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ROLE AND OPPORTUNITY OF ICT IN CO-OPERATIVE SECTOR
Abstract
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been recognized as a facilitator for globalization and is turning into a global village. UN International Year of Cooperatives (2012) emphasizing the involvement of cooperatives make to poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration-reconstruction. Cooperative societies in India played a vital role in improvement of agriculture, banking, credit, agro processing, storage, marketing, dairy, fishing and housing segments. Cooperatives starring role in poverty alleviation, food security and employment generation is well proven. ICTs can revolution the way cooperatives work and bring huge benefits particularly in agriculture. Cooperatives given that access to information such as crop cycles, weather reports, farming methods and local markets, available online or via text message. How innovative ICT use can transform the day-today operative of cooperatives and benefit members. Its clear ICT's are dynamic in the development of cooperatives but there are some tasks to be overcome, namely cost and infrastructure issues relating to access. In order to facilitate or provide access to ICTs to cooperatives, they must be supported by the creation of an enabling environment, including a legal, policy, business environment and sharing frameworks that are helpful to the creation and development of organizations.
The digitalization of rural areas is being propelled by transformative advancements in domains such as electronic payments, digital literacy, financial inclusion, geographic mapping, and rural development. An expedited strategy for digital transformation could serve as a potent solution to tackle the enduring challenges in this context. India is experiencing a swift digital revolution, driven by the government's Digital India initiative, which seeks to metamorphose the nation into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. Despite the urban population enjoying access to digital technologies, rural areas are predominantly left out of this digital transformation. This digital disparity poses a risk of impeding India's economic growth and overall development, underscoring the essentiality of digital inclusion in rural India for the country's advancement. Digital inclusion entails the capacity of individuals and communities to avail and utilize digital technologies, including smartphones, computers, and the Internet. In rural India, home to a substantial part of the population, the absence of digital inclusion profoundly affects economic prospects, education, healthcare, and financial accessibility. According to a recent study in 2023 by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), a mere 29% of rural India has internet access, in stark contrast to the 64% observed in urban India. This digital divide isn't just a social concern; it significantly pertains to economic implications.
Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) which include radio, television, as well as newer digital technology such as computer and the internet. ICTs are a potentially powerful tool for extending educational opportunities, formal and non-formal, to previously underserved constituencies - scattered and rural populations. ICTs helps to devleop the 21st century skills which include digital age literacy, inventive thinking, higher-order thinking and sound reasoning, effective communication, and high productivity. It provides opportunities to deploy innovative teaching methodologies and to deploy more interesting material that create an interest in the students. But there are number of challenges that need to be understood before delving into a discussion of the use of ICT in higher education which included inadequate availability of technology, poor infrastructure, resistance to change and content of language.
In 'Key Issues in the New Knowledge Management,' Firestone and McElroy, the architects of the New Knowledge Management (TNKM) provide an in-depth analysis of the most important issues in the field of Knowledge Management.
"A study was conducted that examined the performance of three ICT projects in India. The projects have quite different origins and purposes, but all are concerned with improving the delivery of information to farmers and other rural dwellers. One project is managed by the government of Madhya Pradesh as part of an exploration of e-governance. A second project is run by sugar cooperatives (with some government support) in Maharashtra and attempts to expand services to growers. The third project is an experiment by a large private agricultural input supplier to provide information to farmers in Andhra Pradesh. The study describes the organization of each project; discusses the types of farmers involved and assesses their utilisation of the services; and looks at the backgrounds and performance of the functionaries who manage the projects. The projects studied varied with respect to the type of services provided, but these included marketing information, extension advice, information about rural development programmes, and other information from government and private sources."
Director, FAO Liaison Office, United Nations
- Lila Ms
- Hanitra
Ms. Lila Hanitra (2012), Director, FAO Liaison Office, United Nations, New York Presented
Cooperatives and the Role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), United Nations,
New York.
Co-operatives and the Role of ICTs
- Gary Fowlie
Gary Fowlie, Co-operatives and the Role of ICTs" on June 6, 2012.