The traditional assumption is that the penetration of information and communications technology (ICT) will generate development in less privileged communities. This assumption fails when considering that technology is only an instrument but not the ultimate goal to improve the population’s living conditions in conditions of disadvantage. Toyama (2012) states that ICT widen the gaps between the poorest and the wealthiest populations through three mechanisms:

• Differential Access: the richest and most powerful have greater access to ICTs than the poorest.
• Differential Capacity: even in the case of universal access to ICT, differences in education, social skills, or social connections persist.
• Differential Motivation: the poorest (and even more educated populations of the Global North) use ICT mainly for entertainment, not for learning or solving health and livelihood problems.

Toyama’s three mechanisms reflect that using ICT to address poverty and improve the living conditions of disadvantaged populations requires a holistic ecosystem. For that aim, human capacities continue to be relevant even in the presence of technologies. Human talent and intentions to use technological tools to address the main problems of each locality are complementary to each other. Therefore, Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach continues in force in the era of digitization and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It is not only about providing universal access to ICT but about asking: What will the poorest populations be able to do with the new technologies? Answering this question requires developing digital, interpersonal, pedagogical, and technical skills for that team that will coordinate the use of technologies by disadvantaged communities. Subsequently, it is also necessary to show the productive uses of technologies to solve day-to-day problems and discover new academic, work, and life expectations.

In the rise of online education due to the Covid-19 pandemic, educational continuity and addressing learning loss does not only require providing computers and internet access to students. These are only part of the instruments that will develop the knowledge and skills of the populations, especially the most disadvantaged. Instead, these instruments must be integrated into an ecosystem based on human talent and the will of the government, teachers, foreign donors, multilateral agencies, and other actors to provide lasting solutions for people’s learning. This approach requires addressing the structural gaps between the richest and the poorest regarding life prospects, knowledge, skills, motivations, and capacities to build communities.

References

Toyama, K. (2012, June 26). Can Technology End Poverty? Boston Review. Retrieved March 12, 2022, from https://bostonreview.net/forum/can-technology-end-poverty/