The VGKs were to be in areas where traffic patterns allowed for sustainability. Just because people live in villages, it does not mean that they never come to market or that their children do not go to school or tuition classes in rural nodal points. Careful studies were commissioned to identify places where there would be enough foot traffic to make telecenters sustainable. All this was thrown to the wind and telecenters were given to temples primarily at the behest of the President. Obviously, they are unsustainable. No amount of assistance from the computer technician at the local Vidatha center is going to bring foot traffic to fundamentally unsustainable locations. That answer given by the Minister in the interview linked here is a non sequitur. A technician can keep the computers operational, he/she can’t bring customers. And the Minister seems to thinks that charging fees increases the digital divide and that not charging fees and having the center close down narrows it. He makes no mention of the vouchers that were designed and implemented under e Sri Lanka to address the issue without making the centers unsustainable.

Sadly, Professor Vitarana repeats falsehoods and lies by omission. Now we are compelled to blame the former man of science. He is, we now understand, a common or garden politician who cares nothing for evidence.

If he wants evidence, there is plenty. You see, we do not give up hope. All he has to do is get a list of VGKs and Nenasalas from ICTA and check their locations to see who is serving urban areas and who is serving rural. The vouchers were operational, the last time we asked. All he has to do is ask.

The mobile industry partially got some relief. The minister reduced mobile set import tax to 12 percent from the proposed 25 percent.

However, the minister did not mention about SIM tax, which means Tk 800 tax on each new mobile connection would remain unchanged.

“The new budget seems to be fairly progressive, but we are disappointed to see that the SIM tax remains unchanged,” said Oddvar Hesjedal, chief executive officer of Grameenphone.

Revenues had fallen as the US recession took its toll on the auto and restaurant businesses which comprised the bulk of its customers but that the number of clients was growing, JKH said.

Roy also said it was important for Sri Lanka to expand higher education and technology training institutions to ensure the supply of trained people if the country wants to attract more BPO business.

He said Sri Lanka had the highest number of British-qualified accountants outside Britain and should capitalise on its own strengths instead of trying to compete with India.

Unlike previous virtual colloquia, where presenters (as well as participants) were abroad, this time, we were able to rely 100% on the Skype conference call. Just a few months ago for similar colloquia, we had to connect to the speaker through a (costly) overseas call on our fixed line phone.   Though Skype’s Call Conferencing facility was available at that time, call quality was poor and smooth connectivity was rare.

We connected to Erwin through Skype calling, and other participants were added on through Skype’s conference calling feature. The laptop running the conference call was connected to a set of speakers and a mic in LIRNEasia’s conference room.

The interesting part is that the router providing the Sri Lanka Telecom broadband link was two floors (i.e., two layers of concrete) above the conference room.  During the colloquium (roughly 1.5 hours), the connection was lost just once.  But within a few minutes connectivity was re-established and the colloquium proceeded.

This makes us wonder, has  broadband quality in Sri Lanka  improved? Or has

LIRNEasia’s benchmark reports on broadband quality of service experience has showed that Sri Lanka broadband download speeds actually did improve between February 2008 and 2009.

Download speed : From Feb 2008- Feb 2009 International

Or can it be that Skype has improved its product, in an attempt to capture the market ?

Whichever the reason is, we were able to conduct a colloquium very cost effectively and efficiently.

Since January, Washington State residents and small businesses have been allowed to drop off their televisions, computers and computer monitors free of charge to one of 200 collection points around the state. They have responded by dumping more than 15 million pounds of electronic waste, according to state collection data. If disposal continues at this rate, it will amount to more than five pounds for every man, woman and child per year.

In Sri Lanka, the Environment Ministry is collecting massive amounts of money from mobile usage, in the name of recycling mobile phones. There are more TV sets in the country than mobiles and they are bigger and therefore constitute a greater threat. What is the Ministry doing with our money?

Full story.

Presentation began by looking at the potential for M-money.

Why should we use m-money?

Improving efficiency: Improve services, financial services. BOP a target.

BOP (migrants) relies on various forms of remittances

Looking at Filipinos, 9% of BOP had a relative living abroad, and 13% in another part of the country, so there is a vested interest in m-money.

At present about 5% is going through informal channels according to the Filipino central bank. According to respondents about 80% sent through banks.

Workers need access to bank accounts in both the remitting and remitted country for remittances through banks. This is a limitation. M-money may not necessarily need an account in the remitting country.

Filipino workers generally prefere formal channels. Todays presentation will focus on m-money channels such as smart money of g-cash.

ADB: Transaction costs about 2.5%-3.5% of remittances.

For local remittances: Pawn shops used. Roughly remits around Php 500-1000. These are potential targets for m-money.

RS: How does the Pawn shops work? Pawn shops have a wide network, usually works through a call or SMS. A transaction number will be given to the person sending the money. The number will be given to the person who is due to receive the money. Identification is required for acquiring the cash. This is with regards to local remittances.

