The factors that contribute to the continuous usage of broadband technologies among youth in rural areas: A case of northern region of Malaysia

Despite the benefits of broadband technology in education and healthcare services, its usage in the rural areas is still low and Malaysia is not excluded. This situation leads to raising the question of long-term usage of the technology. Presently, there are less empirical study on the continuous usage of broadband technology among the youths particularly school children in the rural areas of Malaysia. The objective of this study is to determine the contributing factors for continuous usage of broadband technology among youths in the rural areas. Therefore, a research model was proposed consisting of eight contributing factors for continuous usage of broadband technology. Moreover, the study used quantitative approach by distributing 450 questionnaires to respondents in the northern region of Malaysia. However, only 393 questionnaires were returned which represent 87.33% response rate. The data collected were analyzed using a Structural Equation Model to investigate the relationship between contributing factors. The results showed that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, compatibility, facilitating condition, service quality, user behavioural intention and user satisfaction are the significant contributing factors that must be in place to ensure the continuous usage of broadband among youth in the rural areas. Hence, this study contributes to the body of knowledge in Community Informatics by providing a framework for achieving long-term use of broadband technology among youths in the rural areas, through the integration of Information System Continuance Post Acceptance and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology models. The factors identified may contribute as input to the government policy formulations and service providers to ensure continuous demand for broadband from the evidence extracted from this study. Continuous usage of broadband technology in the rural areas would have positive contributions on the academic performance, literacy among youths, bridging the digital divide in broadband usage, increase home business and national productivity

A computational model for dynamics in effective usage of ICT public access centre

In Malaysia, ICTs have been identified as a crucial enabler in the knowledge-based economy to facilitate the acquisition, utilization, and dissemination of knowledge towards enhancing the economic and social values of society.Numerous programmes have been organized, developed, designed and executed to optimize the usage of these ICT Public access centres (telecentres). This paper presents a computational model that addresses important factors contributing to the effective usage of telecentres. Simulation was used to show the behaviors produced by the model. Several cases of different scenarios showed various patterns that are consistent with past literatures. These results indicate that the model is able to illustrate different behaviors when different scenarios are applied.The model could be used as a justification for conducting an inception study to understand the working model of a telecentre’s operation given a certain scenario

Performance evaluation of Agribazaar

Many collective ICT initiatives and specific Internet applications has been implemented since the launch of the Multimedia Super Corridor in 1996 by the Malaysian government to offer support to the rural community. Implementing successful rural ICT applications is crucial to help bring services to the rural and also to improve the socio-economic status of the community. The agricultural sector has been given greater emphasis in Ninth Malaysian Plan, where the sector has been revitalized to become the third engine of growth in a New Agriculture. Agribazaar is a portal developed by the Malaysian Government to provide support and assistance to the agribusiness sector through multiple agencies, led by Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry. This initiative was implemented to help improve the agriculture industry in Malaysia. The portal has opened up more opportunities for conducting agribusiness and related industry from the local and international community.However, the review of the literature showed little work has been done on this study. An evaluation has been carried out with the users of Agribazaar through analyzing portal user comments, interviews, and focus group discussions.This research has revealed many issues and challenges although the Agribazaar has been successfully implemented and accepted by the users.Therefore, the research provides feedback from the users to the Department of Agriculture and as well as specify the requirement for future enhancement conducted by MIMOS who is the developer

The role of joint training in practitioner development for learning disability services

The presentation explores and evaluates an innovation in education and training in which two different professional trainings (nursing and social work) are integrated to produce jointly qualified specialist practitioners

Creating Resilient Futures

This open access edited volume critically examines a coherence building opportunity between Climate Change Adaptation, the Sustainable Development Goals and Disaster Risk Reduction agendas through presenting best practice approaches, and supporting Irish and international case studies. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted existing global inequalities and demonstrated the scope and scale of cascading socio-ecological impacts. The impacts of climate change on our global communities will likely dwarf the disruption brought on by the pandemic, and moreover, these impacts will be more diffuse and pervasive over a longer timeframe. This edited volume considers opportunities to address global challenges in the context of developing resilience as an integrated development continuum instead of through independent and siloed agendas

