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Due to their economic status and local telecommunications infrastructure NGOs in developing countries generally have limited access to technology.  For the majority, computers are shared among multiple users and internet access is a luxury enjoyed by a small percentage of NGOs.  

The use of technology by NGOs can be estimated by analyzing the level of technology use in the community or country where the NGO is based. The following provides a summary of technology usage per regions in developing countries:

EASTERN EUROPE

The following graphs provide an overview of technology use by NGOs in Eastern European countries.

Availability of Modern Communication / Information means for NGOs in Moldova, Ukraine, Russia,

Availability of Modern Communication / Information Means for NGOs (Average)

LATIN AMERICA

Compared to other developing countries, Latin America is experiencing the strongest growth in internet use.  Jupiter Communications predicts that the rate of growth in Internet penetration will surpass that of Asia, Europe, and the United States over the next several years. There are currently 13.3 million people online in Latin America, less than 3 percent of the population; however, this represents a 136 percent increase from 1998.  By 2005, Jupiter Communications expects 66.6 million Latin Americans to be online.  Internet penetration remains, however, concentrated in the most developed Latin American countries, namely Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. 

Latin American growth in personal computer penetration and Internet usage is said to be the world’s fastest. The total number of users is projected to nearly triple, from between 12 million and 16 million in 2000 to 43.4 million in 2003, according to the Internet research firm Jupiter Communications.

Yet the main problem one is faced with when surfing the internet is the one of high costs. In the USA, unlimited access to the web is charged with only 20 US$ per month; in Latin America, however, the costs are between 12.75 US$ in Peru and 260 US$ in Cuba. A business in Miami pays approximately 60 US$ per month for a permanent line, whereas in Venezuela, the costs add up to 1,500 US$. Moreover, one has to wait for months to be connected, or one must bribe one’s way to the internet. As a result, 80 % of the Latin American businesses prefer to communicate via paper and fax.

Table 3: Internet access and costs in Latin America in 1999

© Macondo 1999

Commercial ISPs;
** state-owned ISP CENIAI.
Sources: ITU/Siemens, IABIN, News.com, IDC, Handelsblatt, Cyberatlas, reuters, Delatrade, UNDP 1998)

AFRICA

A report by Telecommons Development Group analyzed Internet use by NGOs in Uganda. (Appendix foot) By looking at internet use by NGOs in Uganda conclusions can be drawn for other African countries. The typical NGO (70%) in Uganda has only one computer with Internet connectivity within their offices; this presents challenges and restrictions in terms of the frequency with which the Internet can be accessed. A mere 5% of the NGOs with field sites reported that those sites were connected with either email or Internet; 33% reported having field sites without any means of direct voice or data transmission systems. The majority of NGOs with World Wide Web service reported using the systems for accessing and researching documents relevant to their work, but 32% of those organizations reported that they either seldom or never used the Internet that was available to them. Most NGOs reported that they used the email to communicate with international partners; use of the Internet for local communications is low. Respondents reported that email was a very convenient mode of communications, effective in transmitting documents at lower costs than other technologies. Obtaining access to the computers, and the sending and receiving of attached documents proved the most problematic issues for respondents; the latter issue raises questions about the quality of training these organizations are receiving from their ISPs. The paper concludes with lessons learned from the research, and recommends areas for more detailed study. (McConnel)