Questions/Answers

The Information Access Center(IAC) in developing countries is a project that sets up a center consisting of an Internet lounge, an education center for information service, a seminar room, an operator’s office, etc. The IAC provides an educational environment where local people can also have free access to the Internet and receive ICT education. Since 2002, Korea has pushed forward the project as part of the official development assistance (ODA) and has established 56 centers in 48 countries. This project aims to improve the quality of life of developing countries by bridging the global digital divide.

The implementation project of the IAC for developing countries is a free aid project that enables all citizens in developing countries to freely use the Internet and provides an environment for ICT education. The beneficiaries of the project are all citizens in developing countries who are alienated from ICT service and the project is in line with the category of delivering inclusive, equitable services.

The IAC project in developing countries is connected with ensuring quality education for all, which is Goal No. 4 of the SDGs announced by the United Nations. To provide ICT educational environment for the people in developing countries, we support two ICT education places with 30 seats within the IAC in developing countries. In addition, about 1,367 ICT-related education contents have been provided through the IAC website for better use of IAC and promotion of ICT education. As a result of these efforts, up to 1,200 ICT training courses were annually conducted at the centers around the world, and a total of 440,000 people in developing countries freely visited the IAC every year. (as of December 2018)

According to the World Bank’s World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends, digital technologies have boosted the economic growth, increased opportunities, and enhanced service delivery. These digital technologies such as the Internet, mobile phones are now regarded as the basic human rights. The IAC in developing countries can add social value as the project that tackles digital dividends, a fundamental right, with the aim of resolving the digital divide among the residents in developing countries, which will ultimately lead to alleviating the economic polarization of the people.

In this project, although the Korean government is responsible for the establishment of the IAC, the Center’s operation entirely depends on the capabilities of a recipient country. Therefore, in order to maximize the operational performance of the IAC, we created and distributed Guidelines on the Operation of the IAC and also signed a MOU with the IAC operation body of the recipient country. We are also managing their operational performance & outcomes by receiving a Progress Report every quarter.

Basically, the IAC is the project that aims to provide free Internet access place for men and women of all ages. There is absolutely no room for gender inequality by not limiting the scope of the beneficiaries of this project based on gender.

The beneficiaries or targets of the IAC Project in developing countries encompass everyone including disabled people in developing countries. For free and convenient access to the Internet by the disabled, a pilot project was conducted at the Information Access Center of Georgia in 2017. Based on the results of the Internet lounge for the handicapped at the Center, we are currently also setting up an Internet lounge only for the handicapped, targeting for all newly-built IACs.

First, during the planning phase, we conduct a demand survey of ODA beneficiary countries(developing countries) on attracting the IAC and receive a Project Concept Paper(PCP) on the IAC from developing countries. Then, by conducting a local feasibility study based on the PCP submitted, we secure the related budget by reflecting it in the grant execution plan organized by the Committee for International Development Cooperation(CIDC). Second, we conclude a MOU with a candidate agency of the IAC of a recipient country regarding the future establishment and operation of the center, select a business operator in Korea for deployment, and dispatch it to the site. Once the construction is completed, the center will be exclusively operated by the relevant department and operation body of the recipient country. Third, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea operates an ODA project monitoring task force and sends an inspection team to see if the IAC is actively operated. The Ministry also inspects the center frequently through a local official residence. Finally, through an external expert evaluation institution, we conduct an assessment to measure satisfaction on the IAC Project, efficiency of the project promotion, and its contribution level.

The IAC Project has been expanded in size since 56 centers in 48 countries have been established since 2002. Most of the IACs are located in the capital of developing countries, and now, the Internet access in the capitals of developing countries is practically very good. However, the digital divide between the capital and rural areas of developing countries is so wide that we needed a solution to this. After consultation among the recipient country, the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea, we expanded the IAC from the capital to rural areas.

As the level of ICT in the recipient country varies from country to country and the requirements are different, it is increasingly difficult to satisfy various stakeholders. In order to overcome this challenge, a tailored IAC model was developed and deployed for each country’s ICT level, a departure from the conventional IAC model that basically emphasizes Internet accessibility. In countries with relatively high levels of ICT service (e.g., Vietnam), we applied business-generating models while in countries with low levels of ICT service (e.g., Uganda), we implemented basic information accessibility models.

As organizations in the recipient countries that establish the IACs vary from government ministries, public institutions, universities, and public libraries, we actively encourage them to use their own operational methods and utilization measures suitable for each country’s environment. In Uganda, the IAC was established at the Information Technology Administration under the Ministry of Information and Communication, which uses the IT equipment of the IAC Internet lounge as a GCIC (Government Citizen Interaction Center) to deliver citizens’ voices (complaints, suggestions, etc.) to the government. Through this process, the center is used as a channel to collect ideas on improving the government’s policies and services to the public. Furthermore, the Guatemala IAC was established in 2008 and the Guatemala IAC model has been applied directly by the Guatemalan government, which is currently operating about 200 IT hubs.

