20
R. Dette
challenges entangled with ICT and digitalization, a significant selection of which is
described and categorized below.
Challenge 1: Mishaps and mistakes
Serious concerns came up in interviews with ‘half-baked’ implementation or unanticipated non-technical problems. In one case, aid recipients were given mobile
vouchers directly to their phones. The aid organization, however, was not aware
that telephone signals in the area were poor, requiring recipients to seek locations,
for example, mountains, where their phones could connect to the network. Mountains, then, become perfect target spots for crime and loitering, when individuals
would wander off alone in search of mobile connection. Similarly, where enumerators were asked to record GPS-stamps with their surveys, several reported having to
wait minutes, sometimes hours, until they could connect to the satellite connection
and thus move on to the next question. In another case, aid organizations sent tablets
to their field staff but did not consider the number of plugs needed to charge each of
them. ‘I stayed up all night charging one iPad after the next,’ a staff member said.
Mobile hotlines, as another example, were sometimes not introduced well enough
to fulfil intended purposes, so aid recipients would often call with questions or with
praise rather than complaints. An even greater problem was where advertisements
outlived hotlines, causing the community to call with nobody responding.
Challenge 2: Negative impact of new devices
Not all staff not always reacted well to new tools, and sometimes rejected change.
Local enumerators hired for surveying often required more training than anticipated if
they were handling digital devices for the first time, and needed detailed instructions
including on the swipe motion to operate smartphones. For data collectors, restrictive
digital survey forms and reporting platforms sometimes were a problem: certain
answers did not fit. Small answer boxes on small smartphone screens also could
cause difficulties with data entry and frustration. Some also critiqued new types of
data power dynamics: where data is uploaded to a central database but servers are
located at headquarter level and connectivity is poor, it is sometimes impossible or
difficult for people in field locations to access the data they submit, either because
of access barriers, or simply because the Internet is much too low to dial into the
central system. An equally unwelcome inherent technology issue was introducing
gender bias. Radio, for instance, is often known to cater more to male than female
listeners, a trend that can be hard to break, so the humanitarian intervention could
reinforce unequal access. Similarly, men are more likely to hold on or own the phones
a household uses, making it difficult for women to use phones anonymously.
Challenge 3: Loss of trust and reputation
Beyond operational difficulties, aid staff observed that the sheer introduction of new
devices could have negative effects. Many reported that local communities did not
respond well: enumerators with smartphones instead of paper surveys were found to
be less friendly, and hotlines were found to be less personal. In fact, respondents were
R. Dette
challenges entangled with ICT and digitalization, a significant selection of which is
described and categorized below.
Challenge 1: Mishaps and mistakes
Serious concerns came up in interviews with ‘half-baked’ implementation or unanticipated non-technical problems. In one case, aid recipients were given mobile
vouchers directly to their phones. The aid organization, however, was not aware
that telephone signals in the area were poor, requiring recipients to seek locations,
for example, mountains, where their phones could connect to the network. Mountains, then, become perfect target spots for crime and loitering, when individuals
would wander off alone in search of mobile connection. Similarly, where enumerators were asked to record GPS-stamps with their surveys, several reported having to
wait minutes, sometimes hours, until they could connect to the satellite connection
and thus move on to the next question. In another case, aid organizations sent tablets
to their field staff but did not consider the number of plugs needed to charge each of
them. ‘I stayed up all night charging one iPad after the next,’ a staff member said.
Mobile hotlines, as another example, were sometimes not introduced well enough
to fulfil intended purposes, so aid recipients would often call with questions or with
praise rather than complaints. An even greater problem was where advertisements
outlived hotlines, causing the community to call with nobody responding.
Challenge 2: Negative impact of new devices
Not all staff not always reacted well to new tools, and sometimes rejected change.
Local enumerators hired for surveying often required more training than anticipated if
they were handling digital devices for the first time, and needed detailed instructions
including on the swipe motion to operate smartphones. For data collectors, restrictive
digital survey forms and reporting platforms sometimes were a problem: certain
answers did not fit. Small answer boxes on small smartphone screens also could
cause difficulties with data entry and frustration. Some also critiqued new types of
data power dynamics: where data is uploaded to a central database but servers are
located at headquarter level and connectivity is poor, it is sometimes impossible or
difficult for people in field locations to access the data they submit, either because
of access barriers, or simply because the Internet is much too low to dial into the
central system. An equally unwelcome inherent technology issue was introducing
gender bias. Radio, for instance, is often known to cater more to male than female
listeners, a trend that can be hard to break, so the humanitarian intervention could
reinforce unequal access. Similarly, men are more likely to hold on or own the phones
a household uses, making it difficult for women to use phones anonymously.
Challenge 3: Loss of trust and reputation
Beyond operational difficulties, aid staff observed that the sheer introduction of new
devices could have negative effects. Many reported that local communities did not
respond well: enumerators with smartphones instead of paper surveys were found to
be less friendly, and hotlines were found to be less personal. In fact, respondents were