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DEVELOPING COUNTRIES that fail to transform effectively into knowledge-based economies will fall further behind more advanced countries, widening the disparities between developed and developing economies, an ADB Vice-President told participants at a seminar yesterday.

“To succeed in this increasingly competitive and global economy, countries must have an advanced ICT [information and communication technology] infrastructure, a highly educated workforce, dynamic research and innovation programs, and a supportive regulatory environment,” Geert van der Linden said.

He was introducing a two-part seminar on Knowledge-Based Economies with E-Services and Transforming Asian Economies with E-Services, held at the Hyderabad International Convention Center, part of a seminar series held ahead of the official opening of ADB’s Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors at the HICC tomorrow.

“The ability of ADB’s developing member countries to develop, capture, apply and, where appropriate, commercialize knowledge will be essential for meeting the region’s development challenges,” he said.

“Indeed, the widening gap between developed and developing countries highlights the urgency for developing countries to build and upgrade their science and technology capacities.”

The Vice-President, responsible for ADB’s knowledge management and sustainable development operations, stressed that ADB considers harnessing knowledge for development as a key priority. It has intensified its work in three areas - knowledge sharing and training, fostering regional networks, and investment in ICT.

“Looking to the future, it will be essential to encourage public-private partnerships for science and technology, particularly since such partnerships offer strong potential for contributing to the relevance, feasibility, and sustainability of ICT solutions,” he said.

One of the seminar’s featured speakers, N. Chandrasekaran, Executive Vice-President of Tata Consultancy Services in India, stressed that the digital divide is bridged through ICT, and that ICT has contributed significantly to the GDP of countries. For instance, he said that over 40,000 adult students have benefited from the computer based functional literacy program in India already, and that an ICT-supported rural employment scheme program has improved efficiency in administration, among others.

Sanjay Mirchandani, Microsoft’s Regional Vice-President, Asia Services, said that the key ingredients for a knowledge-based economy and for creating a sustainable technology eco-system are connectivity, affordability, language, content, and education.

Shoji Nishimoto, Assistant Administrator and Director for the United Nations Development Programme, focused on the role of development organizations in the context of the emerging knowledge economy, and the need for a paradigm shift to enhancing developmental effectiveness enabled by ICT. Networking and partnering between key stakeholders, he said, is needed.

“Technology and broadband penetration is forcing federal and regional governments in Asia to adapt and move forward,” observed Matthew Holden, SAP Director for Asia Pacific. Due to latest ICT developments, he said, developing countries can increasingly leapfrog traditional infrastructures, such as Cambodia, which is bypassing traditional analog ICT infrastructures and progressing directly to the digital era.

Kiran Karnik, President of the National Association of Software and Service Companies in India, added that ICT has many spin-off effects, including the empowering of women. He pointed out that about 30% of ICT professionals in India are women.

Gajaraj Dhanarajan, Vice Chancellor of the Wawasan Open University College in Malaysia, elaborated on the possibilities for ICT to enrich and diversify curriculum, interactivity and independence, flexibility, and connectivity, in the context of e-learning. “The lack of our own imagination is the key obstacle for effectively utilizing technology for improving learning,” he stressed.

Graham Dwyer is an External Relations Specialist, Daan Boom is a Principal Knowledge Management Specialist, and Jouko Sarvi is a Principal Education Specialist.

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