Flavour of the Month for July 2011: Telecentres at the Margins
Measurement of poverty provides a good yardstick against which to assess marginalization. We use the social matrices to classify poverty based on incomes, health and nutrition, or education and knowledge. These indeed are the yardsticks that all efforts to unify mankind in development uses.
To help us delve into the discussion on marginalization, I would like to use the definition derived from Robert E. Park (1937) who noted that “the marginal man...is one whom fate has condemned to live in two societies and in two, not merely different but antagonistic cultures”. In other words, marginalization is the exclusion of a man from one culture into another, or making real, in the mind of the person, that there are two realms in life with one being better and the other not, and with him being in the one where exclusion is felt or experienced. In the mind of the marginalized therefore, they will visualize riches from which they are excluded – whatever focus they use to define poverty
The basis of creating telecentres was to provide a place of commonality in accessing the resource that is computers, the Internet, and other digital technologies, which help develop the digital skills to help support community economic, educational, and social development. Telecentres therefore seek to create a unifying platform for all by bridging the digital divide – through the provision of knowledge resources.
In the view of this month’s Flavor of the Month, my perception (which you have every reason to counter) is that the digital divide and the marginalization of man are the same side of the coin.
The focus for telecentres is to eliminate marginalization by addressing what societies see as the causes of the divide. Whatever you use as the basis of your telecentre model, it is the hope of the discourse of this discussion to hear from you, how you are addressing the marginalized – through whatever lens you assess that marginalization.
We want to hear from you the innovative approaches that can help others learn from you how your telecentre is doing to support the marginalized through the matrices of poverty indicated in the opening of this discourse as:
- Health and nutrition (Agriculture, Environment and Healthcare)
- Education and knowledge (Education and Digital literacy) or
- Income (Employment creation and Access to microfinance)
If your telecentre (or practice in supporting telecentre management) targets people with disabilities, women, the unemployed, out-of-school youth, or any of the measure of economic disadvantage, let us know how you have addressed marginalization (exclusion) by answering the following:
- What services (or products) does your telecentre provide?
- Do you categorize the services under any of the lead areas: Agriculture, Environment and Healthcare, Education and Digital literacy, or Employment creation and Access to microfinance
- Do you work jointly with the community in formulating these services; or what do you take into consideration to create them?
- Do you work with the government, other development partners, or professionals
- Do you think the categorization of service offering by telecentres under the headings of Agriculture, Environment and Healthcare, Education and Digital literacy or Employment creation and Access to microfinance can help in creating a measurable yardstick in assessing the needs of your target communities?
- Does provision of information and knowledge address marginalization?
Tags: Community, Marginalization, Matrices, Poverty, Telecentre
Views: 68
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Gelly Cezar Reston-Maypa on -
Our FITS Center or CeC in the Municipality of Banga is providing agricultural information on agribusiness venture of upland, and lowland farmers, modern agricultural technology accessing through the internet. provide hands-on training on ICT to marginalized farmers and rural women including out-of-school youth.
Voice call of farmers to Agri experts on rice, livestock and high value crops issues and problems encountered in their farms.
Conduct jobs fair, employment access and personal contact.
E-mail services,
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Permalink Reply by Kiringai Kamau on -
Dear Gelly,
This looks interesting, could you describe more the modern technology that uses the internet?
How do the farmers link with the experts, is it through a cellphone, a web portal and if so how are they equipped so that the marginalized are able to link up with the experts?
Are the job fairs aligned to the marginalized and how is this done? Most readers are left with the juicy feeling that you have left the most succulent portions of your ventures...
Can we hear you more loudly? Thanks!
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Permalink Reply by Nabil Eid on -
Dear Kiringai,
The flavor of the month for July 2011 " Telecentres at the Margins", the discussion is very important, therefore I add topic about this issue under titled "Telecentres at the Margins: Knowledge means force for development of marginalized Communities"
http://community.telecentre.org/profiles/blogs/telecentres-at-the-m...
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Permalink Reply by Nabil Eid on
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Dear Kiringai,
Knowledge means force for development of marginalized Communities
Please find all albums for workshops on the project knowledge network for disadvantaged communities.
Workshop on Knowledge Sharing and Networking in the ESCWA Region
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/training-workshop-on-k...
Workshop -Telecentre Leaders Forum
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/telecentre-leaders-for...
Workshop on the Management and Sustainability of Knowledge Hubs.
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/workshop-on-the-manage...
Workshop on the Enhancement of the Networking Capacities of Knowledge Hubs
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/charitable-society-for...
Workshop on Consolidation and Expansion of the ESCWA Knowledge Network.
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/workshop-on-the-consol...
Introductory Meeting of the ESCWA Knowledge Network Steering
http://community.telecentre.org/photo/albums/introductory-meeting-o...
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Permalink Reply by Kiringai Kamau on
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Nabil, I know if I wanted the details you would do very well in Arabic, I will get content with the stuff you have so ably directed us to.
Many of the followers in this discussion would like to know from you if knowledge sharing is a better provider of opportunities for the marginalized than my choice headings of agriculture, environment and healthcare...
I would indeed imagine that knowledge beats all of them where the marginalization is out of mobility.
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