THE ROLE OF CONNECTIVITY AND KNOWLEDGE SHARING

[admin]

The presenter sited the importance of knowledge sharing as one of important aspect in the life of a modern knowledge economy. Knowledge sharing provides access to advice, experience and approaches for the economic growth especially in this information age as it facilitates innovation and decision making. It is therefore important that the government and other stakeholders invest in knowledge sharing to facilitate innovation and development.
Knowledge sharing is facilitated by networks and relationships. That is, connectivity is an important element for effective knowledge sharing. Poor connectivity jeopardizes knowledge sharing, and thus limits innovation and development. Cognizant of this, the Government of Tanzania has invested on various initiatives to facilitate knowledge sharing. One of the key initiatives is the National ICT Broadband (NICTBB). NICTBB is intended to stimulate and facilitate knowledge sharing across the country from and to various stakeholders. Innovation centres are one of such stakeholders. However, currently, most of the innovation centres (e.g. Higher education Institutions, Ministries, Department, and Agencies, etc.) are yet to be connected to the NICTBB. Various factors contribute to this situation. One of such factors is affordability. Most of the innovation centres encounter budgetary constraints to fully exploit the potentials of the NICTBB. Currently, the limited connectivity they receive is charged heftily through profit making last-mile-providers. As a result, the centres fail to adequately and effectively share knowledge between themselves and beyond. This situation needs to be addressed otherwise little will be gained from investments committed for NICTBB.
We Invite you to contribute in regard to the below:
i. On the knowledge based economy
ii. Reluctance in sharing knowledge
iii. Affordability for knowledge accessibility and content
iv. Knowledge segmentation
v. Online knowledge generation
vi. Knowledge identification
vii. The role of NICTBB
Further Readings
The Presentation
The report
The Government Policy

[nchimbi]

Well since the world is now a global village, the role of connectivity and knwoledge sharing is extremely paramount for national growth. Unfortunately a very important sector of the economy has been neglected in this important project. It should be acknowledged that Agriculture contributes more than 80% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Tanzania but the main players that is the farmers have been neglected in connectivity and knowledge sharing. Most of the farmers are rural based and the level of infrastructural development leaves much to be desired.Very few areas are connected to the national grid of electricity, and with out electricty there comes a problem of limited telecommunications connection thus no internet connectivity, the poor state of the roads is alarming. Therefore all the stake holders have to devise means of ensuring receipt and sharing of knowledge among the farmers. Farmers need information on fast growing seeds, market trends, farming practices to maintain high hields etc. Therefore a mechanism has to be put in place to ensure farmers share knowledge. This ranges from creating community telecentres well facilitated with ICTs, telecom connections, services like information packaging because the knowledge may be in a language the farmers do not understand.
George Nchimbi

[polycarp ndekana]

I well agree with Mr. Nchimbi’s remarks, and will like to comment on the cost to the end user, the government and other stakeholders in the ICT sector should endeavor to lower the cost that is incurred by the end user and encourage the use of the National ICT backbone to share knowledge in any language possible.

[anamala]

The language barrier for ICT contents
In most of developed countries connectivity has proven to be a key gear in knowledge dissemination and sharing. The currently growing markets like China,Indonesia,Brazil and Malaysia has invested abundantly in in ICT and connectivity. They build what now days is called a knowledge economy where by the skills and knowledge of human resources is vital for building stable economies. Connectivity bridges the key stakeholders in the market. This is very vital for developing countries like Tanzania whose economic growths are characterized by many setbacks like poor infrastructural connection between the rural and urban areas.

With the role connectivity and knowledge sharing aspects, i would like to address just one important issue; the language barrier.
In Tanzania,Kiswahili is the popular language,its a national language,its our pride and identity. Would i be wrong to say at least every Tanzanian who lives in Tanzania knows Swahili? I think i am right. Now most of the ICT based contents are instructed in English language. Telephones,internet,facsimile just to mention are in most cases put in English language. This language is not familiar to some Tanzanians most of whom live in rural areas where they need connectivity and knowledge sharing mostly. Knowledge tools being there without effective and efficient utilization is a setback and challenge for ICT policy makers,enforcers and experts at large.

Efforts done by UDSM to translate some of the computer based languages to Kiswahili has to be applauded. Google and Nokia have followed the move.Good. However more have to be done in terms of making value creating Swahili contents are readily available for access.

The ICT policy puts this clearly on websites (and contents) using Kiswahili. Should all the public websites have the language option,most of Tanzanians will be connected and share knowledge in a more user friendlier manner.[/color]

[anamala]

Microsoft Launches Swahili Software suite in Arusha
Kudos to Microsoft!!
The World's leading software company Microsoft has released a Kiswahili version of its popular productivity suite, Microsoft 2010.
This was the thing i was crying for at my last post in this forum..others should follow..
Kudos!

[jkajiba]

That is good news to hear that Microsoft has launched a Swahili Microsoft 2010. Is the software already available for purchase ??

[polycarp ndekana]

Connectivity is very import in knowledge sharing but also last mile connectivity is important to for the end user.

[abckowero]

The role of connectivity is important; first and foremost without connectivity no value.... second it should be seamlessly so the users do not see the problems and effect of connectivity third must be user friendly and lastly user must be able to appreciate its existence in helping to improve the economical needs and other every day functions....

Knowledge Sharing should primarily be on content like knowing prices of commodities service payment of services make simple for laymen to use with ease the function in this process.... well I believe if we get right then justice to technology will encompass all.... instead of academic exercises... God Bless You All asante lets share what we think and have!!!!!!

Eng A. B. Kowero

[Traveller]

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[makame]

Nowadays life has greatly transformed due to connectivity . The problem is that there are positives and negatives , but anectodal evidence suggest the latter outweigh the latter former