Systems Development and
Developing Countries: The Question
of Participation
Sundeep Sahay
Overview of Lecture
• What do we understand by the
Scandivanian approach to participation?
• How suitable are they (or not) in the context
of developing countries?
• How can they be adapted to such contexts?
Is this desireable?
• Two case studies: South Africa and India
What is the Scandinavian Approach?
• Grounded in a strong action research
orientation. Since mid-seventies.
• Historically, can identify three trends:
– Strengthen capability of workers to question
technological changes.
– Producing technological alternatives by users.
– Rising ethical issues in technological projects
Underlying Assumptions
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A strong democratic tradition
An egalitarian culture
An educated workforce
Pervasiveness of IT in various sectors
Equality of sexes
Small in size
Relatively, stable job security
Implications in IS
• Has been appropriated in various ways:
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Participatory design
User participation
Prototyping
Bootstrapping
Cultivation
Improvisations etc
The challenge
• We all agree that participation is desirable?
• But the question is, is it feasible? In
particular contexts and conditions?
• And what can we do about it?
Two case studies
• South Africa – health care sector
• India – GIS fo land management
A human rights
approach to
community
information
system
development for
the care of
orphans and
vulnerable
children (OVC)
Presentation by:
Elaine Byrne, DPhil.
student, University of
the Western Cape
Photographs courtesy of UNICEF, South Africa
What is
vulnerability?
Not having
‘time to
play’
“10 years from now, at
least one in three South
African children under
18 years of age will have
lost a mother or a father
or both parents to
AIDS”
The
HIV/AIDS
pandemic
If you are 15
years of age
and South
African, you
stand a greater
than 60%
chance of being
dead from
AIDS related
causes by the
age of 35.
an increasing
number of
children in
distress
How to
address
vulnerability?
Problem to be addressed at
two interconnected levels:
•Need the commitment of
government and society
•Information system that
includes vulnerability
Commitment
of
government
and society –
a human
rights
approach
Obligation on the part of the
South African Government.
Community members can
hold government
accountable, assess the
situation and take action as
necessary.
Addressing
vulnerability
using
information
systems
Information system is a
necessary condition for advocacy
and influence
Orphans and vulnerable
children are the least
visible in our current
information systems.
History of
information
systems
development
“.. the statistical information,
which a society chooses to collect
or to ignore about itself, tells one
a great deal about the priorities
and power relations within that
society.”
• Implications of a fragmented
health system in South Africa :
both health services and health
information system
• Developments since 1994
•Presence of community
information absent – needs to
be developed
Implications
of human
rights based
approach
•Obligatory
•Systemic and structural
conditions - capacity
development
•Participation
Participation
- Points of
departure
from
conventional
approach
•Politics of participation
•Participation of community
•National
Further steps
in my
research –
Empirical
work
Exploring vulnerability with children,
key policy makers and advocators for
children
Audit of existing formal information
systems on vulnerability
•Okhahlamba, KwaZulu-Natal
Understanding vulnerability and
how to measure it;
Defining objectives and
developing indicators
Special
thanks to
…….
Sundeep Sahay,
Uta Lehmann,
UNICEF,
Child Survival
Project,
British
Commonwealth
How is this IS different?
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Community, not organizational focus.
Need multi-level and multi-sectoral approach
Obligatory nature of community involvement.
Politics of ”participation” and ”non-participation”.
Need to develop capacity for participation.
Create a climate for learning, and to understand a
different existing climate of knowledge and
communication
The Indian Example
• Information systems for land management
– ”Rebirth of river” using traditional knowledge,
community driven
– Using GIS and scientific knowledge,
government driven
The Land Management Problem
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India is a ”biomass-based” country
Health of land linked to poverty mitigation
Currently, > 40% of the land is ”degrated”
Various socio-cultural-political-economic reasons
for the degradation
• Is a global concern, various international and local
initiatives ongoing.
• GIS a key element of the international programs
The Rebirth of a River
• Driven by community – end beneficiaries
• Catalyzed by a local NGO with roots in the
university
• Indigenous and traditional knowledge.
• Sustained effort over time.
• Consciously kept away from government.
• A resounding success – ”rebirth of river”
GIS for Land Management
• GIS used for modeling parameters effecting
quality of land – soil, slope, rainfall, burden
on land etc
• Technology developed by scientists
• Project implemented by district staff
• End-beneficiaries communities
• Limited success achieved here
What makes the difference?
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Nature of participatory processes
The nature of knowledge
Commitment of the actors
Governmental structures that enable or
constrain participation
• Cannot see participation on its own
Different Levels of Participation
• Government/donors – orthodox – no
participation
• RRA (Rapid Rural Appraisal) –
government/donor initiated
• PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal)
• Empowerment
Challenge
• How to generalize from localized successful
experiences?
• Both vulnerability and land management are
larger and universal problems.
• Government structures are extensive, but in
drawing upon them, you may stifle
participation? That is a key dilemna