table of contents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Conectándonos al Futuro de El Salvador was initiated by the Government of El Salvador, with the support of the World Bank, in order to define a development strategy based on the creation of information and knowledge, as well as on the productive and participatory use of these resources. This document represents the outcome of 18 months’ work in the form of multi-sectorial learning circles, studies, forums, national and international electronic exchanges, and fieldwork.

The learning circles conducted analyses of their respective sectors and drew up project proposals in six key development areas for El Salvador: education, migration, local development, rural development, micro-small-medium enterprises, and large public and private organizations.

Despite the differences observed among the six sectors, there were many coincidences which allow for a broad classification of the country’s current characteristics in terms of information and knowledge use:

• excessively vertical handling of information, with a tendency to utilize it for consolidating institutional or personal power, at the expense of organizational growth and knowledge-based development;
• underestimation of the importance of human resource development, which undermines national competitiveness;
• lack of planning for the creation and utilization of information in both public and private institutions, which leads to dispersion of efforts, waste of funds and disappointing results;
• emphasis on acquiring technology, over and above reflections on its appropriate use to leverage work and social activities; and
• despite some recent advances, there is still insufficient national leadership in the area of information and knowledge management to support national development.

The projects proposed are:

• a pilot network of learning groups involving public school teachers, in order to improve their teaching and academic skills in the context of the ongoing educational reform
• creation and dissemination of information on Salvadorans who live abroad, in order to help identify opportunities for transnational collaboration and exchanges
• promotion of transnational academic, business and community networks to strengthen knowledge- and talent-sharing with Salvadorans abroad
• training at the municipal and community level to produce information resources useful for local development, including municipal, environmental, educational, social, commercial, and tourist information
• agricultural extension systems based on sharing and systematizing experiences among producers
• production of teaching materials for business training among agricultural producers
• creation of a virtual information center on rural cultural heritage, traditions, and practices
• creation of a virtual information center with relevant agricultural and rural information, as well as dissemination of and access to this information
• creation of a national franchising network among micro, small, and medium enterprises, as a knowledge-sharing mechanism among successful businesses
• electronic information resources to aid the development of small and medium enterprises and their support agencies
• an "innovation club", or Organizational Innovation and Knowledge Network, to strengthen innovation, knowledge and technology use among private and public institutions in El Salvador, as a way to support the modernization of the public sector as well as competitiveness in the private sector.

Many of the proposals are linked to the development of the Infocenters initiative, a non-profit participatory association which has begun this year to create a national network of information resources and applications as a way to boost productivity and improve the quality of life of Salvadorans, as well as provide community access centers for the use of these tools.

Furthermore, the strategy sets forth policy measures and guidelines to improve the overall environment of learning and innovation in El Salvador, including national and local information policies, a policy governing computer use and acquisition in the public sector, key areas of modernization of paperwork and procedures, changes in the generation and transfer of agricultural technology, and legislation to facilitate electronic commerce.

Other, broader areas in which information and knowledge can leverage national development are discussed as well: democracy and citizenship, business competitiveness, culture and national identity, and a series of quality of life issues.

Finally, the document argues that the most appropriate way to undertake the profound changes involved in creating a learning society is through a participatory and experimental approach, with efforts to promote and measure a series of qualitative changes in the social learning dynamics associated with the creation and application of information and knowledge throughout different aspects of human activity, in order to then properly systematize and disseminate achievements as a basis for expanding these dynamics. Thus, the strategy would require a broad, flexible, and participatory program to provide coherent leadership for the projects and policies set forth in this document.

Conectándonos al Futuro, San Salvador, El Salvador

Updated  25-06-1999

[Table of Contents]  [Executive Summary]  [Introduction]   [Chapter I Context]  [Chapter II Building]  [Education]  [Migration]  [Local Development]   [Rural Development]  [Micro-Small Enterprise]  [Learning Organizations]  [Infocenters]  [Government]   [Democracy & Citizenship]  [Business Competitiveness]  [Culture & Identity]  [Quality of Life]  [Conclusions]

Appendices: [Methodology]  [Project Implementation]  [Monitoring & Evaluation]   [Local Development]  [Migration]  [Rural Technology Transfer]  [Water Resources]  [Electronic Commerce]   [Public Information]  [Government ICTs]  [Evaluation of 3 Organizations]   [Electronic Conference]  [Participants]  [Bibliography]   [Glossary of Acronyms]

All rights reserved. Permission is granted to reproduce all or part of this publication as long as the complete source is cited: Conectándonos al Futuro de El Salvador, "Strategy for Building a Learning Society", San Salvador, 1999, http://www.conectando.org.sv/English/Strategy/