How to Curb Corruption, Technologically

If you live in Uganda you must be awash with the term 'ghosts', as constantly reported in the media. This is a term coined in the press to mean the stealth corrupt system by which government officials swindle public money to private enterprise, by presenting non-existent cooked figures and inflating payroll numbers, from schools to hospitals to civil servants to the military.


Read it as published in The New Vision


The comparison of this practice to a disembodied soul of the dead is as disturbing as it highlights the gravity of the problem. These 'ghost' scams have become a national disgrace and a menace to the institutions where they happen -yet they are completely avoidable.

The problem of ghost soldiers, ghost teachers, ghost students, paymasters disappearing with sacks full of employee salaries, and all those corruption scandals that use 'ghost' as a getaway can be solved using technology. I may not be the first to mention this, but I want to give insights into how it would work. 


Organizations that have many people in them, like the army, schools, hospitals and so on can 'computerize' their information processes to monitor the information handling processes.

Digitalizing the processes involved in handling information can deal a blow to the corrupt officials in the system because it enables software functions to be embedded under every process, as checks and balances, and secure every step of the way, thus taking it out of the hands of the officials. 

So, how do u Computerize? First, you must have computers in the organisation, some of them connected to the internet. The plan is to have all working data captured electronically and stored in a corporate database. 

When you have all working data in this platform, you can leverage many controls -on who accesses or change which information, when, how and for what specific purpose. This can enforce accountability on all processes since there is no denying that you did not insert another name or figure when you are the only person with security clearance to a particular database. Top level management can have their specific information 'views' according to their roles in the organisation, granted data access privileges according to this role.
 
The objective is to stop any one from doing anything -without being monitored. Even when data is illegally changed, the evidence will be there, logged somewhere in the database audit, as to who, how and what time the data was changed, even keeping a listing of the new and old data separately. The electronic system can even be designed to trigger off e-mail alerts to the concerned authority or sending instant messages on mobile phones. 

Once the organization has this kind of information infrastructure, it can set the template for other organizations with which it transacts business -to share information electronically across a broad spectrum of systems. In this age no one should be made to 'wait' for information, when u can just press a button and it is received at the other end of the world. It is a matter of laying down the technology infrastructure for software applications to be deployed for such purposes.

Computerizing the information processes gives organizations the power to work faster, perform better and remain in business. It also quickens implementing necessary changes that would normally take centuries (no pun intended) in manual environments. 
I simply cannot explain the power of computerizing your working environment in one go but believe me -it is not the same as you've been doing. A careful investment therefore, in the technology infrastructures and systems can erase the history of 'ghosts' from the face of our nation and bring about some breakthroughs in fight against corruption -to delay is, now the crime.

ICT Policy for Education Systems

How Information Communication Technologies can transform Uganda's Education System

One of the areas in which the pervading Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) are having enormous impact on societies across the globe is the sphere of education. Information digitalising technologies (such as Computers and the Internet) present new platforms and tools -read opportunities, for educational transformation. ICT as a means of teaching and learning has flung itself at the heart of education systems in the 21st century. I'm not talking about Students just learning about ICT, I'm talking about students learning through ICT -as a channel. In this regard, Uganda cannot afford to be left out, given her regional significance in education. It would have far reaching consequences.

Access to learning resources has been completely revolutionalised by these technologies. Lets take a glimpse at how schools operate. Schools traditionally rely on teacher experience, availability of learning space and other conditions, printed books and materials in their libraries for their educational needs. All these are however, either available in limited quantities or limited times to students, and most times the number of students often overwhelms these resources. This is true for both private and public institutions. This is the basis upon which policies to transform education by guaranteeing access and availability, leans towards ICTs. 

A wealth of learning materials -on every subject and in a variety of media formats, can be accessed from anywhere at anytime and by an unlimited number of students, in an ICT enabled school. This can be of particular importance to the government programs of Universal Primary Education (USE) and Universal Secondary Education (USE). The cost of the traditional system, distributed across all free schools, and for resources to be replenished every now and then, is too much a cost in my opinion.

On the other hand, providing education resources via ICT tools reduces the cost to one thing –a network. A lot of high-quality materials (voice, video, image, text and other data) can be networked for remote teaching purposes to bring a diversity of knowledge into the classrooms. Government can employ these technologies to deliver the free education programs at a lower cost while giving quality education to the young generation.

Access by students is also enabled in the same channel, to resourceful experts, researchers, professionals, leaders and peers all over the world. With a technology infrastructure to connect students to these electronic resources, the government would have made a step in the right direction.

The work environment, for instance has become increasingly digitalised. In modern, doctors are using computers with sensors to determine problems faster and for handling data; in manufacturing, computers do the modeling for pre-manufacture stages; in business, you must provide your business via digital options to serve the customers better. These sectors rely on the education system to provide the required skills.  If an education system does not prepare students in as far as the work developments of the day are concerned, then a question is raised as to the relevance of that education.

The effective integration of ICT into the educational system means better quality, quicker delivery (less time), cheaper provision, sustainability, and meeting development goals.

The physical and organisational infrastructure of ICT has hitherto presented the biggest challenge to the developing world. But with a flourishing telecommunications network in Uganda , and the landing of high speed undersea internet cables on our shores, the opportunity is here, finally.

ICT strategists can strive to harmonize the efforts of the different stake holders towards shared infrastructure, shared content platforms and long term technology servicing. Schools can then undertake to make proportionate computer-to-pupil ratios and teacher training. The cost of ICT implementation vis-à-vis the societal price of not providing access is like the case of stopping the clock to save time. These are the realities, and aspirations of the young generation. Our country cannot claim development in their absence. Integrating ICT right into the heart of free education will provide the Ugandan children a chance to face the future boldly.