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Information Network Village Project
Ministry of Public Administration and Security

The Problem

Korea offers favorable conditions for information literacy which are recognized by other countries in the world. When the initiative for the Information Network Village (Invil initiative) was first undertaken in the 1990s, however, flight from rural towns (or rural isolation) was at its peak as a result of rapid industrialization that had started in the 1970s. Innovation in information technology (IT) further exacerbated the urban-rural information divide. The move towards globalization through the WTO, Uruguay Round, and free trade agreements opened the Korean market to imported agricultural products. This, in turn, created a vicious circle wherein the loss of price competitiveness of major domestic agricultural products resulted in impoverishment of rural communities.
In an effort to break this vicious circle, the central government undertook a series of programs to support rural communities. However, most of these efforts were sporadic facilities investment, failing to produce significant results for rural areas that lacked the conditions for sustainable growth. This highlighted the need to replace one-time government-led support programs with others that would help communities build a foundation for self-sufficiency and sustainable growth.
Against this backdrop, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security (MOPAS) decided to build IT infrastructure with high-speed Internet networks and PCs in rural communities and educate people to use it. This was part of the ministry’s strategy for balanced regional development, which aimed at establishing a sustainable, self-supporting growth model that would ultimately remove the information gap among regions and lead to higher income and quality of life for rural residents.

Solution and Key Benefits

 What is the initiative about? (the solution)
The Invil initiative was designed to create ‘free-standing and self-sufficient communities’ of the people, for the people, and by the people in rural areas. The initiative has produced three key benefits.
The first is an 'information foundation for communication'. In 363 rural communities nationwide, a high-speed Internet network was established with between 70 and 100 PCs installed, while a community website and a Community Information Center were launched in each community. In addition, the Information Network Village website was created (www.invil.org) to link all the community-based information networks. In 2001 before the initiative was in place, only 11.9% of those residing in rural areas used the Internet and only 29.4% of rural households owned a PC. Following the launch of the initiative, the average PC ownership in the Invil communities was 72.1% and Internet usage 66.5%. Through the information foundation that the Invil initiative helped create, rural residents made Internet usage part of their daily activities, while members of multi-cultural families used it to better adapt themselves to life in Korea by learning the Korean language and culture and making conference calls to their families in their native countries.
The second benefit is an ‘urban-rural information community.’ Communities launched a news reporter group (1,424 reporters in 2009) to write articles about their community. In 2009, 5,685 news articles were written and posted in the news section of the Invil website and shared with those living in the cities. An increase in social capital in the Invil communities resulted in a significant increase in community activities. Residents are involved in identifying their unique cultural resources, while promoting local products and tour programs themselves. As stated before, the information and activities are posted on the Information Network Village website (www.invil.org) created by MOPAS.
The third benefit is a 'foundation for economic independence.' Using the Internet, community members now sell their products directly to customers in the cities, generating a much higher income by eliminating the middle man, which, on average, accounts for up to 56% of the total price. To further increase income, they also sell travel packages that highlight unique local resources. Such efforts in particular have increased profits dramatically over the last three years and will likely continue to do so in the coming years (4.45 billion won in 2007, 8.98 billion won in 2008, 13.45 billion won in 2009, and 20.5 billion won expected in 2010).

Actors and Stakeholders

 Who proposed the solution, who implemented it and who were the stakeholders?
To understand the planning, implementation, and the stakeholders of the Invil initiative, it is necessary to understand why MOPAS designed this program in the first place. As mentioned previously, the initiative was aimed at creating ‘free-standing and self-sufficient communities.’ From its inception, the program was designed in such a way that local governments and communities would ultimately take part in its implementation to meet their specific needs and that it would become a standardized model of informatization for rural areas.
In line with this strategy and in a departure from the previous top-down approach, the program gave each stakeholder, i.e., the central government, the local government, and community members, a specific role across the planning and implementation process. The planning was led by the central government based on the collective views of local governments, while the implementation was a collaborative effort between the central and local governments. In the operation stage, the communities took the lead and were supported by the central and local governments.
Accordingly, the central government, i.e., MOPAS, was responsible for planning, securing and allocating the budget, creating the necessary laws and institutional framework, and establishing a system of cooperation with the relevant organizations. The local governments were in charge of establishing a favorable environment for IT usage and supporting residents’ IT training. The community stakeholders formed a 15-member ‘Information Network Village Operation Committee’ to take the lead in the program’s operation. In line with its rights and obligations arising from the program, the Operation Committee is responsible for encouraging its community members to take part in the program and identifying and running profit-making business models.
Over its 10 years of operation, the initiative was introduced to 363 communities nationwide. To establish a system of collaboration among communities by connecting the operation committees, an Invil Central Council represented by community leaders was established, further strengthening governance in rural areas.

