Title: Who's got the phone? Gender and the use of the telephone at the bottom of the pyramid
Authors: Ayesha Zainudeen, Tahani Iqbal, and Rohan Samarajiva
Pages: 37 pp.
Source: LIRNEasia
Date (published): 15/06/2010
Date (accessed): 17/06/2010
Type of information: research paper, pre-publication draft
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
Much has been said about women’s access to and use of the telephone. Many studies conclude that a significant gender divide in access exists particularly in developing countries. Women are also said to use telephones in a different manner from men – making and receiving more calls, spending more time on calls, and using telephones primarily for ‘relationship maintenance’ purposes, in contrast to men. However, much of this research on usage patterns is based on small-sample studies in affluent developed countries. The article provides evidence that a significant gender divide in access to telephones exists in Pakistan and India, to a lesser extent in Sri Lanka, but is generally absent in the Philippines and Thailand. This article also challenges some of the findings of studies which claim that women’s and men’s use is fundamentally different, shedding light on women’s access to and use of telecom services at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) in five Emerging Asian markets.

Title: Connect to the bottom of the pyramid. South Asian and African countries share notes on mobile services for socio-economic development

Author: M. Somasekhar
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Date (published): 10/05/2010
Date (accessed): 10/05/2010
Type of information: aricle
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
How much time do you think it takes a poor person in one of the least developed places in any South Asian country to reach a telephone — either fixed or mobile?

The answer is about five minutes. This facilitates chat and basic communication for people who fall under the category of bottom of the pyramid (BoP). At the other end of the spectrum are people who have access to broadband services, high-speed Internet connectivity and e-commerce on their mobile phone.

This is a typical scenario in many South Asian and African countries where telecom and the Internet promise to usher in dramatic changes in the quality of life of the people. The challenge is to come up with suitable applications to harness this power to help the poor people.

So, in addition to talking, can such technology help them transfer money, pay utility bills, get information on health/ farming, or book tickets and so on?

via http://lirneasia.net/

Title: Internet, schoolchildren and rural Pakistan: How to get community buy-in including for girls
Source: Association for Progressive Communications

Date (published): 10/03/2010
Date (accessed): 12/03/2010
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
It was by coincidence that 29 year-old software developer Huda Sarfraz got involved in the Dareecha project. It was the first time the Centre for Research in Urdu Language Processing (CRULP) had directly taken on the social perspective of a project by taking technology to the people and the Lahore resident decided she would stay on and give it a try. Huda as part of Dareecha (meaning “window”) set about training school children and teachers from the rural Punjab to use the internet so that they could eventually create their own content.
And create content they did – with their new skills, students and teachers in rural villages created 57 new, locally-relevant school and community web sites, which they presented in a competition held by Dareecha in June and August 2009. The judging panel, comprised of government officials, academia and ICT experts couldn’t help but notice the strong presence of women and girls among the winners. This was a sign that the Gender Evaluation Methodology (GEM), an evaluation methodology the Dareecha team had used to compliment other planning methods for the project, had helped them get through to a segment of the population other more traditional planning methods may not have achieved: women and girls.

Title: Cambodia, Malaysia, Pakistan and the Philippines: Cross-country Study on Violence against Women and Information Communication Technologies
Author: Sonia Randhawa
Pages: 7 pp.
Publisher: genderIT.org
Date (published): 22/02/2010
Date (accessed): 24/02/2010
Type of information: research article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
This article presents and compares the findings of four national reports from Cambodia, Malaysia, Pakistan and the Philippines undertaken by the Association for Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP) as part of the project “Strengthening women’s strategic use of ICTs to combat violence against women and girls”. Asia has been at the forefront of embracing new information and communications technologies (ICTs), and in using them to promote democracy and human rights. From using SMSes to coordinate public protests in the Philippines, to circumventing the firewalls of Burma and China, Asians have shown ingenuity in mobilising ICTs for innovative rights-based purposes. However, ICTs in the region have also been used to violate rights, through increased opportunities for censorship and surveillance; whether surveillance by the state, or by perpetrators of violence against women (VAW). This article looks at the intersection between ICTs and violence against women, an area often overlooked in the discourse on ICTs and human rights, which tends to focus primarily on issues of access and freedom of expression.

Title: A Historical View of Pakistan Telecom Industry and Its Impact on Pakistan Culture
Author: Babar Bhatti
Source: State of Telecom Industry in Pakistan
Date (published): 28/12/2009
Date (accessed): 28/12/2009
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Taimur Sikander has written an interesting article for Dawn about the long way that telecom has come in Pakistan and the impact of mobile phones and telecommunication on Pakistan society. I particularly like how he provides snapshots of the early days, and the way politics, arts and culture were shaped by telecom.

