUS is raising awareness and capital to invest in solar-powered, income-generating internet cafes in Uganda with amazing, replicable computer lab fundraising skills.

But they're not just about fundraising or computer technology, they're also innovators in ICT4D. On June 5th, when they opened the Lyantonde Internet Center in cooperation with ICOD, they used bicycles to extend the reach of the Internet Cafe beyond it's physical office space. Watch the opening ceremony video to learn how:

By donating bicycles to farmer groups' elected "information agent" in the five villages of Luwama, Kyewanula, Kitazigolokwa, Iwensinga, and Lyantonde, ProjectFOCUS is increasing information dissemination among farmers in rural Uganda.

So the next time you're wondering how you can expand the impact of a computer lab, don't forget the basics like facilitating transportation to and from the cafe. A simple bike race and donation can change the whole perception of Internet access in rural areas.

Michael Trucano, a recognized expert on deploying ICT in education, recently blogged about Worst practice in ICT use in education:

Here's a list of some of what I consider to be the preeminent 'worst practices' related to the large scale use of ICTs in education in developing countries, based on first hand observation over the past dozen or so years. I have omitted names (please feel free to fill them in yourself). The criterion I used for selection was simple: The given worst practice was easily observable in multiple prominent initiatives, with (one fears) a high likelihood of re-occurrence, in the same or other places.

As one of his humble understudies in ICT4E, I found myself in agreement - these are worst practices that are repeated again, and again, and again, when technology and schools are mixed. As you read them, please think about how you'll NOT let these practices happen in your next educational deployment:

Worst practice in ICT use in education

1. Dump hardware in schools, hope for magic to happen
This is, in many cases, the classic example of worst practice in ICT use in education. Unfortunately, it shows no sign of disppearing soon, and is the precursor in many ways to the other worst practices on this list. "If we supply it they will learn": Maybe in some cases this is true, for a very small minority of exceptional students and teachers, but this simplistic approach is often at the root of failure of many educational technology initiatives.

2. Design for OECD learning environments, implement elsewhere
With the best of intentions, and often 'assisted' by vendors, many groups (including many governments) have sought to simply transfer ICT-related models and practices from classrooms in industrialized countries to less developed education systems in other parts of the world. Sometimes this works, but unfortunately many places roll out programs and products that have at their core sets of assumptions (reliable electricity and connectivity, well-trained teachers, sufficient available time-on-task, highly literate students, space to implement student-centric pedagogies, relevant content, a variety of cultural norms, etc.) that do not correspond with local realities. The result is often (and not unsurprisingly) not very good.

3. Think about educational content only after you have rolled out your hardware
Deploying lots of computer infrastructure in schools is expensive (and complicated). So expensive, in fact, that many critical complementary investments (in training, in tech support, in content, etc.) are 'postponed' until a later date. Sometimes this is a calculated bureaucratic maneuver/risk -- the thinking is that, once the hardware is in place, the need for content will be more clear, and it will be easier to make the case for related funding at that time) -- and other times this is simply a lack of good planning. But it is a fact that, in many places, only once computers are in place and a certain level of basic ICT literacy is imparted to teachers and students is the rather basic question asked: What are we going to do with all of this stuff? Related to this ...

4. Assume you can just import content from somewhere else
Some places recognize the need for quality educational content from the start, but assume they can simply import it from somewhere else. In addition to obvious potential cultural issues, the successful integration of content developed elsewhere into daily teaching and learning practices is inhibited by a lack of clear understanding by teachers of the relevance of such materials to the required curricula. Much effort typically needs to be expended to map this content to explicit objectives and activities in the local curricula. (And of course: Teacher training helps too!)

5. Don't monitor, don't evaluate
This should be self-evident. That said, there are only a handful of really credible, rigorous impact evaluation studies done of educational technology initiatives in developing countries. Most evaluation work focuses on (perceptions of) changes in attitudes as the result of the use of educational technologies, and the success (or lack of success) in meeting varius simple metrics (number of computers installed, number of teachers trained, etc.). Such information is important, of course, but it is hardly sufficient. What is the impact of ICT use in education? If we don't evaluate potential answers to this question, rigorously and credibly, all we are left with is well-intentioned guesswork and marketing dross.

6. Make a big bet on an unproven technology (especially one based on a closed/proprietary standard) or single vendor, don't plan for how to avoid 'lock-in

Let's acknowledge that the speed of technological changes almost always outpaces the ability of educational planners to keep up. In response, some policymakers seek to get 'ahead of the curve' by placing large bets on new, largely unproven technologies in an effort to 'leapfrog' what is happening in other education systems. In other cases, education systems effectively outsource most of the capacity to manage activities in this area to a vendor or other third party. There are potentially valid reasons to pursue such courses of action in some cases, but they are inherently very risky, especially if clear plans are not made on how to 'exit' such decisions and relationships.