HG: Do the pawn shops work together, or is there a network that belong to one company. There is one network which has about 12,000 pawn shops.

Vasana: Are they licenced? EA: They are regulated by the central bank to a certain extend.

Central bank regulation is due to Anti Terrorism laws. Pawn shops charge a higher rate of interest. Technology is a catalyst for changing remittance landscape.

M-banking is one component of electronic money according to Circular 649 of Filipino Central Bank. M-Money is E-money stored in a mobile.

Electronic money defined as stored value or pre-paid payment mechanisms.

RS: can money loaded to the a pre-paid mobile account be refunded? EA: It is one of the issues which is going through regulatory process now.

3 modes of e-money issuers in Philippines: Bank (Smart money), Non bank financial institution recognised by BSP (Central Bank), Non bank registered with BSP as a money transfer agent (Example, GLOBE)

Registration is easier with Globe. Can do through SMS.

Looking at potential of M-money at the BOP the following method was used:
Method of access, Material access, skills access, Usage access

Method of access
Using LIRNEasia survey data, re-method of access, 566% of those who didnt use it said didnt know how to use it. According to focus group discussions, even though they were aware, they needed proof of efficiency, price.

With e-loading, familiarity with the Roman script is an advantage. If a person is familiar with transferring e-loads then using m-money will be easier.

Trust issues, Central bank looking at some of the issues. Security mechanisms such as PIN codes. At present Php 100,000 is the limit for any type of e-money. Same for M-money. Even if you have four m-money accounts, the total should be 100,000.

Material Access:
Only 13% of BOP have access to Bank accounts

On avearge there were 1.36 mobiles per household. More access to a mobile phones so there fore more potential for m-money.

Identification documents and physical access to cash in are seen as barriers to M-banking.

Individuals can get there m-money (Gcash) out from ATMs and cash in cash out venues. Therefore accessibility is an issue. There are already some Pawn shops being used as cash in cash out venues.

Can register from a distance but need to go to the bank to cash in. No identification cards in Philippines. Propoer identification is a problem in the Philippines.

Skills Access
40% of those surveyed in the LINREasia survey are familiar with e-loading.

99% of surveyed mobile users use SMS.

Filipinos top up small values at shorter time frames. Use to exchanging mobile top ups. This is consistent with remittance patterns.  Comparatively, Filipinos send money often in smaller amounts

GCASH and Smart are accepted as forms of payment in Philippines, but this maybe more common among the more affluent users.

GLOBE (2006): Transacting USD 117 Million on average.

SMART (2006) Transacting USD 257,200 average daily transactions.

HG: How much is charged for Transactions? EA: Basic of SMS cost, plus 1% of transaction cost or minimum of Php 10.

HG: Transmission takes one or multiple SMS? EA: Have to confirm but it maybe a minimum of 2 SMSs.

Challenges and Policy issues:

1) Developing mental access: Increasing awareness, better financial advantages.

2) Developing Material access: Making services that work with the kinds of phones used by BOP, making cash in/cash out more accessible.
Regulating GCASH and SMART:

100% reserve requirement

HG: 100% reserve requirement for just e-money or any transfer? EA: Thats for e-money.

HG: Is there a time limit on the money put in the e-money account? a 100% RR is very high. EA: They do not work as banks. Money is earned through transactions.

Policy Issues:
Security of the systems

prevention of fraud

Interoperability

Tracking users

Increasing access

RS: Comparisson with M-Pesa in Kenya will be useful.

HG: Comaprison with the regular banking transactions will also be useful.

A new study says public telephones are the most frequently used method of making calls by Indian women at the bottom of the social pyramid compared to other South Asian nations like Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Thailand.

Indian men at the bottom of the pyramid, on the other hand, rely more on their mobiles, the study said.

Women can walk into a phone booth at any time to connect to friends and families without the fear of being harassed, spied upon or discriminated against in terms of gender.

Home phones, said the study, exposed the women to being censured.

‘The respondents said children and others would overhear what was said. Public telephone was never a hassle and PCO owners would sometimes allow them credit if they ran out of money,’ Rohan Samarajiva, CEO of LIRNasia told IANS over telephone from Colombo in Sri Lanka.

The first of the news coverage:

Expatriate Bangladeshis called home more frequently than their Pakistani, Indian, Sri Lankan and Filipino counterparts, spending $48 a month to stay in touch, a survey says.

The survey ‘”Teleuse at the bottom of the pyramid”, conducted by LIRNEasia, a regional ICT policy research institute, found 87 percent of Bangladeshi migrants called home at least once a week, while 34 percent called home daily.

Dr Rohan Samarejiva, chairman and CEO of the LIRNEasia, disclosed the result of the survey on Sunday in Dhaka.

Dr Samarejiva said the survey was conducted over 1,500 overseas and domestic migrant workers from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Thailand.

