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Population as a growth engine
The snap shot age distribution in a population can take three basic shapes. Pyramid is the most common in animal world where reaching the ripe old age is rare. Advances in medicine and economy have changed that in human societies. The pot shape is the best (till is lasts) as the workforce is larger with respect to the number of dependents (old and children). An urn, with a wider top and a bottom is the worst.
Starting in around 2013, points Rohan Samarajiva, Bangladesh will enter the best period for realising the demographic dividend, with the lowest levels of combined child and adult dependency in its history. It will be the closest to the ‘pot’ shape. This golden period will last until around 2033 when the more burdensome adult dependency (ratio of adults over 65 years of age to the working population aged 15-65 years) reaches significant proportions.
What does this mean to Bangladesh? How can that be exploited?
It is here that information and communication technologies can make a difference. In the past, only agricultural and manufacturing goods could be exported. Now, thanks to telecom, even services can be exported. Bangladesh is currently said to have 30,000 persons working in ..read more
Telecommunication Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka: Quo Vadis?
Perhaps it is time for Sri Lanka Telecom Regulator to be renamed ‘Telecom Revenue Commission’ as it generates more revenue for the government than two state banks and Port and the Petroleum Corporation, suggests Rohan Samarajiva in his column to Lanka Business Online. The 3.5 billion rupee question: Does it regulate?
The answer may interest the new boss, Anusha Palpita, who took over the reins few days back. “There is no problem with the administrative aspects, but I will have to get a grip on the technical side of TRCSL’s functions and duties”, he said to The Island- Sunday Edition yesterday. “As financial management is my forte, I need to study the technical factors involved”.
The new Director General is going to run the TRC on a part-time basis, writes Samarajiva, in addition to running the government information department. He too does not appear to have any special expertise in telecommunication or in regulation. With the part-time, ex officio Chair being the most over-burdened official in the country, the Secretary to the President, one wonders who is actually going to run the TRC. Or perhaps the thinking is that it is beyond redemption. Is it that the Special Committee to ..read more
Special Committee appointed to develop broadband in Sri Lanka – Daily News
Looks like it is too much a job for an ordinary committee. The special committee will miss the special guidance of Mr. Priyantha Kariyapperuma, Director General of Telecommunication Regulatory Committee of Sri Lanka, who tendered his not so special resignation yesterday, but the regulator giving some special attention to broadband quality is good news.
We reproduce the news story in today’s Daily News below. (Sorry for the scan quality. Online text is not available.)
ICTA’s version: Government initiative to develop high speed broadband Internet.
Sri Lanka: Financial Times elaborates on spam issue raised by LIRNEasia
The stream of blog posts started with a single SMS – apparently by the President of the country to every mobile user. It was initially thought a commercially paid advertisement aimed at the forthcoming Presidential Election but the operators confirmed it is a favour requested by the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. Does this violate the election laws of the country? Was that an unsolicited entry to mobile users’ personal spaces?
LIRNEasia with groundviews and W3Lanka blew the whistle first now it is the turn of the mass media. We reproduce here news item and the editorial carried by the Financial Times. The delay and scanned versions are explained by the unavailability of an online edition of the newspaper.
Editorial:
News Story:
(Please click on images for bigger views)
Sri Lanka: President uses SMS to wish mobile users: Why not Cell Broadcasting?
At least some have first assumed it a practical joke, but Daily Mirror online confirmed President did send a New Year wish to all mobile users today. Using romanised Sinhala President wrote “Kiwu paridi obata NIDAHAS, NIVAHAL RATAK laba dunnemi. Idiri anagathaya sarwapparakarayenma Wasanawantha Wewa! SUBA NAWA WASARAK WEWA! Mahinda Rajapaksa” (As promised I delivered you an independent and free country. May your future be a success. Happy New Year!)
At the cost of LKR 1 per SMS message, this might have cost approximately USD 150,000 – equivalent to publishing roughly 75 full-page colour advertisements in national newspapers.
Sender’s number was hidden so the millions of mobile users, now constitute at least half of the population, could not return the greetings.
Had Cell Broadcasting (CB) been available in Sri Lanka, President would not have to use SMS – which is relatively too cumbersome for both the sender and receiver. CB would have been more economical too. Given that it uses a different band and sends messages together, it wouldn’t have congested the networks and the cost would have been certainly less than USD 150,000. As CB, unlike SMS differentiates users President could have even used a romanised Tamil message in ..read more
Abhayagiriya: The centre of Knowledge Economy in 5-11th century?
Observed few things fresh on my day at the Abhayagiri monastery complex. One was a rock inscription in ancient devanagari. It was not about a donation made by a king or a minister, as usual, or even a notification of a new regulation. The Sanskrit stanza was meant for Buddhist monks. Not a rule; but more a guide.
