This is a pre-publication version of an article developed on the basis of a presentation made at the Annenberg Program on International Communication in Marina del Ray October 2005.
Pre-publication article on Wireless and Development Statistics relating to Wireless and Development [Power point presentation]
Summary of the original conference paper from Comminit.com related to Wireless and Development
It is vital to see wireless network development in Sri lanka as its less expensive to setup and maintain than wired networks.
I think at this stage sri lanka should first think of getting its internet backbone problem.As we all know Sri lanka’s ADSL network is unstable and the backbone is too small to occupy the user groups.
After that the telco’s should work on implementing Wifi hotspots in public places.Most of people in Sri Lanka still don’t know anything about Wifi and its advantages.
It is very important to have public awareness projects. Also the most important aspect is the security,it is a main concern today. I’m sure as long as a certain wireless network policy is drawn up, some sort of security can be established.Of course “100%” secure networks don’t exist but you can take precautions to prevent bad things from happening.
Problems of using WiFi in Sri Lanka are discussed at http://www.lirneasia.net/2005/12/usable-knowledge-for-growing-the-sector/#comments
An incomplete hotspot map for Colombo is at http://indi.ca/2005/12/it-512-delayed/