The survey found that on average a Bangladeshi overseas migrant spends $48 per month, as against $15 by an Indian overseas migrant.

Overseas migrants mostly work in the Middle East and east or Southeast Asia.

On average, they earned approximately $485 and sent $203 home per month. The most popular way of communicating home was by telephone, though unlike the other nationalities, a significant 28 percent also made calls through the internet.

Other articles can be viewed here.

Local language electronic media coverage can be viewed below

The Health Workers collecting data in Sri Lanka are trained youth, in primary healthcare, belonging to the Sarvodaya Shanthi Sena Movement. Before the project they had not known each other. Now they have formed a social network to SMS each other of any health related issues or other. The same was not found with the Village Health Nurses and Publich Health Clinic staff in India. However, the Deputy Director of Health Services office, in Sivagangai, use www.way2sms.com, a SMS service offered (limited to 40 free SMS per day) in India, to schedule their monthly, weekly, or emergency meetings.

The project will be introducing a Common Alerting Protocol based SMS/Email/Web alert publishing module that is part of the Sahana Free and Open Source Software. In general both public health departments in India and Sri Lanka are in favor of an alerting/messaging system to communicate downstream with health workers at all layers.

From 15 – 23 June, Gordon Gow and I visit several, real-time biosurveillance program, pilot project sites in Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka and Sivaganaga District, State of Tamil Nadu, India. To learn more on the observations made, click to see the full report.

In addition reports provided by Sarvodaya and RTBI

1) Sarvodaya meetings report, Sri Lanka

2) RTBI meetings report, India

The study of over 1,500 domestic and overseas migrant workers in six Asian countries (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and Sri Lanka) has yielded some interesting insights in Bangladesh, with important policy implications.

Demand for communication among Bangaldeshi migrants surveyed was particularly high compared to the other countries surveyed; a significant number of overseas migrants even used the Internet to call home. Bangladeshi migrants were sending home around half of their salaries on average, mostly through banks, and hand-carried in cash. Mobiles play a key role in coordinating remittances; a small number of overseas migrants were even sending money home through their mobiles.

These findings as well as the important policy implications (e.g. on IPLC policy, as well as mobile payments policy) were elaborated on by Dr. Rohan Samarajiva, LIRNEasia Chair and CEO at the event. The presentation sides can be downloaded here.

The migrant study is a part of a large multi-country survey of telecom use at the bottom of the pyramid, Teleuse@BOP3. Teleuse@BOP is conducted by LIRNEasia every two years. The study looks at how the lowest socioeconomic groups or the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) make use of telecom and other ICTs in their lives. Teleuse@BOP3, the third of these studies was conducted between October 2008 and March 2009 and included Bangladesh for the first time. Teleuse@BOP3 also included a survey of BOP overseas and domestic migrant workers from the same six countries (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and Sri Lanka). Over 1,500 migrant workers were surveyed in late 2008. In Bangladesh, 180 recently returned overseas migrants and 170 domestic migrants were surveyed. In-depth qualitative research with similar migrant workers as well as their families was conducted in the six countries in early 2009.

The Bangladeshi findings from the main Teleuse@BOP3 study can be downloaded here: Teleuse@BOP3 Bangladesh findings 26Jun09

Concerned over frequent setback to telecommunication, hampering operations against the Naxals, the Home Ministry has offered that the towers could be located in the premises of para-military forces stationed in the troubled districts or in the campuses of police stations.

Home Ministry officials said the highest number of 20 towers were destroyed during the last three years in Chhattisgarh, where last year alone 14 mobile telephone towers of both private and government networks were attacked.

Full story.

The good news for South Asia is that Sri Lanka has moved up from 29 to 16 and Pakistan from 30 to 20. India, of course, sits at the top, no change from 2007. The advances of Sri Lanka and Pakistan have been at the expense of the Northern European countries (e.g., Lithuania and Latvia), Singapore and the UAE. Other than Singapore, the rest of SE Asia, including Vietnam are ahead of Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Ghana, Jordan, Egypt are still ahead.

And where is Bangladesh?

The project is funded by the International Development Research Center (IDRC) of Canada; an inception meeting was recently held in Kampala, Uganda, which Harsha de Silva attended. The project will be conducted in six African countries: Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, Ghana, Benin, and Madagascar.

The  Scientific Advisory Committee constitutes:

• Prof. Chris Ackello-Ogutu, Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nairobi, Kenya
• Prof. Julian May, School of Development Studies, Kwa Zulu Natal, South Africa
• Dr. Colin Poulton, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
• Dr. Adrian Mukhebi, CEO Kenya Agricultural Commodity Exchange and Market Economist, Nairobi
• Dr Harsha M. De Silva, Lead Economist, LIRNEasi

Harsha leads the agriculture-focused research at LIRNEasia, including a study on the impact of ICTs on transaction costs in agricultural markets in 2007.