Title: Policies on Access to Information Technologies: The Case of e-Mexico
Authors: Judith Mariscal, J. Ramon Gil-Garcia, Armando Aldama-Nalda
Pages: 16 pp.
ISSN: 1544-7529
Source: Information Technologies & International Development; Volume 7, Number 2, Summer 2011, 1–16
Publisher: USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism
Date (published): 09/06/2011
Date (accessed): 14/07/2011
Type of information: peer-reviewed article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
"This article examines the ICT-for-development program implemented by the Mexican government during the early 2000s, the “National e-Mexico System.” It focuses on the connectivity component of the program, which created shared access to ICTs. Little is known about the beneaciaries’ perception of the Digital Community Centers (DCCs), or about the use they give to these tools. In order to obtain an assessment on the beneats to users of these centers, we conducted an exploratory survey in a sample of 23 DCCs. The results of our study indicate that this program has a positive, albeit limited, impact. Mostly, beneats reach young students by supporting their schoolwork and offering recreational activities. The fundamental weaknesses of the program reside in its limited scope, its lack of training, and the very low quality of broadband that is offered."

Title: Mobile Money in Mexico
Source: Mobile Banking blog
Date (published): 09/06/2011
Date (accessed): 13/07/2011
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
"Mexico is such an important market from a mobile money perspective. The profile of the citizens, the proximity (and dependency on) a large remittance market and the big growth in mobile phones make this country one of the best candidate for the next big mobile money deployment. Not much has been achieved in the past years. With many false starts (and failures), have marked the early stages of mobile money in Mexico.

The big success of micro lending institutions to bring financial services to the lower income is an indication of the need that exist at the bottom of the pyramid and that fact that well-defined and managed services can be rolled-out to reach a large part of the population. Changes in the regulatory framework have made the possibility to roll-out more financial services grow. "

Title: Mexico’s oldest Native radio station wins UNESCO award
Author: Rick Kearns
Source: Indian Country Today
Date (published): 13/04/2010
Date (accessed): 03/05/2010
Type of information: article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
VERACRUZ, Mexico – For more than 40 years, Mexico’s oldest indigenous radio station has helped its listeners through many hardships, including repression and years of official neglect, and recently, the station’s work has been recognized by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

La Voz de los Campesinos won an international communications award for its interactive programming, featuring community messages and shows on local arts, customs, education and human rights that are translated into three indigenous languages.

La Voz de los Campesinos, XHFCE 105.5 FM or The Peasants’ Voice radio station from the eastern state of Verzacruz, Mexico was one of two recipients in the world that won UNESCO’s Prize for Rural Communication.

Title: Launch of Mexico’s Access to Information Index
Publisher: ARTICLE 19
Date (published): 29/04/2010
Date (accessed): 03/05/2010
Type of information: press release
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
ARTICLE 19 and its partner FUNDAR have today released an Access to Information Index for Mexico. Using a unique methodology, the Index tests the efficacy of Access to Information laws across 32 Mexican states.
In Mexico, the Right to Information (RTI) is entrenched in the Constitution and there is a Federal Transparency Law which gives effect to this right. However, because Mexico is a federal republic, each one of its 32 local state congresses must approve their own RTI legislation.
The ARTICLE 19 and FUNDAR Index measures the Federal Transparency Law and 32 local RTI laws against the country’s Constitutional mandate and national legislative development, also establishing a baseline setting out the minimum criteria to protect RTI.
The Index also evaluates RTI legislation against international standards and best international practices. It sets international human rights law and standards for freedom of information as an ideal benchmark to protect and enhance Access to Information.

See also: Mexico’s Access to Information Index

Title: Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia: Cross-country Study on Violence against Women and Information Communication Technologies
Authors: María Isabel Davidziuk, María Alejandra Davidziuk
Pages: 8 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 Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Colombia 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”. Despite the differences between and disparities among countries in the Latin American region, and that a great deal needs to be done before women achieve full digital participation and ownership, it is possible to assess a number of issues from a common perspective, in order to more clearly understand the problems faced, identify the challenges that need to be tackled, and find solutions that allow greater freedom for women and girls in Latin America.

