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February
2002 - Volume 1, Issue 1
The
Evolutionary Development of ICT in Ethiopia
The Introduction
of Computers into Ethiopia
Computers were
introduced into Ethiopia nearly half a century ago in the early
1960's. Organizations that introduced computers into their operations
in the early period of the introduction of the technology included
the Ethiopian Airlines, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA),
Ethio-Djibouti Railway Company, Ethiopian Electric Light and Power
Authority, Central Statistical Office, Imperial Board of Telecommunications,
the Municipality of Addis Ababa, Ministry of Finance, the Imperial
Ethiopian Air Force and the Haile Seleassie I University.
Some of these
institutions acquired the computers by grant depending on the nature
of arrangement with donor organizations while others introduced
same by purchase after a thorough needs and requirement assessment
were undertaken.
The computers were mainly utilized for payroll preparation, financial
presentation, accounts payable, inventory, ticketting and customers'
bill production during the early phase of the computers on operation.
A National Need
for Centralized Computer Services
The nationalization
and centralization of service and industrial activities under relevant
state corporations with apex structures of ministries and the Central
Planning Supreme Council at the helm of authority necessitated the
storage and generation of data for retrieval at sector level to
meet the needs of central planning and management of the national
economy. Thus, the development and awareness of mechanization influenced
higher authorities to set up electronic data processing units at
corporation level to coordinate the application of computers to
feed the hierarchies of the command economy with organized data.
Prospective employees were selected and trained as programmers,
systems analysts and operators - mostly by the suppliers of the
equipment - and assigned to man the units. The EDP heads were accountable
either to the V/Minister, D/Commissioner, General Manager or D/General
Manager depending on the prominence given to the unit. The employees
selected and trained for the EDP units were usually Mathematicians,
Accountants, Statisticians and high school graduates.
The suppliers
and the computers supplied were of different varieties that consisted
of IBM, NCR, Burroughs, HP and UNISYS.
The training
courses that were rendered at that particular moment consisted of
Introduction to Data Processing, COBOL '74, IMOS III Operating Systems,
BASIC, FORTRAN, Basic Systems Analysis and Skills, PASCAL, PC Operation,
EDP Concept, Basic COBOL Programming, Intermediate COBOL Programming,
Basic Programming, FORTRAN IV Programming, Systems Analysis and
Design, ANSI '74, and COBOL Programming.
The Misconception
About Computers
Senior and middle
level officials in both the Government and public institutions were
of the opinion that introducing the application of computers were
panaceas for solving all their problems relating to the planning,
supervising and controlling aspects of their functions. Later developments
taught these people lessons that the smooth and productive operation
of the EDP centres depended on the efficient functioning of the
rest of the integral parts of the organizations. Officials used
to repeatedly complain that EDP units were not generating data outputs
on time for information and decision making. Thus, EDP units became
the escape goats for managements' ineptitude, incompetence, red
tape and procrastination.
On the other
hand, it was counter argued that the factors that contributed to
the lag in the final preparation and submission of computer data
were the delays in the provision of relevant data from factories
and other functional units, power failures, equipment breakdown,
lack of timely computer maintenance and low profile computer personnel.
People were
also giving their comments in connection with the underutilization
of computers. The comments were that computers were put idle covered
with beautiful clothes in offices of senior officials where a manual
or an automatic typewriter could have been sufficient to serve the
purpose. This was a fact of life and was a revelation that possessing
a Pc in an office was a status symbol that attracted the envy of
other colleagues. Furthermore, the problems of low capacity and
inefficient utilization of computers were testimonies to the lack
of training for computer personnel and absence of prior computers
needs assessment.
The Search for
Excellence
The Ethiopian
Science and Technology Commission was established in 1975 to give
further impetus for the coordination and promotion of science and
technology and its application to overall development. The evaluation
of the results achieved in the field was also one of the domains
of its activities.
The Commission
has been the highest decision making and coordinating body to create
conditions conducive for the development of science and technology.
It was, thus, entrusted with the "establishment of a system
for the evaluation and monitoring of imported technologies and identification
of areas where indigenous technologies can be developed". The
Commission instituted the following support services to assist the
development of key sectors in the national economy.
The National
Computer Committee:
It consisted of seven organizations that represented key sectors
of the economy. Its objectives were to:
· Approve
the importation of IT products on the basis of the reasonableness
of the cost and saving of foreign currency, availability of local
maintenance services, software availability and compatibility, upgradability
and expansion of potential and training of personnel;
· Evaluate projects that are related to computers;
· Prepare a policy draft on computerization.
The Committee
had been able to play a leading role in the promotion of IT in Ethiopia
during the initial years of its existence.
The National
Computer Centre: It was established in 1987 to:
· Conduct R&D activities in computer science and technology
and disseminate the results;
· Promote the development of computer knowledge and services
in Ethiopia;
· Provide consultancy and maintenance services and training
courses.
