The advent of Info-ladies

How important actually information communication and technology (ICT) is? Most of the people living in the urban areas of the South Asian countries can readily answer this question. It's easy, they use it and they know a lot about it. But the rural areas of all the South Asian countries lack literacy, forget the use of hi-tech computers and internet. But in Bangladesh, the rural scene is undergoing some pretty ‘techy' changes. Yes, Bangladesh has created a whole new profession of info-persons or info -ladies.

The whole idea about these info-persons is not only to provide frequent and speedy information to the rural people about their daily problems regarding health, crops, families and almost every other thing. The idea was to create info-persons who could be of service to the rural people. These eventually were limited to info-ladies only due to cultural limitations. The access of ladies in rural houses is easier than that of males. Men usually do not allow their women to talk to unknown men. On the other hand, women can talk to women and men do not really mind reaching out to women for help.

The scheme of info-person was started as a small project, so there are not more than 23 ladies currently working in this field. The brilliant invent of Info-lady is brain child of D.Net, Bangladesh based not-for-profit research organization. It helps to provide use of ICT for economic development to the grass root level within the country. D.Net trains these ladies during workshops that are held at the organization's quarters. The whole plan revolves around the fact that the people who have access to ICTs have better access to information. This information puts these people ahead of other in the economic activities of the country.

The job of these women is to travel across villages. They have to meet at least 15 people a day in order to answer their queries. They travel village to village on a bicycle with portable communication technology like laptops, headphones for making messenger calls, webcams, digital camera for photography services, photo printer for printing photos, livelihood local language content and cell phone for commercial use. The content of the information given includes simple text, pictures and multimedia animations to involve all users, many of whom are illiterate. According to several reports, the villagers seem to enjoy these visuals, both still and animated. The excitement of talking on a head phone can easily be seen in the photographs of these innocent, simple beings.

Apart from Bangladesh, no other South Asian country seems to adapt and apply this project within their respective rural areas. The biggest advantage is to get people easy employment. In countries like Pakistan, where cellular communication has boosted so much during the past decade, the project seems not impossible. This will also help give boost to the ICT sector of the country. And we do not need info-ladies necessarily. We can have both genders working in our villages and small cities. We are not an industrial country and agriculture is what we need to flourish. We rely basically on these people who are far behind the appropriate information, let alone the technology part.

To initiate, Pakistani government schools that teach ICTs as subjects can pick out students who live in villages and come to study in the city. They can be asked to work in their respective rural areas during their summer and winter vacations in exchange of average government salary. Employment is what the people of this country needs. If the students successfully acquire positive results, then the government can start it on permanent basis. Bangladesh has 23 already working and currently 20 more are done with the training and are ready to work anytime asked. Our country is already going trough a lot, and all we need is to provide employment and projects like these can provide essential information that can boost ICT sectors and agricultural revenue of the country.

*Also published in South Asia Magazine, October issue

Not so bright...

I wonder what’s happening in Pakistan? Is there no good left? It makes me think as if nothing happy and joyful is going on in the country. Then I see a certain class of Pakistani metropolitan citizens, who despite of all the killings in the city would not stop having fun. I am talking about today’s youth. I live in Karachi. And I’ve been to Lahore and Islamabad as well. On the television, we see how youth of Pakistan is really concerned about what’s going around. But it hurts my heart that a much bigger portion of this green chunk does not really care. They, like every other Pakistani, are experts at pointing their fingers towards the badly governed system. But they would not try and think of solutions.
Our young ladies, rich or poor, are always talking about shopping and dresses while often including the increasing rates of their tailor monsters. They would tell stories how their tailors stitch so bad and as they are not satisfied, they want addresses and phone numbers of a friend’s tailor.
As of guys, they are into news and sports but there is this rebellious attitude developing in them. I see young kids, in their teens, using such a bad language. Words that I can not even write here are so common amongst our youth, and mostly among our boys. Their parents are busy watching televisions or earning bread and butter.
I don’t know really what’s our system is going to do to us. It’s such a polluted think tank, corrupt backbone and all this is our youth I am talking about. I am afraid Pakistan seems to have future... but not so bright .