DIFFUSION OF ICT IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: A QUALITATIVE DIFFERENTIAL ANALYSIS OF FOUR NATIONS
Godwin Udo, The University of Texas at El Paso, gudo@utep.edu
Kallol K. Bagchi, The University of Texas at El Paso, Kbagchi@utep.edu
Peeter J. Kirs, The University of Texas at El Paso, pkirs@utep.edu
This study compares the diffusion of ICT in two sets of matched developing nations: Zimbabwe and Albania, and Namibia and Venezuela. Each pair of developing countries had similar average gross domestic products for the years 1990-1999 but different ICT diffusion levels. Using qualitative analysis, we compared the paired nations on six groups of national-level factors: demographic, economic, regulatory, infrastructural, educational, and afford-ability factors. The findings indicate that the difference in ICT diffusion may be attributed to factors such as poor infrastructure, income inequality, and adult illiteracy. Regulatory and affordability factors are also possible reasons why the African nations seem to perform differently than their non-African counterparts.
