IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Fall 2013 - 5

EDITORIAL

Putting Technology
into Perspective in Asia

KATINA MICHAEL

ith almost four billion people, Asia
thick arrows representing large volumes showed inforcomprises about 55% of the world's
mation flowing in and out of developed nations [7].
population and 45% of the world's InterPoorer nations in Asia and Africa especially had
net users [1]. Internet penetration in Asia
very thin flows. Sometimes this signified that a maris estimated at almost 28% compared with the rest
ket was predominantly "closed" and had not yet forof the world at 43% [2]. The number of mobile users
mally deregulated, or that internal conflict caused it
in Asia at the end of 2012 was estimated at about 3.2
to remain troubled instead of outward looking and
billion subscribers. Eighteen countries in Asia have
global. The poverty cycle, also known as a spiral, is
saturated mobile markets exceeding 100% penetradifficult to break. Initiatives like one laptop per child
tion, while Macau and Hong Kong have mobile pene(OLPC) surely provide hope [8], as do open data initration levels of more than 200% [3]. India and China
tiatives to give access to information to anyone who
account for over 60% of the telecommuhas an Internet connection of any type
nications market in Asia which is why so
[9]. However when there is no one to pay
We need to
many companies are vying to be there.
the electricity bill or to even guarantee
think past the
But all of this needs to be factored
the underlying infrastructure, even these
first ripple
against some humbling statistics. for
promising ventures will fall short.
example, 66.7% of people living in South
There are numerous ways to coneffect, to
Asia in 2010 earned less than $2 a day
sider technology within a framework
far-reaching
compared with 30% in East Asia and the
of progress. for example, some point to
consequences. genetically modified (GM) crops that
Pacific [4]. According to the World Bank,
more than a third of these people did not
can provide food for those in need [10];
earn more than $1.25 a day, placing them below the
enabling technologies in the manufacturing industry
poverty line. An estimated 80-90% of this populagiving workers a chance to earn a living; transportation is rural, with rural poverty especially endemic
tion technology like containers on ships and rail that
in Southern Asia [5]. However, between 1990 and
enable global supply chain processes; sophisticated
2008 the number of people living in poverty in the
private and public exchange banking systems that
world halved [6]. One question to ponder is how much
allow for electronic commerce from anywhere in the
of this reduction in poverty was as a direct result of
world; and a high tech industry that is continually
technology?
reinventing itself with new innovations to keep the
When I worked for Nortel in Asia I had the opporretail sector moving.
tunity to study voice and data teletraffic flow maps
Nonetheless, resources are limited as populations
published by the International Telecommunications
continue to rise at an increasing rate in developing
Union (ITU). I was always intrigued by the fact that
nations, placing pressure on fossil fuel reserves. On
the one hand these limited resources have meant that
we are continually seeking to harness new alternative
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MTS.2013.2276662
means of energy such as solar and wind, but on the
Date of publication: 26 September 2013
Katina Michael is with the School of Information Systems and Technology at the University of Wollongong, Wollongong,
New South Wales, Australia, 2522. Email: katina@uow.edu.au.
IEEE TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY MAGAZINE

fALL 2013

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