ICT for Development (ICT4D, ICT4Dev or ICTD)
ICT for Development (ICT4D, ICT4Dev or ICTD) : (ICT) (GEN) Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) is a general term referring to the application of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) within the field of socioeconomic development, international development and human rights. ICT4D concerns itself with directly applying information technology approaches to poverty reduction, governance and development of the society in general rather than limiting the privileges to a chosen few. ICTs can be applied either in the direct sense, wherein their use directly benefits the disadvantaged population, or in an indirect sense, wherein the ICTs assist aid organizations or non-governmental organizations or governments or businesses in order to improve general socio-economic conditions. In many impoverished regions of the world, legislative and political measures are required to facilitate or enable application of ICTs, especially with respect to monopolistic communications structures and censorship laws. The concept of ICT4D can be interpreted as dealing with disadvantaged populations anywhere in the world, but is more typically associated with applications in developing countries. The field is becoming recognized as an interdisciplinary research area as can be noted by the growing number of conferences, workshops and publications. Many international development agencies recognize the importance of ICT4D. While the dominant terminology used in this field is "ICT4D", alternatives include ICT4Dev, ICTD and development informatics
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