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By Dr. Hyeun-Suk Rhee
Remarkable advances in information and communication technologies (ICTs) are impacting people's lives in a variety of ways. With ICTs, exchange of ideas and information can transcend great geographical distances and help realize the notion of a global village. Yet the benefits of ICTs do not stop at providing global interconnectivity. ICTs can serve as valuable tools with which to achieve inclusive, sustainable development at a national and regional level. Instances of ICTs being employed in areas including, but not limited to, distance learning, telemedicine, disaster risk reduction, and green growth corroborate this view.

The current state of the Asia-Pacific region, however, still shows significant discrepancies among countries in the capacity to use ICTs for development, from basic infrastructure to systemic capability for applying the ICT tools that are available. For developing countries to bridge this digital divide and achieve development goals, the deployment of technology is necessary but insufficient. ICT human capacity building for development is essential if countries are to fully benefit from the opportunities provided by ICTs. Human capacity is also a key element for creating innovative solutions to numerous development challenges.

Recognizing the importance of ICT capacity building, the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) highlighted in its Declaration of Principles that every person must be afforded "an opportunity to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge in order to understand, participate actively in, and benefit fully from, the Information Society and the knowledge economy." In response to this call for action by the WSIS, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) founded the Asian and Pacific Training Centre for ICT for Development (UN-APCICT) in Incheon on June 16, 2006 with financial contributions made by the Government of the Republic of Korea.

True to the WSIS Principle that guided its establishment, APCICT has a mandate to strengthen the human and institutional capacity of ESCAP member and associate member States in the use of ICTs for socio-economic development. Since its inception, APCICT has offered training, advisory services, as well as research and knowledge sharing to over 12,000 stakeholders including government officials and policymakers. Keeping in mind the importance of local contexts, APCICT's training program modules have been translated into 9 languages.

Now in its 6th year of establishment, APCICT has learned many valuable lessons on how to carry out effective, sustainable development through ICTs. Yet the most important lesson is the indispensible nature of partnership and knowledge sharing in human capacity development. Large-scale endeavors such as national ICT development rarely succeed without the involvement of multiple stakeholders, from policymakers and legislators to managerial and operational personnel. At the same time, engaging such stakeholders and establishing an environment for meaningful cooperation is only possible through sharing of relevant information. Cognizant of this intricate dynamic, APCICT has worked with its partners to create an environment in which ideas are freely exchanged and the capacity to implement ICTs is greatly increased.

On the occasion of its 6th anniversary, APCICT has taken further steps to provide such an environment by launching a series of publications and digital platforms both for e-learning and knowledge sharing. Specifically, APCICT has begun disseminating to partners worldwide the new version of its ICT capacity building publications. Additionally to encourage knowledge sharing, APCICT is revamping its distance learning site and launching a Community of Practice, a digital platform for discussion and exchange of best practices.

Despite the increased awareness of ICTD by developing nations and the sustained effort of many organizations such as APCICT to promote its benefits, much more work needs to be done to ensure that everyone across the region can leverage the potential of ICTD. Only through an enduring partnership with relevant stakeholders and their willingness to share knowledge actively with others can we bridge the digital divide and begin to achieve a true global village.

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Dr. Hyeun-Suk Rhee is Director of the United Nations Asian and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communication Technology, a Regional Institute of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.