This research looked at barriers to successful applications of information and communication technology (ICT) in Botswana. Botswana has high investments in ICT infrastructure development in the public service. However, there is still concern about service delivery not being satisfactory. Many departmental functions are still performed manually despite the availability of computers and people capable of using them. The research question addressed is why there is lack of exploitation of ICT in the Botswana public sector. Two government departments based in the capital city were selected as case studies and investigated using questionnaires and semi structured interviews to determine the status of employee relations and ICT use. Questionnaires were used to solicit satisfaction perception of the general public about public service using a sample of capital city population. This research revealed a digital divide within Botswana. Within the public sector, computer penetration as well as internet access is very high as there is 1 computer for every 2 employees. For the general public, computer ownership is low as about 28% of the population have computers at home. Despite availability of computers in the public service, members of the public experience delay when they seek service. Motivation and payment are biggest problem regarding employee relations. ICT support is satisfactory though this might be due to low level of ICT use. Fear of change is the main limiting factor to ICT exploitation in Botswana. It was found that maintenance cost of ICT infrastructure is in the order of 8 times the national average salary. A framework is proposed to help policy makers on how best to exploit existing ICT infrastructure. Botswana has remained at the first level of ICT exploitation for over 10 years. Suggestions are made as to how the next level could be reached and future research is also discussed.

Agriculture is not only a country’s backbone of food, livelihood and ecological security systems, but is also the very soul of its sovereignty. In Kerala population density is high and land is scarce. To achieve sustainable advancement in quality of human life, meeting the domestic food requirement is to be given foremost priority in development plans. As the area of cultivation cannot be increased and growth of population cannot be controlled growth in food production is to be achieved by qualitative improvement in farming. This requires improvements in material inputs, farming techniques, storage technology and research. Effective integration of these factors is tied closely to adequate information flow, which can be ensured only by an efficient information system for agricultural education, research, extension and development. So evaluation and improvement of existing information services is very crucial for sustainable agricultural growth. The study evaluates the existing information resources, facilities, services, possibilities for resource sharing, accessibility of external sources, and the factors that affect the quality and efficiency of information services in agricultural sector. Coverage is limited to the State of Kerala. Sample consist 105 institutions of different levels, and information users consisting of 426 scientists and 220 farmers. Different sets of questionnaires and interview schedule were used to elicit information. The study found that agricultural research conducted at various institutions in the region at huge public expense has generated knowledge for improving production. Along with these huge collections of acquired content is also stored in the sector. But when a farmer, an extension worker, a scientist or an administrator needs information it is not easily accessible. The study found that agricultural sector fails to effectively bank on information resources available due to the lack of an information system and network. Recommends an Agricultural and Farm Information System for Kerala. Suggests a model plan for a computer communication network for resource sharing between the agricultural institutions in the State, which will also ensure, smooth flow of results of research down to the grassroots level to achieve maximum productivity in agriculture.

In this study an in depth investigation of successful competitive strategies for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is undertaken. The overall aim of this study is to analyse the strategic orientation of UK Manufacturing SMEs. In the process, it will test Porter’s (1980, 1985) theoretical framework of generic strategies and thus evaluate firms’ preferred strategic synthesis. It will, therefore, test the efficacy of the value chain and develop any specific pattern that relates to a combination strategy. The investigation of the above objectives is undertaken utilising a mixed research methodology with the purpose of examining the applicability of existing competitive strategy frameworks (phase 1) and testing a new theoretical framework that incorporates additional dimensions of strategy (phase 2). During phase 1, Porter’s framework is employed to investigate SMEs’ strategic orientation as a means to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. A semi-structured questionnaire is employed and the analysis is carried out by means of factor and cluster analysis to identify strategic variables currently employed by SMEs. During phase 2, the theoretical framework is operationalised to bridge the gap within the literature and existing empirical research. Its purpose is to identify forms of successful competitive strategies of UK MSMEs as they are formulated and implemented in firms’ value chain activities. The data was collected through a number of semi-structured interviews and the analysis was based on data categorisation. The findings indicate that Porter’s (1980) single generic strategies are not the best option for UK MSMEs for gaining competitive advantage and that the