(a) Strategies

 Describe how and when the initiative was implemented by answering these questions
 a.      What were the strategies used to implement the initiative? In no more than 500 words, provide a summary of the main objectives and strategies of the initiative, how they were established and by whom.
To achieve the goal of building ‘free-standing and self-sufficient communities,’ the central government devised the Invil program as a standard model for informatization of rural communities. Solidarity, residents’ willingness to take part in the program, and a detailed plan for improvement were the key criteria considered by the government when selecting target communities.
Second, the key financing criteria was the willingness of communities to run the program on their own. Though the initiative was operated by the central government, the main focus was to build a basis for informatization and to provide continued education and consultation, which would serve to foster key persons and organizations in the community to run the program independently at the community level. While the initiative was implemented by the central government, a foundation of information hardware was built in the community so that the community could later take charge of operation and management. Thus, to ensure proper human resources and organizational development, it was important to offer education and consulting on a continuous basis. The central and local governments were mainly responsible for building a high-speed Internet network, a Community Information Center, a website, and maintaining and repairing joint servers.
Third, the government gradually raised the financial share to be borne by local governments and communities so that they could take more responsibility in the program’s operation. As a result, newly selected communities are entirely financed by local governments, and the communities cover most of the operational costs by raising the necessary funds from sales of local specialties/products and travel packages.
Through these strategies, the participating communities have transformed themselves into free-standing and self-sufficient communities of the people, for the people, and by the people.

(b) Implementation

 b.      What were the key development and implementation steps and the chronology? No more than 500 words
The development and implementation can be divided into three key steps: the first step was to reduce the urban-rural information divide; the second step was to develop the program into a model for regional development whereby the residents would conduct e-commerce transactions for higher income and more jobs; and the third step was to scale up the program for social integration through conference calls for multicultural families, and to foster free-standing, self-sufficient communities where residents would have the ability to solve their own social and economic issues.
The selection of target communities is made as follows: based on the general plan designed by the central government, the local governments receive and screen business proposals from the communities and recommend candidates to the central government. The central government shortlists the final candidates based on on-site evaluations. The program is implemented with the local government’s budget, and is run by the communities with their own funds.
Currently, it is believed that the program’s initial purpose of narrowing the urban-rural information gap has been achieved overall. By concentrating efforts and means for the second stage, there has been a significant rise in e-commerce transactions and now the focus is on strengthening the economic base for self-sufficiency. With significant second-stage results, there has been greater involvement by community members and strengthened organizational efforts to sell local products and tour packages. Some third-stage benefits have also been observed, especially in the education of multicultural households and conference calls bringing together non-Koreans with family members in their native countries.

(c) Overcoming Obstacles

 c.      What were the main obstacles encountered? How were they overcome? No more than 500 words
The implementation of the Invil initiative not only entailed overcoming issues directly related to informatization but other limitations and constraints unique to rural areas. Some of the most challenging of these constraints were as follows:
The first was an ageing rural population. In order to encourage elderly rural residents to take part in informatization, one-on-one training had to be provided on an ongoing basis. Though old people could handle production and packaging of local products, they faced many difficulties in terms of product description and customer relations. To address this issue, the central government hired in 2007 a manager in each community to complement the existing program. These managers serve a key role by training residents who have difficulty in learning and managing the website and the community information center.
The second was the low level of community involvement and participation. Though the biggest improvement was observed in this area, increasing community involvement and participation has always been a major challenge. The hardest part is convincing rural residents of the convenience and higher income that informatization will bring them and convincing them that a move to high-value added business, direct transactions with customers, and development of tour packages are needed to prepare for the future. To this end, we continue to identify and present success models and offer ongoing training and consulting.
The third was the lack of management capacity in rural households. Technical obstacles and the lack of management capacity were also pointed out. The Operation Committee, which is set up in every community, works to raise the residents’ capacity. At the same time, the government supports this effort by offering ongoing education and consulting services.

