NEWS

New method for disseminating POPIN Bulletin

This is the first issue of the Asia-Pacific POPIN Bulletin being published in electronic format only. The Bulletin enters its twelfth year of publication with this issue. Publication in this format not only increases efficiency but also enables a larger number of readers to gain access to this thrice-yearly newsletter of the Asia-Pacific POPIN network.

With the wide availability of both e-mail and the World Wide Web it will be possible also to send articles to network members and post them on the Web for worldwide access.

Electronic publication can offset the high cost of printing and international postage. In addition, it enables ESCAP to increase the speed of the information dissemination process – there will be no delay in getting the information to network members who currently get the newsletter once every four months. Individual articles will be sent by e-mail, so that members of the network and other recipients may get the information soon after it has been obtained by the ESCAP secretariat. In this sense, each issue of the Bulletin is not "static" but rather "dynamic" since it grows as new items are added. Anyone who would like to receive this service may do so by sending an e-mail request to ap-popin.unescap@un.org

Asia-Pacific POPIN gets coverage at Commission on
Population and Development meeting

During the recent meeting of the United Nations Commission on Population and Development, the representatives of several countries and organizations mentioned the work of Asia-Pacific POPIN and the global Population Information Network, emphasizing that the network provides an excellent means of communication. That Commission’s thirty-third session was held at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 24 to 26 March.

The statement of the representative of Bangladesh said, among other things: "During the last few years, my country has been immensely benefited in understanding the trends and problems of population and initiating objective views on the basis of information on the Website provided by POPIN. My delegation fervently requests you to explore the possibility of the continuation and strengthening of the POPIN programme in (the) future".

Another ESCAP member country, the Russian Federation, said that POPIN is a valuable source of information for governments and can increase links between governments regarding the goals of the ICPD (International Conference on Population and Development). It is a low-cost and effective project. Work on the development and maintenance of this system should be continued, said the Russian delegate.

The Canadian and United States delegations also expressed appreciation of the efforts of the Population Division in increasing regional population information on the Internet and effort to establish a Website for the dissemination of information related to ICPD.

For his part, the Director of the ESCAP Population and Rural and Urban Development Division, Mr Nibhon Debavalya, stated that the secretariat’s population information work is strongly promoted "because various types of population data and information constitute the foundation on which the entire edifice of socio-economic planning is based".

"With data and information being essential to the formulation of effective population policies and the implementation of achievable programmes, ESCAP continues to promote new and better techniques and technologies for handling, sharing and disseminating population data and information", he said.

As an example, he said that, during October 2000, ESCAP would hold a training workshop for developing human resources for improved population information services, products and communications.

During the previous year, the secretariat had organized two consultative meetings: "one for Pacific POPIN and the other for East and South-East Asia POPIN held in May and October respectively", he informed the meeting.

In his intervention, he said that projects under the UNFPA-supported Asia-Pacific Regional Programme on Population and Sustainable Development would commence in the year 2000.

Other regional commissions also mentioned the value of the work of POPIN. Said the representative of the Economic Commission for Africa: "Working with global POPIN, Africa's Population and Development Bulletin, as well as other major population-related publications, are available on the Web". Likewise the representative of the Economic Commission for Europe said that his office expected to continue to promote the development of POPIN Europe Web sites in central and eastern Europe.

The representative of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean said that the secretariat works closely with national statistical offices and other relevant institutions to monitor population trends in the ECLAC region and to produce new estimates and projections at the national level. These are on the ECLAC Web site that global POPIN helped to create. "ECLAC considers this to be a very valuable instrument for the dissemination of information regionally and globally", the representative said.

The main theme of the Commission’s meeting was the link between population, gender and development and a review of proposals for key actions for further implementation of the ICPD outcome, adopted at the special session of the General Assembly in July 1999.

Attention was also drawn to one of the primary obstacles to the full implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action -- the serious lack of financial resources. Donor funding for population activities has stagnated, and is far below expectations

The Population Commission was established in 1946 by the Economic and Social Council to study and advise the Council on population changes, including migration, and their effect on economic and social conditions.

Following the ICPD in 1994, it was decided that the Commission's name would be changed to the Commission on Population and Development, which would meet annually beginning in 1996 to assess implementation of the Programme of Action at the national, regional and international levels. The Commission comprises 47 members, elected on the basis of equitable geographic distribution for a term of four years.

Economic And Social Council President announces
 information topic

"The Role of Information Technology in the Knowledge-Based Economy" will be the special topic of the high-level segment of the Economic and Social Council when it meets for the year 2000 session, according to the President of the Council, Mr Makarim Wibisono (Indonesia).

