The cause of African countries' perennial low-income status and failure to achieve lasting social transformation has proven to be a consistently vexing puzzle. This dissertation was an exploration of a conceptual framework that addressed this important query. The framework was informed by existing literature, including works on the ideas of social…

The term, Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D), pertains to programs or projects that strategically use ICTs (e.g. mobile phones, computers, and the internet) as a means toward the socio-economic betterment for the poor in developing contexts. Gaining the political and financial support of the international community…

A young child dreams of being an astronaut. She dreams of piloting a complex rocket full of buttons and gadgets through the sky and discovering new planets in the unknown, unchartered universe of scientific frontiers. As the child grows, she makes her way through the sacred halls of formal schooling. She takes classes, goes to college, and starts…

This dissertation participates in the grand debate on whether ideas or technology change social structures that affect the lives of individuals. At its broadest and based on its findings, this dissertation makes the argument that neither ideas nor technology takes precedence. While technology can drive economic and social changes, it cannot do so…

Although there appears to be a broad recognition of the key role that Public Sector Information (PSI) can play in the development of societies, there are still significant gaps in our understanding of how PSI is actually being utilized and of its wider societal value, especially in developing countries. The overarching goal of this dissertation…