Many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa see information and communication technology (ICT) as a necessary foundation for long-term economic development. While the region has been very successful in increasing access to basic voice communications, there has been no comparable improvement in...

This book aims to help policy makers take advantage of the opportunities presented by increased cross-border trade in information technology (IT) services and IT-enabled services (ITES). It begins by defining the two industries and estimating the potential global market opportunities for trade...

This book is a compilation of two recently completed works on the convergence of information and communication technology (ICT) (Singh and Raja 2008, 2009). Since then, convergence, the eroding of boundaries among previously separate ICT services, networks, and business practices, has...

Just as the steam engine was the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution, broadband Internet is today seen as critical to the transition to knowledge-intensive economies across the world. As a general purpose technology, broadband Internet is considered as a fundamental driver of economic...

The handbook consists of seven chapters and two appendixes that look at how broadband is defined, why it is important, and how its development can be encouraged. Throughout the handbook, broadband is viewed as an ecosystem consisting of supply and demand components, both of which are equally...

Knowledge is fast becoming a key factor in economic and social development worldwide. Rapid innovations in science, communications and computing technologies are opening up new opportunities for countries to harness knowledge and participate more fully in the global economy. Developing countries...

Dissatisfaction with traditional project approaches and a recognition of the limitations of the sector adjustment programs led to the development of new lending instruments to improve the impact of development assistance on the sector as a whole. Within the Africa region of the World Bank, the...

This joint OED(Operations Evaluation Department)/OEG (Operations Evaluation Group) study follows up OED's 1993 review of the Bank's experience in telecommunications. It assesses how World Bank Group assistance from 1993 onward has influenced the development of information infrastructure in...

The World Bank'sGlobal Conference on Comprehensive Legal and Judicial Development in June 2000 offered an unprecedented opportunity to exchange views on reform, to compare results achieved and lessons learned, and to discuss the need for revised agendas and new goals for the future. This report...