ICT infrastructure in the former conflict areas in the North and East of Sri Lanka is not far behind the rest of the country. One can get a mobile signal almost everywhere; 3G is available in parts of the Northern and Eastern province and even ADSL in Jaffna. But access differs. The latest 2009/10 household income and expenditure survey revealed that household access to basic amenities, including communication (TV, radio, phone) in these two provinces was the lowest in the country. Yet our Teleuse@BOP4 survey reveals that amongst the poor, usage is not very different. In fact in some cases usage amongst the poor is greater in these two provinces.
Such connectivity provides opportunities for economic, social and cultural connectivity for the formerly “disconnected” populations in the former conflict zones. Yet leverage of ICTs for this, remains limited.
Preliminary research results on the use of ICTs in post-conflict Sri Lanka were presented at World Bank panel at ICTD 2012. This research is being conducted by Sriganesh Lokanathan for the World Bank as part of a series of studies that aim to fill the ICT4D knowledge gap in the areas of post-conflcit situations. The presentation was made by LIRNEasia CEO, Rohan Samarajiva.
The slides are available HERE.
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