The major focus
of activities had been the provision of solutions that would help
utilize computer technology economically and effectively for the
country's socio-economic development considering the fact that computers
imported into the country by vendors were of different makes with
different maintenance needs.
The Centre had
also been exploring means for full utilization of computer capability
in the national vernacular towards enhancing its wider application
in all sectors of the economy. In addition, it was expected to engage
itself in:
· Designing and providing appropriate training courses to
alleviate manpower problems in the field. It was also expected to
give a pioneering role in curriculum development for training in
the information technology.
· Conducting research and development in information technology
to ensure that its application were in line with the country's development
plans.
The National
Computer and Information Centre: It has also been responsible for
electronic networking in academic and research circles.
Pan-African
Documentation and Information System
It was located
in the premises of the ECA and was entrusted with retrieval and
storage systems. It used to offer an on line search service on its
bibliographical databases such as PADDEV, which covered economic,
technological and social development information in Africa.
The Telecommunications
Sector
Telecommunications
in Ethiopia started in 1894 by establishing a telephone link between
Addis Ababa and the cities along the railway line to Djibouti. The
Imperial Board of Telecommunications of Ethiopia was established
after the victory over Italian invaders as the sole telecom operator
to develop and manage this sector. It was then successively renamed
as the Ethiopian Telecommunications Agency, Ethiopian Telecommunications
Authority and now the Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation.
The Corporation
is now the regulatory body responsible for pricing, tariff of telecommunications
services, licensing, frequency management and Internet functions.
Information
obtained from the Corporation reveals that there are now 283,683
telephone subscribers in the country. On the other hand, there are
155,208 Ethiopians waiting for telephone lines. The demand increased
at the rate of 6.1 % annually while the number of new subscribers
stood at 32.5 % at the time of writing this article.
The Ethiopian
Telecommunications network uses such technologies as microwaves,
VHF, UHF and open wire system to connect towns and cities all over
the country and to the whole world. A new facility - Digital Radio
Multi-Access System (DRMAS) - has been included to the national
network serving some remote towns at different locations. In line
with this, 127 towns and cities have been interconnected within
the country. A total of 352 towns have automatic and semi-automatic
exchanges. For international telecommunications traffic, INTELSAT
Standard "A" earth stations for most countries and PANAFTEL
microwave system for southeastern Africa are used.
The data from
the ETC further indicate that Ethiopia currently has a tele-density
of 0.43 and public telephones of 0.039 per one thousand inhabitants
for a population of 65 million.
The level of
growth of the Internet is not also heartening. One can discern from
various reports that the number of subscribers does not presently
exceed 4,073. If we assign five individuals per Internet account
the number of users could not surpass 20,365 persons.
The above data
clearly indicate that the ETC has not been able to meet the growing
demand of the population for telecommunications services.
In diffusing ICT, the importance of telecommunications cannot be
overstated. Nowadays, import and export trade, print media and the
financial market are highly dependant on ICT for their respective
activities. An ICT-intensive system is becoming a must for engaging
in speedy banking transaction. Otherwise, banks which remain struggling
with traditional banking practices will be outmaneuvered by smarter,
faster and better informed dealers in the international financial
market.
It could be
argued as to whether telecommunication promote economic development
or vice versa, but the link between the two is becoming stronger.
Experts advise
that the rate of technological change in Telecommunication is so
fast that it only makes sense to invest in the latest technologies-which
are cheaper, efficient and reliable-to obtain maximum results from
the investment.
The whole situation
calls for greater intervention to increase concerted efforts to
launch the expansion of modern telecommunications services in order
for Ethiopia to be a partner of the information age.
Concluding Remarks
The establishment
of the Ethiopian Science and Technology Commission and the strengthening
of the Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation have contributed
a lot to introduce the vast field of ICT and created public awareness
as to their significance to national economic development. However,
had their efforts been supported by a national ICT policy, the results
would have been immense. They could have also built a strong foundation
to ensure a sustainable growth of the sector.
The increasing
demand for personal computers and related hardware and software
applications, the digitalization of telecommunications and the rapid
expansion of the Internet could impose added weight to adopt a national
ICT policy framework. The policy should focus on the development
and manufacture of ICT related production and materials consisting
of computer hardware, software and telecommunications equipment
and adopting cross-sector strategies with a view to harnessing the
unique nature of ICT to speed up the development of this significant
sector.
The new Ministry
of Infrastructure together with the private sector should take a
leading role in enhancing public debates and discussions on the
ICT policy formulation and implementation in Ethiopia. Again it
should take the initiative to call a national workshop that will
bring together all stakeholders in the information and communication
sectors, government policy makers and others to facilitate the formulation
of the national information and communications technology policy.
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