APRC Publications Library

This e-primer looks at how the knowledge-based economy has impacted small and medium enterprises (SMEs); explores why so few SMEs have adopted information and communications technology (ICT) and why SMEs should adopt ICT; and provides some policy recommendations for promoting SME adoption of ICT.

This e-Primer looks at information and communications technology (ICT) for development through a gender lens. It provides a gender perspectives to issues of ICT policies; access and control; education, training and skill development; and content development, and introduces a framework to integrate gender in ICT for development and empower women.

This APDIP e-Note provides an overview of the benefits and challenges of some of the most used e-Health tools. Important lessons learned in e-Health in the Asia-Pacific region are highlighted through three case studies from Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand. The APDIP e-Note also examines different approaches to e-Health, such as the use of free and open source software (FOSS) and the relationship between e-Health and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Finally, considerations for policy makers are discussed.

This APDIP e-Note intends to give a brief introduction to government interoperability frameworks (GIFs), explain how they are classified and provide details of their common features. It also discusses the importance of open standards in GIFs and why governments should consider open standards seriously when designing or evaluating their GIFs.

This APDIP e-Note provides a brief introduction to the history of document standards, explores the different standards for electronic documents and details the development of OpenDocument Format for Office Applications (ODF). It also looks at how governments worldwide have started to adopt ODF in public administration.

In spite of their promising development opportunities, telecentres have also been met with criticism, especially for not being sustainable. In response to this criticism this APDIP e-Note examines different ownership and financing models for telecentres, emphasizing the balance between subsidy and revenue. It examines how these models can assist in ensuring long-term financial sustainability and how both the private sector and civil society can be mutually involved in this process.

The Asia-Pacific region are major producers and users of information and communication technologies (ICTs). There are, however, significant gap between the demand and supply of ICT professionals. As a first in the series of two complementing APDIP e-Notes, this APDIP e-Note discusses the dynamics creating the demand/supply imbalance. At a strategic level, it explores ways to achieve a balance and make recommendations on actions that policy makers can take to increase the existing ICT skill supply.

The Overview introduces and guides policy makers to the what, who, why and how of e-government interoperability. Through a question-and-answer format, the publication walks its readers through the vision, rationale and value of a Government Interoperability Framework (GIF) and a National Enterprise Architecture (NEA). It answers some fundamental questions such as what are the resources required, who should be involved and what are the key factors for its successful development and operationalization. It also looks at open standards and what they have to do with GIF. This Overview is particularly useful for senior officials in governments who are starting to implement their e-government strategies and for those who are planning to develop a GIF or NEA.

The Review provides a comparative analysis of eight existing GIFs of Australia, Brazil, Denmark, the European Union, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It serves as a useful resource for government officials, the corporate sector and civil society involved in the development or revision of a GIF. This Review focuses on how GIFs in different countries were developed, the principles that animate them, the technical standards they mandated and/or recommend, the way these GIFs are managed, and the implementation and compliance mechanisms they established.

This APDIP e-Note is the second in the series on information and communications technology (ICT) skill development in the Asia-Pacific region. While the first part examined the gaps between demand and supply of ICT skills, this APDIP e-Note focuses on what could be done to bridge the identified gaps at national and regional levels.

This APDIP e-Note examines how Internationalized Domain Names relate to cultural diversity and the basic human right to communicate in one's own language on the Internet. While the bulk of the content on the Internet has been in English, this is increasingly changing. This APDIP e-Note discusses the ongoing debate of whether to continue with the existing system or allow users to navigate the Internet using a range of scripts.

An information and communications technology (ICT) ecosystem includes not only the hardware and software but also the policies, processes, applications, partnerships and stakeholders that together make up the technology environment for a country, government or organization. This APDIP e-Note explains the value of open ICT ecosystems and elaborates on their principles and building blocks in simple terms.