The UNDP Perspective: F/OSS as a Tool for Development and The F/OSS Initiative in the Arab Region

1. EGM on Open Source Software Solutions for the Public Sector in the Arab Region The UNDP Perspective: F/OSS as a Tool for Development and The F/OSS Initiative in the Arab Region Ziad Haddara Senior Programme Officer UNDP/ ICTDAR

2. Background • The great majority of developing countries are still facing many obstacles that come into the way of truly harnessing the power of ICTs as a key tool for development. Most of these countries are still pure consumers of technology, as over 90% or innovation happens in industrialized countries. Pure consumption of technology at very high costs and for software that is often hard to localize and does not completely respond to local needs, often increases the gap and sometimes even aggravates the development gap. • R&D and innovation is often responsive to market incentives, and therefore there are critical gaps in responding to the developmental needs of developing countries.

3. Background • Therefore, developing countries should and must start linking more effectively their current ICT and development strategies to national R&D, science and technology, and innovation issues- by promoting local R&D activities that fill national and regional gaps, with strong local ownership. • But beginning is usually daunting, given the apparent challenges, enormous costs, and lack of awareness on ICT for D.

4. The UNDP’s Strategic Objectives for F/OSS • Assist developing countries in harnessing the potential of F/OSS to address local development goals • From a developmental perspective, raise awareness of F/OSS as a public good that is created by a voluntary community of global citizens, and which developing countries can tap into to build local capacity and fill in gaps in R&D and solutions for any sectors. • This in turn help in bridging the gap between “North” and “South” and in increasing “South-South” co-operation.

5. The UNDP’s Strategic Objectives for F/OSS The objective is not to promote F/OSS as an end in itself but rather: • Present it as a real option and a tool in e-government to increase social inclusion and foster service delivery to the most vulnerable groups, with the aim of increasing its consideration in ongoing and future e-government strategies and implementation plans, ICTD strategies, and decentralization policies. • Highlight its capacity development aspects by using it for social development purposes and for fostering self-sufficiency and local capacity building, by encouraging the implementation of ICTD projects, for local, national, and even global use. The objective is not replacing proprietary with free software. It is rather about presenting F/OSS as a real option, with their own benefits and drawbacks, but with the potential to empower local communities by giving them the possibility of becoming self-reliant if they chose to do so.

6. Implementation Strategy: Policy Building local capacity and achieving development objectives through F/OSS happens along four areas: 1- Policy • Awareness raising to policy makers and other stakeholders • Links to National ICTD and R&D policies • Intellectual Property Rights issues • Competitive environments in software and ICT sectors • Role of Governments in promoting F/OSS • Role of F/OSS in e-Government Strategy • Providing choice and an alternative to proprietary software

7. Implementation Strategy: Capacity Building Building local capacity and achieving development objectives through F/OSS happens along four areas: 2- Capacity Building • National awareness of and involvement in international communities • Technical training and certification • Creation and strengthening of local communities • Creation and strengthening of R&D networks and institutions • South-South cooperation • Integration into academic curricula • Closing the gap between “North” and “South”

8. Implementation Strategy: Content and Applications Building local capacity and achieving development objectives through F/OSS happens along four areas: 3- Content and Applications • Support for local language character sets • Preservation of local culture and traditions • Increase creation and sharing of local content through ICT • Customized local software and applications for local users and companies • Feeding locally developed knowledge products to the international community especially countries with similar levels of income and developmental needs • Local content in local language, for local and regional use

9. Implementation Strategy: Entrepreneurship Building local capacity and achieving development objectives through F/OSS happens along four areas: 4- Entrepreneurship • Franchising and localization of international distributions to local SMEs • Creation of new businesses producing knowledge products with regional focus • Creation of local SMEs providing support services to clients (local private sector and government) • Links between global public goods and local private sector development • Stimulate local economies and create jobs

10. Global UNDP Projects • Create and/or support regional centers: • Support the center created by the South African government to implement its Open Source strategy, and add a sub-regional dimension • Support the center created by the Brazilian government to adopt Open Source within the government and for e-government applications • Regional UNDP ICTD programme in Malaysia launched the Asia Pacific Open Source Network to create a similar regional center • Work with ICTDAR to achieve UNDP’s F/OSS objectives in the Arab Region

11. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region • Twelve month project will be formally launched in January 2007 • Partnership with UNDP’s Bureau of Development Policy, with direct management by ICTDAR • Aims to achieve the same overall objectives • Implementation along the same four areas: • Policy • Capacity Building • Content and Applications • Entrepreneurship

12. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region Action Items on Policy: • EGMs and sub-regional workshops to raise awareness of FOSS as a valid option in e-Government and ICTD planning

13. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region Action Items on Capacity Building: • Seminars to raise awareness at the school and university levels • Engaging a few regional universities in a joint effort to develop F/OSS-based applications for distribution amongst the student bodies, the regional communities of practice, and NGOs • Providing assistance for at least one Arab university to formally incorporate F/OSS in its curriculum

14. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region Action Items on Content and Applications: • Create and/or localize one or two popular F/OSS applications and distribute through ICTDAR’s Community Access Centers, universities, and NGOs • Create an ICTD Toolbox that is itself FOSS-based, and which presents methodologies for ICTD and makes F/OSS-based tools available, such as a Portal platform • Organizing a competition for F/OSS-based applications

15. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region F/OSS-based ICTD Toolbox: Modules • Integrating ICT in Development (part 1) • Integrating ICT in Development (part 2) • A TOT on Integrating ICT in Development • Introduction to the Internet • Web Development and Blogging • Advanced Web Development and Content Management Systems • Developing a Community-Based Portal

16. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region F/OSS-based Applications

17. F/OSS Capacity Building and Awareness Raising in the Arab Region Action Items on Entrepreneurship: • Mapping of regional F/OSS communities of practice • Providing support and momentum to these COPs • Creating a F/OSS-based Portal for the regional community (based on the ICTD Toolbox) • Organizing a competition for FOSS-based applications

18. Final Thoughts • FOSS is not and end, but a means to achieving developmental objectives • It is an alternative, with its own pros and cons • It can be considered a “public good”- one that is sustainable and increases with use • From a wider development perspective, it is a cross-cutting and multi-level issue involving choices about autonomy, national capacity building, national R&D, stimulation of entrepreneurship, cost effective ICTD, and a possible means to catch up on the digital divide