Background and rationale: Collecting is a basic human activity, a cultural phenomenon establishing cultural values, defining authenticity and creating new identities for collected objects and collectors. For more than a decade, I have studied cultural heritage collections from three key interwoven perspectives. These approaches are evident in the six publications selected for this submission: • Architectural and organisational perspective: at the Vatican Gallery (Innocenti 2001a), Uffizi (Innocenti 2003a) and Biblioteca Laurenziana (Innocenti 2002a) I investigated institutional collector and key stakeholder strategies for designing collection space and displays. I then applied this analysis to‘knowledge architecture’ for industrial design artefacts and processes (Innocenti 2004c). • Procedural and functional perspective: from Palladio drawings (Innocenti 2005a) to industrial design knowledge bases (Innocenti 2004a), I investigated how to digitize, archive, render and make accessible cultural heritage as an accurate iconic representation, interwoven with documentary and cultural contexts. The work further led me to study the authenticity of born-digital artworks (Innocenti 2012c). • Artefact perspective: I explored how artists and institutional collectors address the preservation of artworks, from the Renaissance desks of the Biblioteca Laurenziana (Innocenti 2002a) to digital artworks (Innocenti 2012c), and the historical and theoretical implications of their choices. In each of these areas, I contextualized the interrelations between cultural heritage discourse and the history of collecting cultural artefacts within given historical, social and cultural periods. My work began in Italy, where cultural heritage is deeply rooted and widespread, and moved on to encompass Europe and North America in tracing the evolution of cultural heritage collectors’ strategies. I adopted an interdisciplinary approach, engaging perspectives, methods and theoretical frameworks from art history, art theory, museography, museology, library and information science, information technology, social anthropology and engineering. Starting from this multi-focal vantage point my research has resulted in contributions to knowledge, methods and theory. These publications on one hand demonstrate the continuum of key issues in cultural heritage creation, preservation and access as manifested in the strategies of institutional collectors and artists. On the other hand, they highlight the new paradigms and transformations introduced by digital and communication technologies, the shaping of cultural heritage informatics to address these transformations and the theoretical and methodological implications underlying them. Through my scholarly research, I contributed to progressing the canonical historicisation of cultural heritage, museography and museology, and to exploring the new paradigms and transformations introduced by digital and communication technologies to the disruptive and exciting world of cultural heritage informatics. The portfolio: The portfolio is a selection from Perla Innocenti’s more than forty publications of research carried out since 2001 on cultural heritage and informatics with the Universitá degli Studi di Roma ‘La Sapienza’, Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa, Istituto Nazionale di Archeologia e Storia dell’Arte in Rome, Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna, Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Fondazione Andrea Palladio, Politecnico di Milano and EU-funded projects SHAMAN and MeLa. Six scientific publications are presented: two journal articles, a scholarly treatise, a published conference paper, key chapters from a monograph and one book chapter from an edited volume. The works have two key themes relevant to the critical analysis and understanding of heritage institutions’ evolution up to the digital age. The themes illustrate the contribution each publication has made to the literature and explain the relationship between the works submitted, including developments which have occurred between one piece and another. Theme I: Evolution of museography, museology and heritage studies Three publications are presented under this theme, each of these presenting the critical analysis of cultural heritage institutions and their artefacts within the historical evolution of museums and libraries. Publication I presents the critical analysis of the museographic principles applied by Luca Beltrami to the design of the Vatican Gallery, investigated and contextualised within its museographical and cultural history (Innocenti 2001a). Publication II presents the critical analysis and findings of the museological and museographical principles applied by Corrado Ricci to the Uffizi Gallery in the 19th Century, compared with the contemporary principles in the Uffizi applied by the former Superintendent and Italian Ministry Antonio Paolucci (Innocenti 2003a). Publication III presents the analysis and original findings of Michelangelo’s ergonomic design of the Biblioteca Laurenziana fittings, within the historical evolution of libraries (Innocenti 2002a). Theme II: Creating, managing, disseminating and preserving digital cultural heritage The publications presented in this theme relate to methodologies and processes characterising diverse typologies of analogue and digital cultural heritage and the emerging field of cultural informatics. Publication IV presents the novel methodological approach defined and applied within a relevant digitization project of Andrea Palladio manuscripts and maps (Innocenti 2005a). Publication V presents the outcomes of my investigation defining and implementing an online knowledge-based system supporting research and teaching of industrial design, which is formally considered part of Italian cultural heritage (Innocenti 2004a). Publication VI discusses the repositioning of traditional conservation concepts of historicity, authenticity and versioning in relation to born-digital artworks, based on findings from my research on preservation of computer-based artefacts by public collectors (Innocenti 2012a).

