In Search of Local Knowledge on ICTs in Africa

New information and communication technologies (ICTs) have been hailed as tools for encouraging economic development, promoting peace, and improving the effectiveness of government in developing and conflict-affected regions. This article explores whether the claims of the transformative power of ICTs are backed by real evidence and whether local knowledge - e.g., traditional mechanisms for conflict resolution - is taken into consideration by ICT-based development initiatives. The countries that are the focus of this article offer a comparative perspective on different approaches to ICT usage: Kenya is seen as an "innovation hub" with heavy private sector involvement; ICT development in Ethiopia has been largely government-led; and in Somalia, there is a thriving ICT sector despite the long-term conflict.

The literature review conducted as part of this article was carried out through the initiative Eliciting and Applying Local Research Knowledge for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding, which emerged from a collaboration between the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY). This initiative recognises that many of the original insights, paradigms, and motivations for the concepts of peacebuilding and statebuilding have come from the Global North. It thus aims at eliciting, giving greater visibility to, and applying local knowledge, which it sees as centring on research, scholarship, or policy analysis produced on Africa by Africans living in Africa or abroad.

In order to identify disparities and overlaps between perspectives on the value of ICTs from the Global North and from Africa, the researchers searched the peer-reviewed and gray literature on ICTs in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia using these keywords: ICTs, information, communication, new media, online, mobile phones, Facebook, internet, SMS [short messaging service, or text], e-government, e-governance, governance, democracy, service delivery, accountability, statebuilding, civic participation, civic engagement, and peace-building. Their searches resulted in 85 empirically based articles. Of these, 34 articles featured an African lead author, 41 featured a non-African lead author (usually American or European), 8 listed no author but were produced by institutions based in the United States (US) or in Europe, and 2 were produced by an institution based in Africa.

When the selected articles and reports were analysed based on authorship, little difference could be found between scholarship coming from within or outside Africa. When articles were analysed based on use of knowledge emanating from local processes, institutions, traditions, or experiences, little research was found (either emerging from Africa or beyond) that embraced "the local": the literature generally emphasises the ability of technology to transform societies, overlooking local processes of statebuilding and peacebuilding.

The following sections of the article present these findings in greater detail, focusing first on the literature on "ICTs and statebuilding". The findings in this literature are roughly divided into 2 categories:

• Top-down initiatives to improve government and state effectiveness, representing the majority of articles - These articles tended to emphasise the potential for ICTs to improve statebuilding, governance, and accountability - for example, claiming that ICTs support public participation, simplify information flows, and increase transparency. The articles on e-governance for the most part acknowledge that ICTs are not a silver bullet, and that many current e-governance initiatives are weak and lack evidence of impact.
• Bottom-up initiatives that tend to be driven by the demands of users and citizens as ways of enhancing citizen "voice" and participation - One argument that is repeated is that it is necessary to avoid assuming that new technologies present a qualitatively different form of communication opportunity, or a new model for political participation. A small subset of articles offered empirical analysis of the potential for social media to transform the relationship between state and society in contemporary Africa, though (in)ability to access social networking sites needs to be considered. Some of the literature also examined the failure of technology to deliver anticipated results, especially during elections.

Next, the article looks at the literature on "ICTs and peacebuilding". The majority of documents surveyed discussed the potential of ICTs to promote peace, but tended to primarily provide descriptions of how the technologies were or might be used, with little evidence of actual impact. The researchers look at 2 of the tools employed in peacebuilding efforts - crowdsourcing and SMS - and explore the evidence around these areas found in the literature. For instance, they briefly discuss: Uchaguzi, a system put in place just before the 2010 referendum in Kenya; the Unsung Heroes Peace Project, implemented in the aftermath of the violence and conflict that started in December 2007 in Kenya; UgandaWatch, which used the Ushahidi platform to monitor the 2011 Ugandan elections using an SMS survey; and Voix des Kivus, a pilot project designed to determine the utility of gathering data on incidents of violence using FrontlineSMS. In some of this literature, SMS messages were seen as significant not only for their role in encouraging or mapping violence, but also as vehicles to disseminate messages of peace and reconciliation.

The literature review led to 4 primary conclusions:

1. Limited evidence on actual impact of ICTs - Many articles found in the review featured summaries or descriptive reports of projects that had taken place, without in-depth analysis of the project's impact or its use by citizens. Much of the research has been commissioned by those involved in the interventions.
2. Techno-determinist assumptions within literature on statebuilding - ICTs were generally framed as existing on their own plane - creating opportunities to affect the functioning of the state or peace efforts - rather than as a new variable that sits within existing power structures and pre-existing networks.
3. ICT and peacebuilding literature still in its infancy - The review found few articles on the role of ICTs in peacebuilding. Because crowd-sourcing platforms and SMS were relatively new at the time of this literature search, there were few critical analyses of their uses or impacts. Much emphasis was placed on ICTs as agents that could prevent the occurrence of violence, but less attention was given to how traditional forms of reconciliation, including transitional justice measures, could be enhanced by the use of new technologies.
4. Lack of reference to "local knowledge" - Ultimately, the analysis found little difference between literature emanating from Africa and from the rest of the world, and much of the work on ICTs in Africa was found in the gray literature.

The article concludes by arguing that future research should focus on what users actually do with ICTs and how they combine them with other (and perhaps more traditional) forms of communication, rather than simply focusing on their assumed transformative potential. Specifically, the researchers call for increased attention to projects that are occurring through local citizens and local communities, and that may not be those receiving heavy funding or media attention. "These local, organic uses of ICTs...are more likely to provide insight on how ICTs are influencing statebuilding and peacebuilding, and what potential they have at a regional or national level."