Argentina ICTD Initiatives Review

By Gustavo Pereyra (@heroedelmate)

Context


At the turn of the millennium Argentina faced one of the worst crises in its history: roughly 25% of its population was unemployed, and the economy had been in recession for most of the late share of the 90’s [1]. 
Call it funky timing, but it was only a couple of months before the president had to resign that the government passed legislation that encouraged –among other major reforms– the strategic inclusion of ICTs in the various administrative bodies of government [2]. Later on, and not without undergoing heavy circumstances some of which remain unsolved today, the country crawled out of the hole it had fallen in and entered a period of economic bonanza, so it became a much fertile ground for ICT initiatives. Those conditions led by 2005 to the National eGovernment Plan (“Plan Nacional de Gobierno Electrónico”) [3], which empowered the Undersecretary of Public Service as the main federal government organ to lead ICT initiatives.

Development Myths and Direct Health Care through ICT4D: The Medical Concierge Group

By Chalenge Masekera

The jury still out on whether developmental work and aid money given to developing countries is useful. To address this concern, Bill Gates released his annual letter during the DAVOS World Economic Forum titled ‘3 Myths That Block Progress For The Poor’. Of particular importance are the first two ‘myths’:

Myth 1: Poor countries are doomed to stay poor.

Myth 2: Foreign Aid is a big waste