Availability of literature on social entreprenureship for sustainable wealth creation in internet

Social entrepreneurship has been the key discussed issue for the last few decades. This paper examines relative availability of materials related to social entreprenureship for sustainable wealth creation in order to develop hands-on, professional, ethical, which is promoted by the various organizations around the world. The main objective of this study was to examine the relative frequency of social entreprenureship and sustainable wealth creation by the organizations and other related concepts that are available in the Internet search engines. The study attempted to assess the availability of materials on social entreprenureship for sustainable wealth creation on the Internet. The Internet was accessed on 03 April 2012 from 11:05 a.m. – 13:05 p.m.; 2.30 p.m. – 4:30 pm. Duration: 240 minutes, [Gombak Time] and 04 April 2012 from 9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.; 11:30 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Duration: 180 minutes [Hulu Langat Time]. Ratios are expected to reflect more statistically meaningful indices. The study is very significant for theoretical development of social entreprenureship in sustainable wealth creation for companies in Malaysia. The Internet search engine provides instant information on social entreprenureship for sustainable wealth creation that can developed further

Green Energy Technology

This book, entitled “The Green Energy Technology”, covers technologies, products, equipment, and devices, as well as energy services, based on software and data protected by patents and/or trademarks. The recent trends underline the principles of a circular economy such as sustainable product design, extending the product’s lifecycle, reusability, and recycling. These are highly related to climate change and environmental impact, and limited natural resources require scientific research and novel technical solutions. This book will serve as a collection of the latest scientific and technological approaches to “green”—i.e., environmentally friendly and sustainable—technologies. While the focus is on energy and bioenergy, it also covers "green" solutions in all aspects of industrial engineering. Green Energy Technology addresses researchers, advanced students, technical consultants and decision-makers in industries and politics. This book is a comprehensive overview and in-depth technical research paper addressing recent progress in Green Energy Technology. We hope that readers will enjoy reading this book

Larger than elephants : inputs for an EU strategic approach to wildlife conservation in Africa

This study, Larger than elephants: input for an EU strategic approach for African Wildlife Conservation, is the operational response of the Wildlife Crisis Window, which is an integral part of the EU flagship ‘EU Biodiversity for Life’ (B4Life). B4Life is a conceptual framework to ensure better coherence and coordination of EU actions in the area of biodiversity and ecosystems. B4Life was defined in 2014 with the purpose of highlighting the strong linkages between ecosystems and livelihoods in view of contributing to poverty eradication. It aims to tackle the drastic biodiversity loss by promoting good governance of natural resources, securing healthy ecosystems for food security, and supporting innovative ways to manage natural capital in the framework of the green economy

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation: Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

This Special Report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation (SREX) has been jointly coordinated by Working Groups I (WGI) and II (WGII) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The report focuses on the relationship between climate change and extreme weather and climate events, the impacts of such events, and the strategies to manage the associated risks. The IPCC was jointly established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in particular to assess in a comprehensive, objective, and transparent manner all the relevant scientific, technical, and socioeconomic information to contribute in understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, the potential impacts, and the adaptation and mitigation options. Beginning in 1990, the IPCC has produced a series of Assessment Reports, Special Reports, Technical Papers, methodologies, and other key documents which have since become the standard references for policymakers and scientists.This Special Report, in particular, contributes to frame the challenge of dealing with extreme weather and climate events as an issue in decisionmaking under uncertainty, analyzing response in the context of risk management. The report consists of nine chapters, covering risk management; observed and projected changes in extreme weather and climate events; exposure and vulnerability to as well as losses resulting from such events; adaptation options from the local to the international scale; the role of sustainable development in modulating risks; and insights from specific case studies