Date: Thursday 17 March 2016
Time: 15:00 - 17:00
Venue: NAB 4.21 - LSE Campus
Research on the role of ICTs in socio-economic development (ICT4D) has acquired a paramount position in the Information Systems domain. In this context, a somewhat silent orthodoxy has emerged: that ICTs, improving information and communication across actors, lie behind the creation of more accountable marketsin the developing world. Stories of mobile phone usage in agriculture and fisheries, as well as narratives of ICTs enabling banking and entrepreneurship in previously isolated regions, are becoming ubiquitous in the literature. However evidence in this respect is mixed, and the link between ICTs and developing country markets needs to be examined in its own right.
In this session, the role of information systems in developing country markets will be discussed by three experts in the field. Different geographic foci, as well as diverse theoretical perspectives, will lead us to rediscuss the existing orthodoxy on the topic, and propose alternative explanations to it. The session will be structured as a round table, aimed at mapping existing knowledge on this timely theme and build cross-disciplinary synergies around it.
Participants:
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Laura Mann, Assistant Professor in International Development, LSE
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Elisa Oreglia, Lecturer in Global Digital Culture, Centre for Media Studies, SOAS
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Silvia Masiero, Research Officer, Department of Management, LSE