7. Don't think about (or acknowledge) total cost of ownership/operation issues or calculations
What does ICT use in education cost? Some people would have you believe it is only the initial cost of hardware. Businesses have long known that this is not the case, but many education policymakers seem not to have grasped (or willfully ignore) this fundamental issue. We know that "total cost of ownership or operation" (TCO) is often underestimated, sometimes grossly, when calculating costs of ICT in education initiatives in developing countries. Estimates of initial costs to purchase equipment to overall costs over time vary widely; typically they lie between 10-25% of total cost. That said, there is a dearth of reliable data, and useful tools, to help guide education decisionmakers in their assessments of the true costs of educational technology initiatives.

8. Assume away equity issues
One compelling justification for large-scale investments in the use of ICTs in education is that theycan help address equity issues related to the 'digital divide'. That said, introduction of ICT in schools often exacerbate various entrenched inequities in education systems (urban-rural, rich-poor, boy-girl, linguistic and cultural divides, special needs students -- the list is long). Things can be done to mitigate such challenges, and indeed pro-equity approaches of utilizing ICTs are possible, but they don't happen without careful proactive attention to this issue.

9. Don't train your teachers (nor your school headmasters, for that matter)

If there is one clear lesson from the introduction of educational technologies in schools around the world, it is that teacher training is critical to the success of such initiatives. Outreach to teachers, through both regular technical and pedagogical support and on-going professional development, should be seen as cornerstones of any large ICT investment in schools. And: Targeted outreach to school principals is often crucial if teachers are to have the necessary freedom to take advantage of new opportunities offered through the use of ICTs.

10. ___

[I thought I would leave #10 blank as an acknowledgement that there are many additional worst practices that merit mention, but I have run out of space. Do feel free to submit your candidates below.]

Kenyan consumers are rightly excited that the mobile phone company Zain, now owned by Bharti Airtel, has kicked off a price war with just announced unprecedented low and permanent new tariffs of Kes. 3.00 to call and Kes. 1.00 per SMS message to any mobile network in Kenya. This huge price reduction caused such a storm of traffic on Zain's network, they actually had connectivity problems with other mobile phone companies.

Safaricom, the dominant mobile phone company in Kenya, is responding with the "Masaa Tariff" - Safaricom customers will be able to make calls within the network at between Kes. 2.00 to Kes 4.00, with Kes. 2.00 per minute now the lowest calling rate on any mobile network operator in the Kenyan market. Orange/Telkom Kenya has matched this pricing and other mobile phone companies are expected to follow suit with their own price decreases in the coming days.

This price war is an obvious benefit to all Kenyans in lowering the barrier to using mobile devices, but what about its impact on ICT companies? How does the mobile price war help ICT adoption and sales volume beyond just dropping call and SMS costs? Here's three ways:

1. Visible Impact of Good Government Policy

The mobile phone price war started when the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) cut interconnection tariffs by 50%, based on a report that determined the existing interconnection rates were way too high. A second tariff lowering will occur in 2011.

This immediate price war is a big, bold validation that lowering government-controlled tariffs directly benefits its citizens where there is already a decent level of competition. Hopefully the regulators in other countries who control mobile and Internet rates will realize that lowering those rates is a net benefit for everyone

2. Stimulate More Services & Innovation

Now that voice and especially SMS are no longer the fat cash cows of quarters past, Safaricom and Zain will need to bring more services and more innovation to the mobile subscriber to maintain their revenue per user. This means more than just M-PESA and its clones, but also new data services and even whole new solutions.

For ICT companies this is an opportunity to sell new mobile services to these companies and their subscribers - Safaricom and Zain will be hungry for new ideas. It's also an opportunity to build on the new services they roll out, with value-added solutions. Many have already done this with SMS, data, and M-PESA and your underlying connectivity costs are only going to drop, increasing your profit margins.

3. Increase Customer Respect

Last but not least, ICT companies as customers of the mobile companies should start to see more attention paid to them. Each business subscriber is going to be come more valuable, as they are the high-usage and high-income clients in Kenya. This will only be more apparent when mobile number portability comes to the Kenyan market.

For larger ICT companies (and even small ones) it is a good time to review your current contracts with mobile providers and see if you can reduce costs and increase services. You may even get the mobile company representatives to have a bit of humility. Or as this tweet from Rombokins says: