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CrowdGlobe: The Dead Ushahidi reality behind 12,795 Ushahidi Crowdmaps

CrowdGlobe: The Dead Ushahidi reality behind 12,795 Ushahidi Crowdmaps

Published on: Aug 29 2012 by Wayan Vota - 2 Comments
CrowdGlobe has analyzed both Ushahidi and Crowdmap data as well as its user base. The Ushahidi platform, which means, “witness” in Swahili, is a free...
8 Lessons Learned to Improve ICT-enabled FM Radio Station Sustainability

8 Lessons Learned to Improve ICT-enabled FM Radio Station Sustainability

Published on: Aug 27 2012 by Wayan Vota - 1 Comment
Recently, the African Farm Radio Research Initiative sought to test the effectiveness of a new radio campaign model developed by Farm Radio International: the participatory...
How Can We Strengthen Local Capacity for ICTs in M&E?

How Can We Strengthen Local Capacity for ICTs in M&E?

Published on: Aug 24 2012 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on How Can We Strengthen Local Capacity for ICTs in M&E?
New technologies are changing the nature of monitoring and evaluation, as seen in our previous Salon on the use of ICTs in M&E. However, the use of new technologies...
Local Alternatives for Global Development: Rediscovering Libraries

Local Alternatives for Global Development: Rediscovering Libraries

Published on: Aug 20 2012 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on Local Alternatives for Global Development: Rediscovering Libraries
With the rapid expansion of new technologies and emerging perspectives on what works, the global development community is looking for new thinking on solving...
Does a 40% breakage rate for Kindles in Africa matter?

Does a 40% breakage rate for Kindles in Africa matter?

Published on: Aug 13 2012 by Wayan Vota - 5 Comments
Recently, I was sharing one of the more striking results from the USAID-funded WorldReader e-Reader Ghana Pilot assessment that should give anyone in ICT4D pause: E-reader...
Are WiFi-only tablets and mobile devices impractical in hotspot-starved African countries?

Are WiFi-only tablets and mobile devices impractical in hotspot-starved African countries?

Published on: Jul 30 2012 by Wayan Vota - 6 Comments
One disappointment with the new Google Nexus 7 tablet is the lack of 3G connectivity. It only has WiFi and some people wonder if that makes it impractical in developing...
9 Lessons to Learn from Fail Faire UK 2012

9 Lessons to Learn from Fail Faire UK 2012

Published on: Jul 23 2012 by Wayan Vota - 4 Comments
We had an amazing sharing of failure at Fail Faire UK 2012, and amidst the laughter at how wrong we can be in deploying information and communication technologies...
Celebrate the IDEOS vs. Samsung $100 Smartphone Price War in Kenya

Celebrate the IDEOS vs. Samsung $100 Smartphone Price War in Kenya

Published on: Jul 20 2012 by Wayan Vota - 2 Comments
Lucky Kenyans. They are benefiting from an ongoing $100 smartphone price war between IDEOS and Samsung. On one side, you have the Huawei IDEOS U8150, which...
The Complete List of 79 Academic ICT4D Journals and Publications

The Complete List of 79 Academic ICT4D Journals and Publications

Published on: Jul 18 2012 by Wayan Vota - 3 Comments
One source of continuous frustration for ICT4D academic researchers is the glacial pace of academia. One has to submit papers 8 months in advance for conferences...
Better than “Smart Handpumps” are Empowered Handpump Users

Better than “Smart Handpumps” are Empowered Handpump Users

Published on: Jul 13 2012 by Wayan Vota - 2 Comments
Every so often, I see ICT4D projects that have way over-thought their solution, going for whiz-bang technology over simpler, human solutions. Here is an example...