new form of global society,the Information Society,or Knowledge society, combine to a crescendo culminating in views such as those expressed by Chisenga,who argues, "Unless appropriate measures are taken, most people will run the risk of being left out of the benefits of the information society" (2001: 3). These calls are not simply academic in origin,but reflect a dominant discourse at the intemationallevel (CTO 2001).
The central thrust towards mobilizing ICT's for development, as a popular discourse of redressing the past, empowerment and capacity building,has been through the debate about universal service,and the practical implementation of broadening connectivity (Horwitz 1997). This debate initially led to provisions in the Telecommunications Act (1997) for the creation of the Universal Service Agency (USA) whose task it would be to establish a telecentre movement in South Africa (funded through statutory transfers from
telecommunications operators). While it became clear that there were major shortcomings in the framework oftelecentre rollout,the USA did begin setting up pilot tele-centres and at last count (end 2000) was instrumental (along with a range of partners,donor agencies included) in developing 65 centres with varying degrees of success (Benjamin 2002: 32).
Once again, it is possible to identify a range of institutional problems with the USA telecentre initiative (James 2001: 79; Benjamin 2002), including:
• The USA suffered from serious human resource constraints;
• Reporting lines were confused;
• Problems were encountered with collecting funds from operators and the Treasury;
• A pilot scheme was broadened into a full rollout program without the necessary budget or management skills in place.
The problems with the USA initiative go deeper,however, reflecting confusion at a policy level (around the meaning of universal service and access;the implications of cellular telephony) which has led Benjamin to comment that, "unintentionally the USA telecentre programme created dependency and stifled local adaptation and ownership" and that ''top down planning is very unlikely to achieve bottom up development" (2002:37). Furthermore, the USA became mired in scandal, which reduced its credibility and affectivity. For
example,the Business Day reported that,''the auditor-general found in a qualified audit for the 1998/99 financial year,tabled in Parliament,that the agency did not have any internal policies regarding fmancial management and internal controls"(Business Day 18/9/2000).
From an institutional perspective then,van Audenhove's(1999) comments seem to be appropriate:
Put rather simply, South Africa'spolitical leaders share the vision that lCT's can help to overcome some of the legacies of Apartheid. Especially in the area of services,lCT's are identified as facilitators in the restructuring of sectors and as the means of delivering services not readily available,through tele-education, tele- health,tele-governmentetc. This vision is based on a central belief in the possibilities ofICT's for social change. But this vision is not set out in a formal policy document, noristhere a strategic policy plan to arrive at the information society.
In a more general comment on the wide-ranging debate around ICT's and their role in development,Neil Butcher (2001) suggests that the mobilization of new information and communication technologies in the South African context has been seen by some as a panacea to our social problems,primarily in the fields of education and poverty. While we have heard the arguments put forward by Butcher before (see Mansell and Wehn 1998),he is at pains to ground his skepticism in a careful reading of the situation 'on the ground'; and suggests that the following characteristics of many ICT initiatives should caution us to their likely impact:
• Many initiatives are ill their infancy, with more emphasis on frameworks and planning, than on the real outcomes;
• Many projects set unrealistic targets,which reflects their 'newness' ;
• Too many projects rely on 'soft funding', rendering their long term effectiveness fragile;
• Too many projects are reliant on the energies of committed individuals;
• Too many projects are weighed down by discussion and wasted resources;
• Too many projects try and impose 'foreign' solutions on local problems.
He suggests that these problems indicate that there is a real risk "that we are repeating many of the mistakes that have been made in such initiatives" (Butcher 2001: 77). Of central importance to Butcher's views are the forms of organization which are often entrusted with carrying new initiatives through, and the difficulties associated with building sustainable community structures.
In the same vein, it is worth noting that the authoritative Information and Communication Technologies in the Commonwealth Report prepared by the Commonwealth
Telecommunications Organization (2001) bemoans the lack of data available on the so- called 'digital divide',particularly as it is measured within a country.It suggests that data about telecommunications infrastructure and regulatory environments urgently need to be supplemented with information about who is making use of existing access, how and for what purpose(s). In particular, attention should be paid to:
• users of telecommunications in newly served rural areas;
• women;
• socially disadvantaged groups;
• professional groups such as health workers and teachers;
• and newly formed small businesses.
While the Report points to the urgency of establishing an Information Society Index, a crucial set of indicators ofICT preparedness or readiness would assist policymaking,and should focus on human capacity/resources rather than on the technical or regulatory dimensions. Such an index would include factors such as overall literacy and numeracy rates,educational attainment and opportunities for IT training. This perspective is based on three central findings:
• internet usage is disproportionately high among high income groups in all societies;
• internet use rises with levels of educational attainment (and they quote the World Bank which reports that 98% of Zimbabwean, and 87% ofEthiopian internet users surveyed have university degrees);