Evolving a software development methodology for commercial ICTD projects

This article discusses the evolution of a “DistRibuted Agile Methodology Addressing Technical Ictd in Commercial Settings” (DRAMATICS) that was developed in a global software corporation to support ICTD projects from initial team setup through ICT system design, development, and prototyping, to scaling up and transitioning, to sustainable commercial models. We developed the methodology using an iterative Action Research approach in a series of commercial ICTD projects over a period of more than six years. Our learning is reflected in distinctive methodology features that support the development of contextually adapted ICT systems, collaboration with local partners, involvement of end users in design, and the transition from research prototypes to scalable, long-term solutions. We offer DRAMATICS as an approach that others can appropriate and adapt to their particular project contexts. We report on the methodology evolution and provide evidence of its effectiveness in the projects where it has been used

See no evil? Ethics in an interventionist ICTD

This paper considers some of the ethical questions that arise in conducting interventionist ICTD research, and examines the ethical advice and guidance that is readily available to researchers. Recent years have seen a growing interest from technology researchers in applying their skills to address the needs and aspirations of people in developing regions. In contrast to much previous research in Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICTD) which has sought to study and understand processes surrounding technologies, technology researchers are interested in finding ways to change the forms of these technologies in order to promote desirable social aims. These more interventionist research encounters raise distinctive ethical challenges. This paper explores the discussions that have been presented in the major ICTD journals and conferences and major development studies journals as well as examining codes of conduct from related fields of research. Exploration of this literature shows that the quantity, quality and detail of advice that directly addresses the challenges of interventionist ICTD is actually very limited. This paper argues that the there is an urgent need for the ICTD research community to investigate and debate this subject

Moving ICTD research beyond bungee jumping: practical case studies and recommendations

The global spread of Internet and mobile communications has been accompanied by a growing interest in how information and communication technologies (ICTs) can contribute to social and economic development. There are a considerable number of such examples in developing countries. For example, M-Pesa in Kenya allows workers in the cities to send money back to families living in the countryside using SMS messages on basic mobile phones. In Ghana, the Motech project allows community health workers to use feature phones and network services to track ante-natal (and post-natal) care with the objective of improving outcomes for both mothers and babies. Other examples include Gram Vaani's (GRINS) open-source software for community radio stations, or Ushahidi's initiatives, which began with tracking post-electoral violence in Kenya in 2008 using mobile phones and Google maps. These examples illustrate different ways of leveraging ICT to improve lives and livelihoods worldwide. Such stories are inspiring many young (and not so young) researchers and innovators alike to explore how technology might support social and economic development and inclusion in global knowledge exchang

Human computer interaction for international development: past present and future

Recent years have seen a burgeoning interest in research into the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the context of developing regions, particularly into how such ICTs might be appropriately designed to meet the unique user and infrastructural requirements that we encounter in these cross-cultural environments. This emerging field, known to some as HCI4D, is the product of a diverse set of origins. As such, it can often be difficult to navigate prior work, and/or to piece together a broad picture of what the field looks like as a whole. In this paper, we aim to contextualize HCI4D—to give it some historical background, to review its existing literature spanning a number of research traditions, to discuss some of its key issues arising from the work done so far, and to suggest some major research objectives for the future

The ethical limits of bungee research in ICTD

Research in ICTD is difficult because engineers with technical expertise are separated from the challenges that they are trying to address by large physical distances and significant social differences. To overcome these challenges, much research involves occasional short visits by external researchers to developing regions to investigate problems and generate ideas which are then developed back at the engineers' home base before further return visits for deployment and evaluation. This paper highlights the ethical limitations of this `bungee research', and reflects on our experiences in evolving more fruitful research practices. We argue that relying on bungee research as a primary model of research engagement is unethical, and we suggest some minimal conditions that are necessary, but not sufficient, for such visits to be ethically defensible in ICTD research

Community multimedia centers in Mozambique: exploring and experimenting co-design

The overall aim of this doctoral thesis was to elucidate the premises and conditions in which a co-design approach can be used with rural communities in Mozambique and the usage of Information and communication technologies for development as a tool for supporting rural communities on daily activities. The doctoral thesis includes five papers, a systematic literature review, and four case studies. The literature review (I) provides an overview of 34 studies that describe the implementation of co-design with rural communities. In the review, papers published between 2002 and 2013 were clustered in three groups – information system, social design, and ICT4D. The analysis provided insightful information about the knowledge and taxonomies required to understand how actually co-design can be used to support communities. While the conventional development paradigm asserted that developing countries could be propelled to growth path by knowledge emanating from developed nations, new approaches give priority to design partnerships and participation by the local civil society as the best method to achieve sustainable development. Paper (II) describes a case study implemented in the Morrumbene district (Mozambique), which emphasizes the need to explore design spaces and meaningful dialogs to share past experiences and contextual knowledge. Data were collected via focus group sessions, which had as participant’s people from the local community, the CMC staff, and two researchers. Findings from the Morrumbene case show that an equalitarian approach where all participants’ ideas and perceptions are taken into consideration provides an artefact that unifies ideas and perceptions. It also creates conditions for individuals with social and political differences to work together, share ideas and competencies. Paper (III) brings a case study implemented in the Quelimane municipality. The case outlines a design perspective that brings up proactivity and trust as additional condiments to be taken into consideration while co- designing. Papers (IV) e (V) provides understanding on how co-design can be used to produce sustainable services for the community. The cases analyse aspects that hinder – or even stop – intended positive ICT4D benefits to becoming a reality. The case studies here presented were performed in the three regions of Mozambique (south, central and north), with social groups with different education level, language, and social status working towards the same objective. The findings of this thesis could be used to develop a plan to support CMC and to further improve rural community’s usage and adoption of ICT. CMC services are an important endeavour with significant payoff in communities’ daily lives and activities. This thesis also contributes to a more complete, balanced, and grounded image of how CMCs and local communities can work together to create socially and financially sustainable services

Supporting collaboration with non-literate forest communities in the congo-basin

Providing indigenous communities with ICT tools and methods for collecting and sharing their Traditional Ecological Knowledge is increasingly recognised as an avenue for improvements in environmental governance and socialenvironmental justice. In this paper we show how we carried out a usability engineering effort in the “wild” context of the Congolese rainforest – designing, evaluating and iteratively improving novel collaborative data collection interfaces for non-literate forest communities that can subsequently be used to facilitate communication and information sharing with logging companies. Working in this context necessitates adopting a thoroughly flexible approach to the design, development, introduction and evaluation of technology and the modes of interaction it offers. We show that we have improved participant accuracy from about 75% towards 95% and provide a set of guidelines for designing and evaluating ICT solutions in “extreme circumstances” – which hold lessons for CSCW, HCI and ICT4D practitioners dealing with similar challenges