The UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, the Malian “interplanetary navigator”, Cheick Modibo Diarra, calls for technological development in Africa

What do Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) represent for Africa?

They are indispensable tools, the best solution to many problems. Currently, for example, a lack of document archiving tools means a whole nation’s history is lost. We keep few records - even birth certificates are not archived. Information technology will enable us to conserve our heritage and to improve the way we use information.

It is in the realm of education that ICT is most promising. In Africa, the majority of the population is under 25. This youth must be able to acquire an added value, which only education can provide. Thanks to ICT, we will be able to offer very effective training. Thanks to tele-conferencing, a good teacher will be able to share his knowledge with 5000 individuals, with no additional expense. This is a marvellous tool to enlighten the young and democratise access to information. Finally, small businesses will be able to develop thanks to ICT.

How to increase ICT dissemination in Africa?

We must be able to access the same technology as that available in the developed countries and we must not be satisfied with marginal solutions, which do not offer comparable services. One must not use poverty as an excuse to become even poorer. An additional effort must be made to reduce the cost of memory and processors, so that Africa may benefit from the same processing power as the rest of the planet. As for the cost of broadband, it is currently still prohibitive.

Also, financing must be directly allocated to projects in the field. I fear that the West’s expression of good will has not evolved and efforts are still targeting governments, while populations do not feel involved. This is distressing. We must identify local needs and provide resources to communities and to the young, who have the capacity to understand and use ICT.

What is the role of ICT businesses?

The ICT sector needs to evolve towards a greater sense of citizenship. This will happen, ultimately. In Africa, one of the world’s last large markets, people will understand that it is worthwhile dealing with those companies who invest in training the populations with whom they do business. The more people are educated, the more they will participate in globalisation. The old vision of a business without a face, without a country or a soul, is over now. People want friendly, community-based companies.

What is the ideal relation between businesses and the community?

Businesses who benefit from new markets should allocate a certain percentage to aid with local problems in countries where those profits were made. In return, the community can play an important role in the success or failure of a business: it has leverage and must use it to favour those community-based companies, rather than those interested only in immediate profit. In this sense, civil society must take its own destiny in hand.