In a press conference given at United Nations Headquarters in early February, Mr Wibisono said that information technology would be given top priority and the Council intended to launch specific activities in conjunction with it, including a series of panel discussions and regional meetings. So far, India had indicated its intention to host such a meeting in the ESCAP region.

He said that there were also plans to organize an information technology exhibition with the involvement of private sector, as well as informational meetings with the Chief Executive Officers of leading private companies in the field of information technology, from both developed and developing countries. Such meetings would take place during the high-level segment of the Economic and Social Council meeting.

Other activities would involve establishing an institutional and permanent focal point on information technology, under the aegis of the Council and the General Assembly, and exploring the possibility of establishing an information technology centre in the developing countries.

He wanted to ensure that the Council had the ability to respond in a timely manner to new emerging issues and problems of major international significance in the social and economic fields.

Since the Council has only one substantial session each year, it was not in a good position to address fast-emerging issues in the era of rapid globalization.

Knowledge conference launches global action plan

The Second Global Knowledge Conference concluded on 10 March 2000 at Kuala Lumpur with the adoption of a plan of action to address the Conference themes of access, empowerment, and governance for the next 2-3 years. The aim of the plan is to help to bridge the divide between the knowledge "haves" and knowledge "have-nots".

Malaysia’s Prime Minister, HE Dr Mahathir Bin Mohamad, showed the importance that his government places on information when he addressed the Conference on 8 March 2000 at Kuala Lumpur.

His address focused on the growing divide between the information rich and information poor. On a global level, he talked about the "great divide" between the economically rich and the materially poor of this earth and the great divide between the information- and knowledge-rich and the information- and knowledge-poor of the world.

He also mentioned a third great divide: "the great divide within all our societies between those who are information- and knowledge-empowered and those who are information- and knowledge-disenfranchised".

Malaysia’s pursuit of becoming a "knowledge economy" and attaining "Vision 2020" (to become a fully developed country by the year 2020) will now be enhanced by the K-economy Master Plan, he said.

This Knowledge Economy Master Plan will transform the Malaysian economy into one where the knowledge content and the knowledge contribution will see a quantum leap in every area. It is a fundamental move from the production-driven economy to one where knowledge is of primary importance, he said.

At a session on the previous day, remarks beamed across the globe were delivered by World Bank President, Mr James Wolfensohn, and an address was given in Kuala Lumpur by Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Abdullah Haji Ahmad Badawi.

Speaking from Washington DC, Mr Wolfensohn emphasized the importance and timeliness of the conference: "There could not be a better time to have this conference than now. . . . There is no more important meeting than this meeting to push forward the issue of social justice and equity throughout the world", he said. "Knowledge, if it is properly transferred, if it is made available to all, gives the greatest opportunity for people to advance themselves and to progress in the fight against poverty".

The Deputy Prime Minister emphasized the timeliness and importance of the forum also, but he sounded a note of caution, stressing the perils the developing world confronts in the face of the ever-growing gap between information "haves" and "have-nots".

"Amid the exuberance of ushering in a global knowledge economy is the stark reality that the majority of the world’s population is being left behind in this great new paradigm shift", he warned.

Both speakers stressed that partnership among all sectors to promote knowledge for development is vital if progress is to be made towards creating a world free of poverty. "The answer is clearly not just money. The answer clearly is knowledge, partnership, and opportunity brought about by this new [digital] revolution", said Mr Wolfensohn.

More than 1,000 people from 120 countries, representing the public and private sectors and civil society, attended the conference. Among other things, they hammered out strategies that would put information and knowledge in the hands of developing countries and the world's poor, the goals called for in the opening speeches.

That strategy is called the Global Knowledge Partnership's Action Plan. In describing the Action Plan, Ms Marlee Norton of the National Telephone Cooperative Association, outlined 17 action items around which there was consensus and significant interest. Four of the items were as follows:

• An initiative to develop global and regional portals for sharing local content (to counterbalance the heavy influence of the "North" currently on the Internet).
• Creating innovative financing such as venture capital funds so that local innovators can drive the ICT marketplace in their countries.
• An initiative to integrate technology skills into schools and informal education systems to build skills needed to compete in today's high-tech economies. This will include working with Ministries of Education to reform the curriculum.
• Provide a permanent home and resources to continue the Youth Building Knowledge Societies discussion list. This electronic youth discussion was set up to provide input from youth from around the globe to the Conference.

