THE ROLE OF ICT IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION

ICT is, and will continue to be, a catalyst in advancing and development. New information and communication technologies overcome the barriers of distance and time, and significantly improve the accessibility of information and knowledge. As a result, the sharing of information and knowledge quickly and effectively becomes feasible and acts as a key element in achieving development goals and mitigating the impact of unforeseen events such as natural disasters or outbreaks of disease. These paper aims to highlight some of the benefits developing countries can derive from the use and adoption of ICT, as well as some problems they encounter and what the government of these developing countries can do to assist in the implementation of ICT.