Title: Bottom of the Pyramid Expenditure Patterns on Mobile Phone Services in Selected Emerging Asian Countries
Authors: Aileen Agüero, Harsha de Silva
Pages: 29 pp.
Source: CPRsouth
Date (published): 15/12/2009
Date (accessed): 22/12/2009
Type of information: conference paper
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
This paper evaluates the importance of mobile telephone expenditure in consumer budgets of the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Thailand. We examine if mobile phone services in the selected countries display characteristics of a luxury good or that of a necessity. Upon evaluating the expenditure patterns as a share of total personal income we conclude the service to be a necessity.
Welfare and poverty issues are then addressed with the estimation of Engel curves, as they show how consumption of various goods and services change with variations in the consumer’s income. We estimate Engel curves for expenditure on mobile telephone services for the BOP in the selected countries to show that mobile phones are part of everyday lives among the selected consumer group.

See also:
Presentation pdf

Title: Opportunities In Mobile Financial Services
Author: Arsalan Mir
Source: State Of Telecom Industry in Pakista
Date (published): 15/12/2009
Date (accessed): 15/12/2009
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Mobile banking has undoubtedly taken the lead with the collaborative mobile banking model, where collaboration takes place between the carriers and the banks who can distribute the roles of the value chain amongst themselves. An example of this is ‘easypaisa‘ from Telenor Pakistan and Tameer Bank.
The fast changing dynamics will soon take the Mobile banking to new levels.

See also: Second part

Title: What happens when a mobile operator and a microfinance bank join up? EasyPaisa launches in Pakistan
Author: Kabir Kumar
Publisher: CGAP: Consultative Group to Assist the Poor
Date (published): 23/11/2009
Date (accessed): 23/11/2009
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
EasyPaisa, the m-banking service by Telenor and Tameer, went live on Oct 14. They call it the “largest branchless banking service in Pakistan” on their website where you can watch a couple of the ads that people may have been discovering on You Tube.

See also:
Easypaisa ‘Money Transfer’ Explained
State of Telecom Industry in Pakistan blog

Title: Analysing the Mobile Telecommunications Market in a Developing Country: A Socio-Technical Perspective on Pakistan
Authors: Ping Gao and Adnan Rafiq
Pages: 30 pp.
ISBN: 978-1-905469-08-6
Source: Development Informatics Working Paper Series, Paper No. 40
Publisher: Centre for Development Informatics, Institute for Development Policy and Management, SED
Date (published): 25/06/2009
Date (accessed): 05/10/2009
Type of information: research paper
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML and pdf and zipped MS WORD)
Abstract:
This paper studies the dynamics of the mobile telecommunications market and the factors responsible for the deployment and growth of mobile infrastructure in the context of developing countries. Our analytical framework treats the mobile telecommunications market as a socio-technical system. Specifically, we define the telecommunications market as being composed of technology standards and three sets of social actors that include government institutions, network and service providers, and users. We show how this model can be used to analyse the telecommunications sector in developing countries by using a specific case study.

The study examines the case of Pakistan's mobile telecommunications market. It concludes that social actors together determine the adoption of standards and services, and thus shape the trajectory of the market. Our case study provides evidence that a pro-competition policy is imperative for mobile telecommunications development in developing countries, and that an independent regulator is critical in promoting technological innovation.

See also:
Educator's guide to student questions for this paper

Title: The Gender Digital Divide in Rural Pakistan - To Measure and to Bridge it
Source: Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Islamabad
Date (accessed): 27/08/2009
Type of information: series of research papers
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML, PDF)
Abstract:
The importance of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to economic development has been recognized widely during the last decade. The development promises made by the significant growth of ICTs are challenged by the so-called digital divide. The ‘digital divide’ refers to the drastic differences in levels of ICT access between different population groups. While in Pakistan during the past years, the number of mobile phone users and computer applications has been tremendously increased, rural areas are significantly underserved. A significant but largely invisible aspect of the digital divide is the gap in access to and use of ICTs between women and men, girls and boys. For Pakistan, the assessment for gender-specific ICT use and its impact on development has yet to be made.The specific objectives of the project are to measure the extent of the gender digital divide in rural Pakistan, to raise awareness about the issue and to draw lessons for appropriate technology and governance conducive for improved access of women and girls to ICTs. The research techniques include gender specific FGD’s, structured questionnaires and key informant interviews. Dissemination of the research is an important focus and will be done through a seminar series, academic presentations, trainings, policy briefs, newspaper articles etc.