Readers wishing to obtain more information about the Conference and its satellite meetings may write to Global Knowledge Partnership Secretariat, World Bank Institute, 1818 H Street N.W.,Washington DC 20433, United States. Fax: (202) 522-1492; email: globalknowledge@worldbank.org or access its Website at the following URL: http://www.globalknowledge.org

Report of the Global Knowledge Forum proceedings

A major meeting on information and information technology was held at Kuala Lumpur recently as part of the Second Global Knowledge Conference held in the Malaysian capital from 7 to 10 March 2000.

Called the Global Knowledge Forum, the meeting pointed out that, in the new millennium, information and communications technologies (ICT) would provide tremendous opportunities to narrow the socio-economic development gaps between communities and nations. However, the key problems of the digital divide need to be addressed urgently. Concomitantly, the need to evolve new forms of smart partnerships based on sincerity and equality was critical.

The meeting concluded with a set of recommendations for each of the areas considered during the wide-ranging discussions.

Readers who wish to obtain the full report and the recommendations may do so by accessing the following URL: http://www.globalknowledge.org.my/gkf_report.doc

South Asians hold satellite meeting during Second Global Knowledge Conference

One of the satellite meetings organized during the recent Second Global Knowledge Conference in Kuala Lumpur was of special concern to South Asian countries.

The starting point for discussion by the 55 South Asian delegates to the satellite meeting was the outcome of the TASKNET (Towards a South Asia Knowledge Network) meeting held at New Delhi in November 1999.

Dr N Vijayaditya and Dr Amrita Dass led the discussion; they reminded the meeting that TASKNET had been jointly hosted by India’s National Informatics Centre and the British Council. They had brought together a number of key players from the governmental, non-governmental and corporate sectors to find solutions to address the widening gap between the information "haves" and "have nots".

That meeting also focused on the importance of unleashing a multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-directional flow of knowledge underscored by equality and equity. It highlighted the fact that South Asia is very rich in knowledge. However, steps would have to be taken to put this wealth of knowledge into digital format. Such a step would facilitate information sharing not only within the developing countries of the "South" but also between the "South" and the developed countries in the "North".

The two speakers noted that providing "access" to information and communication technologies (ICT) was a major priority for the South Asian subregion, which has the lowest Internet penetration in the world. Some of the key strategies formulated by TASKNET and put forward at the Second Global Knowledge Conference in Kuala Lumpur were:

• Giving priority to community rather than individual access through "telecentres", cyber cafes and information villages.
• Using convergent technologies.
• Shaping intellectual property rights to foster the creation of local knowledge and to safeguard it.
• Mobilizing "infomediaries" such as librarians, teachers and field workers to help people to gain access to knowledge via ICT.
• Ensuring free public access to information by hosting "public spaces" in ICT-based content systems.
• Including women and children in the formulation of an equitable approach to ICT strategy formulation, implementation and monitoring.
• Empowering people through ICT including the reflection of people's real needs matched with opportunities to act on that knowledge.
• ICT capacity-building would also focus on marginalized groups.

United Nations nominated for Computerworld Smithsonian Award

Asia-Pacific POPIN members who are responsible for their information centre’s computer systems will be interested in learning that the United Nations Integrated Management Information Systems (IMIS) was made part of the Permanent Research Collection on Information Technology at the Smithsonian's Nations Museum of American History. The event took place on 3 April, when the 2000 Information Technology Innovation Collection was formally presented to the Institution.

"The laureates in this year's collection are utilizing new information age tools to extend the benefits of technology to society", said Mr Dan Morrow, Executive Director of the Computerworld Smithsonian Awards Program.

The United Nation's work is part of a collection that includes over 440 of the year's most innovative applications of technology from 38 states of the United States and 21 other countries.

At the United Nations, a fully integrated management information system, deployed worldwide, provides the backbone for the administrative activities of the United Nations, one of the world's most complex organizations, and covers functional areas from human resources management to budget execution to a worldwide payroll in more than 150 different currencies.

"The primary source material submitted by the United Nations will enrich the National Museum of American History's growing collection on the history of information technology, and contribute significantly to the Museum's ongoing efforts to chronicle the Information Age", said Mr Spencer R. Crew, Director of the National Museum of American History.

The Museum is part of the Smithsonian Institution, founded in 1846, which is a complex of 16 museums, seven research facilities and the National Zoo.

Case studies from the 2000 Computerworld Smithsonian Collection will be available at the official Internet site of the Computerworld Smithsonian Program, where the entire collection is available to scholars, researchers and the general public worldwide.

Each year, the Computerworld Smithsonian Chairmen's Committee nominates individuals who use information technology to improve society for inclusion in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History's IT Innovation Collection.