A pesquisa traça o contexto mundializado dos dias atuais, onde as Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TICs) podem ser entendidas como oportunidades de cidadania a grupos excluídos que se encontram à margem do desenvolvimento humano local e global em plena era da informação, como as comunidades dos distritos de São Gonçalo do Rio das Pedras e Milho Verde no Vale do Jequitinhonha, Minas Gerais — uma das regiões mais pobres do país. Como principal objetivo, este estudo pretende identificar de que maneira a informação originada nos telecentros da Rede Rural de Telecentros Comunitários da ONG Gemas da Terra têm contribuído para o processo de inclusão social dessas comunidades, analisando o projeto de instalação do telecentro em relação a propostas de inclusão social e cidadania; avaliando o uso dos telecentros pelas comunidades analisadas; verificando a existência de ações que pretendam a integração dos freqüentadores dos telecentros às demais pessoas da comunidade, prevenindo uma possível concentração de opiniões e isolamento entre ambos; e apontando os resultados decorrentes das ações empreendidas pelas comunidades e sua conseqüente influência prática no cotidiano social local. A proposta metodológica inclui a análise documental do Guia Gemas da Terra de Telecentros Rurais, observação não-participante nos telecentros e entrevistas semi-estruturadas junto aos usuários, voluntários e representantes de entidades comunitárias das regiões pesquisadas, onde a disseminação e o uso das TICs são tidos pelas comunidades como apoiadores importantes para o estabelecimento de melhores condições de vida à população, ampliando as oportunidades de informação, trabalho, renda, educação e lazer. Entre as conclusões alcançadas por esta pesquisa, destaca-se que a maior contribuição social do projeto piloto da ONG Gemas da Terra é apresentar às comunidades envolvidas na proposta o potencial possível que a Internet pode proporcionar a esses distritos e, muito particularmente, às pessoas. Entretanto, a partir dos resultados obtidos neste trabalho, tornou-se evidente o longo trajeto a ser percorrido pela inclusão digital para a contribuição efetiva das questões sociais em grupos marginalizados e integrados à era digital, não sendo tal vislumbrado em totalidade no âmbito pesquisado.This study delineates the globalized context of the present time, where Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) can be understood as opportunities of citizenship for excluded groups who find themselves at the margins of local and global human development in the era of information, such as the communities in the districts of São Gonçalo do Rio das Pedras and Milho Verde in the Vale do Jequitinhonha, Minas Gerais — one of the poorest regions in the country. As a major goal, this study intended to identify how information originating from the telecenters of the Rede Rural de Telecentros Comunitários, of the NGO Gemas da Terra, has contributed to the social inclusion of these communities; to analyze the project for installing a telecenter for the communities studied; to verify any actions aimed at the integration of those who attend the telecenters with the other people of the community, to prevent a possible concentration of opinions and alienation between the two groups; and to point out results of the actions undertaken by the communities and their consequent practical influence on the daily life of local society. The methodology includes a document analysis of the Guia Gemas da Terra de Telecentros Rurais, non-participant observation at the telecenters, and semi-structured interviews with he users, volunteers, and representatives of the community organizations of the regions studied, where the dissemination and the use of the ICTs have been regarded by the communities as important supporters for improving conditions of life of the population by increasing opportunities for information, work, income, education, and leisure. Among the conclusions reached by this study, it was noted that the greatest social contribution of the pilot project of the NGO Gemas da Terra was to show the communities involved in the project the potential that the Internet offers to these districts, especially to the common people. Nevertheless, from the results obtained by this study, it became evident that the long way to be covered by informational inclusion toward the effective contribution of social questions in marginalized and integrated groups in the information era, was not totally explicit in the area studied. / on the social changes resulting from digital inclusion of poor communities in Brazil