(d) Use of Resources

 d.      What resources were used for the initiative and what were its key benefits? In no more than 500 words, specify what were the financial, technical and human resources’ costs associated with this initiative. Describe how resources were mobilized
The Invil budget is earmarked mainly for creation and operation of the network. In the initial stage, the budget for network creation was roughly USD 240,000, which was spent for building high-speed Internet networks and Community Information Centers, and for purchasing personal computers. The budget is about USD 160,000 now because the supply of personal computers has become unnecessary (PC ownership in rural areas has risen).
The division of the roles taken by central and local governments is clear in terms of budget allocation for network creation. In the initial stage, both central and local governments jointly shared the budget, but since 2009, local governments have financed networks with their own funds. Of 363 communities that benefit from the initiative, 260 were jointly financed by the central and local governments, and 103 were entirely financed by local governments.
The budget for operation is largely divided into funds paid by the central government (for education, consulting, central system, and website repair/maintenance), which amount to USD 33 million and those paid by local governments and communities (for manager’s monthly wages and the costs to run the community information centers). Managers are paid about USD 1,000 each, the cost of which is currently shared 50-50 by the central and local governments. From 2011, the share to be borned by local governments will gradually increase. The cost to run community information centers, which is about USD 300 a month per center, is 100% financed by joint funds raised by residents from the sale of local products and tour packages.

Sustainability and Transferability

  Is the initiative sustainable and transferable?
From its inception, the Invil initiative was designed to be a model for sustainable growth. To achieve this end, much focus has been put not only on building hardware, but also on raising people’s awareness and training them for organizational capacity and leadership. As the organizer of the Saemaeul (New Community) Movement (initiative to modernize the rural economy in the 1960s and 1970s), MOPAS is fully aware of the importance of developing human capital and raising awareness among stakeholders.
The Invil initiative is a model to develop marginalized rural areas in different stages (closing the information gap → realizing a regional development model → achieving social integration and free-standing community). It is the first of its kind in the world and is internationally transferable to other countries. The model is continuously monitored, assessed, and improved based on consultation (Document explaining the role of assessment and consulting to be provided). The IT hardware, i.e. the Community Information Center, computers, and Internet network, has many uses and implications for the training and welfare of rural residents. As such, this idea can be transferred to developing countries. It presents endless possibilities as a valuable tool for e-commerce transactions, as well as development and online promotion of local specialties/products and travel packages.
The initiative has been praised internationally for its excellence and transferability. In 2006, it received the World eGov Forum Award at the World eGov Forum held in Issy Moulineaux, France; in 2007, MOPAS held a seminar on Invil for delegates from China (Shenyang, Beijing) and Vietnam in 2009, the ministry made a presentation on the success cases of INVIL initiative for a local government of the Philippines at the LMP General Assembly on invitation by the UNDC. Every year, MOPAS arranges visits by public officials from other countries (as of 2009, a total of 2,000 officials from 80 countries) to INVIL communities. In fact, Saga Prefecture in Japan started building the Fujicho Information Network Village at the end of 2009 based on Korea’s Invil model.

Lessons Learned

 What are the impact of your initiative and the lessons learned?
While other public policies have centered on ‘giving people fish,' the Invil initiative was geared towards ‘teaching them to fish.’ What we learned is that public policy designed to promote growth in marginalized regions involves huge amounts of investment to build facilities and other hardware resources. Yet, the approach of 'giving people fish' deprives them of the opportunity to learn how to fish and reduces their willingness, and even their awareness, of the need to fish.
The Invil initiative has passed the initial stage and has entered the next one. It is not only producing excellent results, but it has proven that it can be an exemplary model for sustainable rural development. More successes have been built upon others as shown by the the recent sharp increase in e-commerce. We believe that sustainable growth is the product of the foundation and competence that MOPAS worked to build, and we will continue to concentrate our efforts on building free-standing, self-sufficient communities for sustainable growth.
Through the Invil intiative, MOPAS has also learned that continued investment and management based on a long-term vision is the key to its success. It requires much perseverance and investment over the long term to fundamentally change people's awareness and establish a foundation for sustainable growth. Success also requires consistency in the role of the central government and excellent collaboration between the local governments and the communities.
To reduce pitfalls in the process of establishing and executing a long-term plan, it is also essential to build a relationship of joint responsibility with expert groups and to secure their support and mutual cooperation. Otherwise, we would be making the same mistake as the foolish farmer who killed his goose for the golden egg. We also learned that performance-based and short-sighted initiatives that disregard the fundamentals and only focus on tangible results are the biggest obstacles to progress. We hope that the lessons learned from our experience can be helpful to other nations involved in similar efforts.

Contact Information

Institution Name:   Ministry of Public Administration and Security
Institution Type:   Government Agency  
Contact Person:   DongHo Lee
Title:   Deputy Director  
Telephone/ Fax:   82-2-2100-2935
Institution's / Project's Website:   82-2-2100-4083
E-mail:   dongho13@gmail.com  
Address:   Central Government Complex, #510, 55 Sejong-no, Jonno-gu
Postal Code:   110-760
City:   Seoul
State/Province:  
Country:  

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