Title: Technology for employability in Latin America: Research with at‐risk youth & people with disabilities
Authors: Joyojeet Pal, Jay Freistadt, Michele Frix, and Phil Neff
Pages: 94 pp.
Publisher: Technology & Social Change Group, University of Washington
Date (published): 06/11/2009
Date (accessed): 20/11/2009
Type of information: research paper
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
Since the early 1990s, there has been an increasing interest in technology training centers to build employability options of socially excluded groups in Latin America. This study examines the recent investment into computer centers providing basic technology training for people with disabilities and at‐risk youth. Using primary research in five countries: Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Venezuela, we discuss the ways in which technology training impacts the employability concerns of two populations with diverse needs and histories of social and economic exclusion from formal labor markets. The goal of this report is to provide scholars and policy‐makers an expansive survey of the landscape of issues around technology employability for socially excluded populations. Our findings are broadly divided into three segments. We first examine the environmental factors that impact such projects including the aspirational environment and the discourse of technology. We then discuss the short‐term impacts of these programs including the creation of pathways to employment, community‐building, as well as impacts on selfesteem and stigmatization and the potential of mismatched employment expectations from access to these programs. We finally turn to factors that influence the success of such programs including cost, certification, and accessible technology.

Title: Training on Communication and Information Technologies, Employment and Youth: The Case of Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico
Author Editor: Judith Mariscal, Antonio Jose Junqueira Botelho, Luis Gutierrez
Pages: 12 pp.
ISSN: 1544-7529
Source: Information Technologies & International Development, Volume 5, Number 2, Summer 2009, 19–30
Publisher: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Date (published): 10/07/2009
Date (accessed): 13/11/2009
Type of information: peer-reviewed article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML and pdf)
Abstract:
As information and communication technologies (ICTs) become widely used in most economic sectors, there are increasing opportunities for marginalized groups to join new productive processes. These career advancement opportunities are particularly attractive for poor, young individuals; however, this increased adoption may also widen social and economic gaps by providing few access points to already-marginalized groups. This study examines ICT training by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in three countries in Latin America: Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. Specifically, the study analyzes the use and effects of such training as a strategy for integrating marginalized youth groups into the knowledge-based economy. NGOs may play important roles as liaisons for effective adoption of ICTs. Professional training skills required by current market demands are, undoubtedly, a factor that contributes to the ability of marginalized youth to search for and secure employment. Today, these groups are socially and economically excluded. They face numerous obstacles, including a lack of both the quality education and the skills currently required by industries using ICTs and the support networks to obtain either employment or self-employment. ICT training offers unique opportunities for integrating marginalized youth into the new knowledge-based economy.

Title: Strategic Use of Mobile Telephony at the Bottom of the Pyramid: The Case of Mexico
Authors: Regina de Angoitia, Fernando Ramirez
Pages: 19 pp.
ISSN: 1544-7529
Source: Information Technologies & International Development, Volume 5, Number 3, Fall 2009, 35–53
Publisher: USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Date (published): 09/10/2009
Date (accessed): 07/11/2009
Type of information: peer-reviewed article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML and pdf)
Abstract:
The growing importance of mobile telephony for users at the bottom of the pyramid is reflected in the high proportion of their incomes devoted to this service. Evidence from communities in the developing world, where low-income users have developed strategies to minimize costs while continuing to benefit from access to communication, has opened new lines of research. Based on a survey of 1,000 mobile telephony users carried out in 2007, the present study assesses the strategies practiced by mobile users in two metropolitan areas of Mexico. The results show that the main short-term strategies to minimize the costs of mobile telephony are 1) using the phone only to receive calls, and 2) the use of SMS. In both cases, the main determinant of whether users at the bottom of the pyramid use cost-reduction strategies is their low economic status.