Why in Sanskrit? The local language could have been more appropriate if not for the sizable foreign student population at this ancient university. An academy as famous as Takshila, Vikramashila and Nalanda in the ancient Buddhist world, the Abhyagiriya University was said to have hosted 5,000 student monks in its hey days according to Fa Xian, a Chinese Buddhist monk who traveled to Nepal, India, and Sri Lanka to acquire Buddhist scriptures in 5th CAD. The complex would have been larger than any of the present Sri Lankan university premises and of the same size of the ancient Anuradhapura city centre.
The cost of construction and maintenance couldn’t have come only from the government. No matter how pious the kings and the subjects were, they couldn’t have made such colossal allocations from the treasury for no return. The only modes of survival were by ..read more
Rural BPO at Mahavilachchiya: Still taxiing…
December 25 was just another working day at OnTime Technologies at Mahavilachchiya and things were going on at full throttle when I stepped-in to this rural BPO, arguably the first such initiative in Sri Lanka.
Here is the good and bad news.
Good news: The wheels are still in motion. Unlike most of the ICT4D projects (especially telecenters) that survive on donors’ oxygen, now it is self sustainable and taken seriously by the employees and villagers, who initially thought it would soon end. Employee turnover is low and what they do is seen as a career, rather than a pause till a better opportunity. Overall, the business prospects look good.
Bad News: The much hyped expansion to 50 seats has never happened. It still has 11.
Why it never took off? Certainly not because there is no work. The demand is still not met. Not the infrastructure issues too. Bandwidth is guaranteed. Capacity? Perhaps. Talent is in short supply in a village that had advanced level classes only in the arts stream, but it cannot be the only reason. It might be a management issue. Running a 50 seat BPO is certainly riskier. That needs strong management skills which someone cannot ..read more
Meet the Sinhala Bloggers…sans the anonymous political animals
At LIRNEasia, we all do our own CSR. Rohan and Harsha are perhaps among the most invited speakers to business conferences. Helani taught Information Systems to Masters students. Call this mine.
I do not blog. That is, if you do not count occasional posts at this site and comments on few others. I hate being called a blogger (Contrast to ‘Kathandara-kaaraya’ or story-wallah, whose Embarkation card identifies him a ‘Blogger’. Come on, what is wrong with ‘Engineer’?) Neither I have free time like Akkandi of UNDP Afghanistan, who enjoys the break after being airlifted few weeks back, or Beyond Frame – the bizarre character, going by the frequency of his posts, who should certainly be jobless. Apart from that, typing Sinhala is a pain.
Still I blend with Sinhala bloggers – virtually, most of the time. These are nice people, though a bit weird. I start my day reading blogs, not newspapers. Once in a while I find myself in the middle of a heated discussion. Sinhala bloggers have added significantly to our project on Broadband QoSE, so that some formally work with us. Malinthe, for example, does QoSE testing and Kalinga beta tests ..read more
Disaster Risk Reduction: Is Europe different?
Brussels, Nov 25-26 – Third Civil Protection Forum organized by the European Commission. It rains heavily, but fortunately no floods as in Ireland. Ideal environment to discuss disaster risks. I speak at Seminar F titled ‘Innovative Technology for Disaster Management’. I am one of the two speakers from Asia in the entire conference; the other is from Japan.
I am skeptic how they would take my presentation – all Asian experiences to an almost hundred percent European audience except for two gentlemen from Botswana. Developed vs. Developing world. Connected vs. Unconnected. Are the issues similar? Or is it a different scenario?
I am glad we find some common ground. Bridging last mile isn’t an issue as serious as in Asia, but ‘Cell Broadcasting’ generates an interest. A DRR professional from audience talks about their efforts to introduce the same in France, with some success. One gentleman from Botswana asks why not in Africa. He is also interested in SMS based solutions. I introduce the Sahana SMS module to him.
Other than that, the discussion focuses more on the issues technology creates, rather than ones it solves. They talk about ‘over dependence’ on technology and the problems old find using ..read more
LIRNEasia’s research presented at India Disaster Management Congress 2009
The Second India Disaster Management Congress (IDMC 2009) took place from 4-6 November at the Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. It was organized by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) to assemble, synthesize and further disseminate knowledge on disaster management in diverse sectors.
Natasha Udu-gama, former HazInfo Dissemination Manager and Researcher, presented “Implementing Inclusive ICTs: Mobile Cell Broadcasting for Public Warning and Commercial Use” based on the LIRNEasia study in the Maldives” completed in May 2009. Her presentation was made during the Early Warning and Disaster Communications session on Friday, 6 November. The session was chaired by Mr. Rohit Magotra, COO, Ekgaon Technologies and Mr. RC Bhatia, Former ADG, India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Doenload the presentation and the paper.
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