Starting with the IAC in Cambodia in 2002, we have established IACs in four countries on average every year, while 56 centers in 48 countries, including 16 in Asia, 10 in Europe and CIS, 17 in the Middle East and Africa, and 13 in Latin America, have been established and operated. (See the Attachment file: IAC brochure) Currently, we have increased the number of the IACs from the capital of recipient countries to provincial cities. For the establishment of an IAC, the project is carried out in compliance with Korea’s ODA-related administrative procedure. The ODA standard procedures consist of receiving PCPs, conducting feasibility studies, signing MOUs, carrying out center construction work, training IAC operators and holding the center’s opening ceremony.

N/A

From 2002 to the present, we have injected the ODA funds of about $30.3 billion for the IAC Project in developing countries. Five IAC Task Force Teams have been organized and operated every year to promote this project. Moreover, the IAC construction contractors and information communication equipment purchasing companies have been selected through the Korean procurement process to perform the project.

This project takes a form of matching fund between Korea and the recipient country. The Republic of Korea, a donor country, shall provide ODA funding for the cost of establishing an IAC, while the recipient country shall provide 330 square meters of space for the IAC, and shall bear the manpower and budget for future operations after deployment. With the matching fund type project, the recipient country has a more responsibility on the operation of the IAC and their responsibility is a critical factor in maintaining the operable IAC continuously. The mandatory operation body of the IAC is also specified in the MOU as a four-year operation body after the IAC establishment. And four years later, we will decide whether to conduct maintenance by evaluating center access records and performance of the center. The highly successful center will receive maintenance service up to twice so that we can provide them with incentives for the IAC that could be continuously operated.

Yes

As an evaluation method, we followed the OECD DAC evaluation method, which is the most commonly used in international development projects, through qualitative and quantitative evaluations. For objective and fair evaluation, we conduct the evaluations through third parties such as universities and private research institutes. In 2017, the performance evaluation study of the IAC was conducted by Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.

For example, a quantitative assessment consists of the OECD/DAC’s evaluation criteria (relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, sustainability) while an impact assessment consists of a qualitative assessment. We have developed and proceeded with a total of 20 indicators and five assessment standards. (See the research report on the IAC in developing countries in 2017) For example, relevance-assessment standards consist of three evaluation indicators including relevance of the composition of project goals, relevance of the selection of a recipient country and relevance of project planning.

In the relevance assessment, the IAC project is properly set up in connection with Korea’s ODA policy and is in compliance with the development policy of the recipient country. In particular, the relevance of project planning consisted of appropriate activities associated with the IT ODA goals and budgeted accordingly. Efficiency assessment includes input personnel, budget execution relative to the plan, and efficient communication with the recipient country. In the effectiveness assessment, we conducted written interviews with the recipient countries to measure the effectiveness of the aid, and they responded that ODA projects are efficient in reducing digital divide, sharing information, reducing costs and fighting poverty. Satisfaction level of the project was measured in the sustainability assessment. With the satisfaction level of 92.8, the project was assessed as highly satisfactory to the beneficiaries. The respondents also assessed that the policy priority of the recipient country was high in terms of the IAC, and that they have established their own system in order to manage continuously-operable governance system. For the impact assessment, we conducted written interviews, which showed that their ability to access information became better.

As organizations in the recipient countries that establish the IACs vary from government ministries, public institutions, universities, and public libraries, we actively encourage them to use operation methods and utilization measures suitable for each country’s environment. In Uganda, the IAC was established at the Information Technology Administration under the Ministry of Information and Communication, which uses the IT equipment of the IAC Internet lounge as a GCIC (Government Citizen Interaction Center) to deliver citizens’ voices (complaints, suggestions, etc.) to the government. Through this process, the center is used as a channel to collect ideas on improving the government’s policies and services to the public.

After receiving a Project Concept Paper (PCP) on the demand for the IAC from the relevant ministries of developing countries, a team of NIA project managers and IT experts conducts a feasibility study and develops a grant implementation plan based on the study results before submitting it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea. The Ministry reviews and confirms the grant implementation plan. During the review process of the plan, private ODA experts and diplomatic offices of South Korea also participate in the process. Once the grant implementation plan is finalized, approval of the project’s budget should be obtained from the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Upon the approval, the budget confirmation process of the National Assembly is carried out before the full start of the project. We sign a MOU on the establishment and operation of the IAC with relevant departments in developing countries that submitted PCP for the IAC, and select operators for the center establishment through the procurement process in South Korea. Then we dispatch them and start construction in developing countries. When the IAC is established, the relevant departments in developing countries secure the operation personnel and budget.

The IAC has greatly contributed to improving the Internet accessibility and ICT education environment in developing countries. The key to the success of the IAC project is not the latest facilities, recent hardwares such as the latest computer equipment, but software such as how the IAC communicates with citizens, how responsibly the operators manage the IAC, and whether the government departments of developing countries can secure personnel and operational budgets related to the operations. In order to make the IAC a sustainable center and a self-sustained operating center, the National Information Society Agency has been making diverse efforts, including providing ICT education contents, operating capacity-building training programs for center operators, and distributing educational SWs.