7 Consequences of consumption

Before you start

Main focus

This chapter focuses on the effects of information and communications technologies (ICT) on development in lowand middle-income countries.

Why it’s relevant us

Rapid changes in ICT create both opportunities and challenges.

Geographic inquiry should go beyond issues of access to the effective use of these technologies in order for people to gain their potential benefits.

Inquiry questions

• What is ICT?
• How does the access and use of ICT vary over space?
• To what extent does ICT contribute to economic development in low- and middle-income countries?
• How does the location of ICT services impact on places such as India?

Key terms

• Appropriate technology
• Cloud computing
• Digital divide
• Economic development
• Gross national income (GNI) per capita
• Internet
• Megatrend
• World Wide Web (WWW)

Let’s begin

Technologies that allow people to communicate across the world are changing our perception of space. An exploration of the nature and global patterns of ICT provides a basis from which to analyse its impacts on development in middle and low-income countries. The increasing use of mobile technologies and social media is creating new relationships – at local, regional and international scales. Case studies from Africa and India are used to evaluate the impacts of ICT.