Founded in 1988, the Computerworld Smithsonian Program searches for and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated vision and leadership as they strive to use information technology in innovative ways across 10 categories: business and related services; education and academia; environment, energy and agriculture; finance, insurance and real estate; government and non-profit organization; manufacturing; media, arts and entertainment; medicine; science; and transportation.

For more information, readers may wish to access the Smithsonian Institute’s URL: http://www.si.edu

(Source: news release PI/1230 dated 23 March 2000)

One language promises to unite nations

Members of Asia-Pacific POPIN may wish to get more information about a United Nations-sponsored development that promises major advances in the field of information, as libraries will be among the first major beneficiaries of this work.

Last year, readers were informed about a programme at the United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies in Tokyo that would facilitate use of the Internet for information work and other functions requiring the use of the English language.

Today, that Institute is on the verge of making possible a dream that mankind has had for centuries – to be able to understand easily information printed in another language.

Although only 25 per cent of the world's population speaks English as its mother tongue or is competent in using the language, most of the information that may be accessed through the Internet is written in English.

Researchers at the Institute, headed by Dr Hiroshi Uchida, are developing the Universal Networking Language (UNL), an electronic language for computers that acts as an Internet intermediary between different languages. It enables people to use their own language to communicate with others in the world and to understand information produced in another language.

The Institute is working with other international research institutes and universities to develop conversion software modules for different native languages.

Starting in April 2000, the Institute will launch several home pages that will be UNL-ready and available for translation into Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish, the six official United Nations languages.

In addition to those six languages, nine other languages will eventually become available: German, Hindi, Italian, Indonesian, Japanese, Latvian, Mongol, Portuguese and Thai.

The ultimate goal is to have all the languages spoken by the United Nations members enjoy the benefits of this new technology.

Dr Uchida once worked on Atlas, the first machine system for translating Japanese into English. In a recent interview he said: "The Universal Networking Language will provide a common educational environment for different languages and will expand business opportunities immensely around the world".

Although the Internet has broken many barriers in communications and trade, there is one obstacle that remains - the language barrier. UNL should go some way towards fostering dialogue among nations on the Net, according to Dr Uchida.

Readers wishing to obtain more information about this programme may access the Institute at the following URL: http://www.unl.ias.unu.edu  

The work of information mediators

Members of Asia-Pacific POPIN may be interested in accessing an electronic paper, entitled "The Work of Information Mediators: A Comparison of Librarians and Intelligent Software Agents". Written by Ms Laura Zick, the paper examines the characteristics of information agency, the work of librarians and of intelligent agents as information mediators, the differences between human and software agents, the possible tasks for software agents in libraries, and speculates on the future of human and software agency.

A typical medical library-based information need is presented and the attendant information processes are examined. The author describes the future of information mediation as based on efficient interaction between human and software agents and provides examples of possible collaborative information tasks.

In the introduction, the author states that intelligent software agents promise to perform an enormous range of tasks, but they have a lot to learn from their closest human peers: librarians. "As I read and think about how intelligent systems reason, search, classify, and filter information, I'm struck repeatedly with how librarians do exactly these same tasks. Both act as information mediators for the end user: both negotiate information spaces and retrieve information relevant to a particular user or goal".

In terms of classifying information, the author points out that the librarian's search depends upon the work of other librarians -- librarians who classify information by indexing and abstracting the articles included in databases.

If the data are not so carefully organized, the librarian's work would be very complicated. "The World Wide Web, for example, is not well-organized: even the best indexing programs and search engines are inefficient when compared to the careful, standardized classification scheme applied to the MEDLINE data set", she said. "Indeed, the Web has been compared to a library with all the books pulled off the shelves and thrown in a heap on the floor".

In terms of filtering information, the librarian filters information in three key ways, according to the author: first, the act of selecting a database or databases to search is a filtering activity. Second, the act of choosing search terms and operators (which also effects the depth and breadth of the search), and third, when the librarian eliminates false drops ("noise") from the results that the end-user would see.

However, librarians do more than connect people to raw information, Ms Zick said; they use their expertise to help clients make sense of information. Librarians usually arrange search results and other information products into customized sets for their clients.

The paper points out that librarians can be seen as "distributed, cooperative agents". Librarians inform and negotiate with each other; cooperation is built into the fabric of library work; it is not too far-fetched to say that there is no such thing as a librarian who works truly alone, she said. Libraries communicate and share information to an amazing degree. "Librarians are great users of Internet mailing lists; some of the highest volume lists are those run by and for librarians", she stated.

Those who would like to read the entire report and find out the many differences between librarians and software may access the paper at the following URL: http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue5_5/zick/index.html 

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