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Top 7 Reasons Why Most ICT4D Projects Fail

Submitted by GINKS on Wednesday, 16th February, 2011 — Blog entry

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Video Interview: ICT4D Poverty Reduction Summit at Winneba, Ghana and across Africa by Dr. Clint Rogers

Top 7 Reasons Why Most ICT4D Projects Fail

Dr. Clint Rogers interviewed faculty and professionals around Africa for why they feel most information and communications for development (ICT4D) projects fail. He's condensed the interviews into this video of insights:

Watch this insightful and educative short video from the GINKS Blogsite: http://www.ginks.blogspot.com/

 

Much of the film was captured at the ICT4D Poverty Reduction Summit and there was consensus that these are the 7 reasons why ICT4D projects fail:

  1. Results not directly tied to improving economic condition of end user
  2. Not relevant to local contexts, strengths, or needs
  3. Not understanding infrastructure capacity
  4. Underestimating maintenance costs and issues
  5. Projects supported only by short-term grants
  6. Solutions are not looking at the whole problem
  7. Projects built on condescending assumptions

Reading these points and watching the video, I have to agree they've captured the top 7. What do you think?

Source: ICTWorks
Link: http://www.ictworks.org/news/2011/01/05/top-7-reasons-why-most-ict4d-projects-fail

Location

Accra, Ghana

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Comments

7 reasons why ICT4D projects fail:

Comment Author

AHM Bazlur Rahman

Sunday, 29th January, 2012

Dear All,
Greetings from Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC)
I am a advocate of ICT4D from 2000 in South Asia. I fully agree with 7 reasons why ICT4D projects fail:

Much of the film was captured at the ICT4D Poverty Reduction Summit and there was consensus that these are the 7 reasons why ICT4D projects fail:

  1. Results not directly tied to improving economic condition of end user
  2. Not relevant to local contexts, strengths, or needs
  3. Not understanding infrastructure capacity
  4. Underestimating maintenance costs and issues
  5. Projects supported only by short-term grants
  6. Solutions are not looking at the whole problem
  7. Projects built on condescending assumptions
With best regards,


Bazlu _______________________ AHM. Bazlur Rahman-S21BR
Chief Executive Officer
Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC)
[NGO in Special Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council]
& 
Head, Community Radio Academy 
 
House: 13/1, Road: 2, Shaymoli, Dhaka-1207  Bangladesh
Phone: +88-02-9130750, +88-02-9138501, Cell: +88 01711881647 
Fax: 88-02-9138501-105,  E-mail: ceo@bnnrc.net, bnnrcbd@gmail.com  www.bnnrc.net

ICT4D failure

Comment Author

Toure Mahamadou

Monday, 21st February, 2011

I do think that the goal for all projects in ICT4D is the use of ICT to improve our daily life. This challenge cannot be performed only if people have acces to ICT devices, electricity and a mean to be in network using Internet or GSM network at an affordable price for final users.  The main issues are the availability of electricity and internet at a low price, specially in rural remote areas in developping countries.
Electricity may be furnished by renewable sources (solar energy for exemple). Projects may help to get hardwares and train people to use them. The main problem remains the permanent access to internet and mobile network. That needs a political solution.
If electricity and internet available, people will know how to use ICT to improve their life. Then any project cannot be successfull if it is not initiated or accepted by final users. 

Change Management

Comment Author

Anne Fuhrmann

Monday, 21st February, 2011

When I did research in Uganda, my interview partners pointed out the issue of change management, especially when it comes to e-government solutions.
Do you have any insights/experience in how this change management can be successful?

Very very nice video with

Comment Author

Anne-Marijke Podt

Friday, 18th February, 2011

Very very nice video with several great insights. One of the things I was missing (though it does belong with "local context") is looking at the capital when planning for the rural areas... connectivity, availability of ICT trained staff and needs may differ more between Accra and rural Ghana then between Accra and Amsterdam!