Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for Promoting Change: A Case Study in Tanzania

Date of Degree

12-2006

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Program

Education

Advisor

Francis Musa Boakari

Advisor

Dorothy Ettling

Advisor

Nancy Robbins

Advisor

Roger Barnes

Abstract

The study was an investigation about the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on the lives of members of a women’s group in East Africa. It focused on the consequences of the collaboration, facilitated by computer-mediated- communication, between the Women’s Global Connection (WGC) of the U.S. and the Saint Cecilia Women’s Group (SCWG) in Bukoba, Tanzania. To explore the effects o f the relationship between the groups, two field trips were made to the community. Semi-structured interviews and observations were conducted. Relevant documents, e-mail exchanges, and the contents o f an international web-based Cross- Cultural Leadership Development Program (CCLDP) were studied as well. Analyses of the field data, information from the interactions between the women, and exposure to cross-cultural knowledge revealed that the members of the SCWG had experienced some positive changes, including the realization of their own empowerment. Questions related to the extent to which these new factors influenced the African women’s lives, and how exactly the relationships through the CCLDP with women from other countries affected the SCWG members, are ongoing.

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