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Shaping the future with knowledge Professor Rais Ahmad Memorial Lecture

Shaping the future with knowledge Professor Rais Ahmad Memorial Lecture. Abdul Waheed Khan Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information UNESCO Aligarh Muslim University, India, 18 February 2006. “Today, the search for knowledge continues

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Shaping the future with knowledge Professor Rais Ahmad Memorial Lecture

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  1. Shaping the future with knowledgeProfessor Rais Ahmad Memorial Lecture Abdul Waheed Khan Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information UNESCO Aligarh Muslim University, India, 18 February 2006

  2. “Today, the search for knowledge continues to produce an ongoing revolution in the health and wealth of humankind.” Fareed Zakaria,Newsweek editor

  3. "Knowledge is like light. Weightless and tangible, it can easily travel the World, enlightening the lives of people everywhere.“ World Bank World Development Report

  4. Central Role of Knowledge for Development Economic Growth Social Development Knowledge Political Empowerment Cultural Enrichment

  5. Goal 5 Improving maternal health Millennium Development Goals Goal 1 Eradication of extreme poverty and hunger Goal 2 Achieving universal primary education Goal 8 Developing a global partnership for development Goal 3 Promoting gender equality Goal 7 Ensuring environmental sustainability Knowledge Goal 4 Reducing child mortality Goal 6 Combating HIV/AIDS, malaria etc.

  6. Sober Picture “The overall report card on progress makes a depressing reading. Most countries are off track…The promise to the world’s poor is being broken.” UNDP Human Development Report 2005

  7. “The ability to create and maintain knowledge infrastructure, develop knowledge workers and enhance their productivity will be the key factors in deciding the prosperity of the knowledge society.” Abdul Kalam, President of India

  8. Knowledge Societies Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge Societies Societies Societies Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge Creation Dissemination Utilization Preservation Pluralism Pluralism Pluralism Human Human Human Needs Needs Needs and and and Rights Rights Rights

  9. Wheel of Change Demographic change Social change Educational Science and Technology Political Change Economic change change Cultural Change

  10. Knowledge Creation “Half a hectare of land and one year of labour were required to feed one person in 1900 whereas that same half-hectare now feeds 10 persons on the basis of just one and a half days of labour”. UNESCO Science Report

  11. Knowledge Creation • Central role of science for knowledge creation • Unique opportunities of Science to: • meet basic human needs • reduce poverty • protect the environment • improve the quality of life • enhance sustainable development

  12. Knowledge creation:Gaps in Investment in R&D • Share of R&D investment of global GDP : • 1997: 1.6 % • 2000: 1.7 % • Comparisons of share of R&D investment: • OECD countries : 2.2 % • Sweden: 4 % • Developing countries: 0.2 % • India: Crossed historic threshold of 1% in 2004 • Gross expenditure on R&D in Asia: • 1997: 27.9% world share • 2002: 31.5% world share • Dynamism largely driven by China (e.g. Number of researchers in 2002 : 810,000 in China, 646,500 in Japan)

  13. Knowledge Preservation • Preservation of indigenous knowledge • Preservation of digital knowledge

  14. Knowledge Dissemination:Role of technology • To reach 50 million people: - Radio: 38 years, - Television: 13 years - Internet: 4 years • Countries connected to Internet: • 1990: 20 • 2000: 200 • Number of web pages: • 1993: 50 • 2006: Between 3-10 billion

  15. The Multi-Platform World

  16. Knowledge dissemination:ICT for Development Source: ICT4D-Connecting People for a Better World, Editors: G. Weigel and D. Waldburger (2004)

  17. Globalization and Technology • Globalization as a consequence of a number of economic reform trends including liberalization, privatization and decentralization • Technology as mover in the age of globalization • Role of the Internet, especially WWW • Increasing digital divide: only 4.8 persons per thousand are online

  18. Knowledge Prosperity Globalization Inclusion Ignorance Poverty Marginalization Exclusion Knowledge Divide or Digital Divide A World of Contrast

  19. Knowledge Dissemination:Major Challenges • Increasing access • Reaching the unreached • Providing educational inputs of good quality • Making educational opportunities available at affordable cost • Enhancing the relevance of educational provision to societal and individual need • Providing opportunities for lifelong learning

  20. Knowledge Dissemination:Meeting the Challenges • Business unusual • Using mix approaches (new and traditional technologies) • Developing enabling environmentss • Facilitating private initiatives • Creating public/private partnerships

  21. Knowledge Utilization Knowledge, once created and disseminated, needs to be used wisely in order to enhance economic and social well-being. • Essential factors for knowledge utilization: • Capacity (Education for All) • Access • Enabling environment

  22. India’s Strength in theKnowledge Era • Stable democracy • Stable macro-economy • Dynamic private sector • Strong financial sector • One of the largest domestic markets of the world • Increasingly broad and diversified science and technology infrastructure • Critical mass of skilful, English-speaking knowledge workers • Highly educated and valuable Diaspora

  23. India still needs to undertake serious reforms and investment based on these strengths

  24. India in the World World Population World Land Mass India: 17% India: 2.8%

  25. India in the World World FDI World Trade World GDP India:0.8% India: 0.8% India: 0.4%

  26. Comparison India / China

  27. India’s Focus • Investing in education to create a skilled workforce • Investing in research and development and science and technology to foster knowledge creation • Ensuring India's competitiveness on a global market • Preserving and protecting indigenous knowledge • Enhancing the information infrastructure • Developing strategies to make more effective use of knowledge

  28. Guiding Principles of Knowledge Societies • Freedom • Inclusiveness • Diversity • Empowerment

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