ICT and Rural Development

This book dives into the achievements, opportunities, risks and dangers of ICT in the rural Global South, and takes a look at the likely future.

Drawing on years of experience across 45 counties, as well as extensive original academic research, Willem van Eekelen situates the evolving role of ICT in wider development patterns in the Global South. He discusses the effects of ICT on agriculture, trade, financial flows, resource management and governmental performance. He then considers the associated risks of financial insecurity, online gambling, exclusion, misinformation and the effects of ICT on people’s freedom. The book concludes with six recommendations to maximise the usefulness of rural ICT investments and minimise the risk of them causing harm.

This engaging and authoritative account of ICT and rural development will help students, academics, governmental policymakers, donors and investors wishing to support socio-economic development in the Global South.

Dr Willem van Eekelen is an economist who worked for a range of companies, donors, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations – always in the broad field of international development. Until 2010, Willem mostly held policy and programme positions. Since then, he has worked as an independent evaluator in the humanitarian and development sectors. In parallel, Willem supports organisations with their strategy development, holds occasional trusteeships and teaches at the University of Birmingham. Willem co-owns Green Visions, a rural adventure tourism company. His previous publications include academic works (including Routledge’s Rural Development in Practice) as well as a few tourist guides and Bloomsbury’s 100 ideas for Dads who love their kids but find them exhausting.