Linux Advocacy in Ethiopia: A Traveller's Journal 146
Jutta Horstmann writes "At the Horn of Africa, little is known about Open Source. To change this, Jan Muehlig and Jutta Horstmann (relevantive AG, authors of last year's Linux Usability Report) set out to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Read their traveller's journal and get more information on Linux and Open Source in Ethiopia at relevantive.de/ethiopia." Their travel report is the most interesting section.
Intriguing (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Intriguing (Score:1)
Re:Intriguing (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Intriguing (Score:2)
Re:Intriguing (Score:2, Insightful)
What are you, Jon Katz? Do you seriously have ANY idea how supremely arrogant and asinine you sound? Let me boil it down for you: "Install linux, and your warlords will stop shooting you!" Gimme a fucking break.
Re:Intriguing (Score:2)
Remember that, just as there are desperately poor people in well-
Re:Intriguing (Score:2)
The only thing we, as an outside people, can do is alter attitudes. There's really nothing else we can affect.
If it's arrogant to point out that humanity is largely powerless against it's own excesses, then I guess I am arrogant. But that won't stop me believing that changing the way people interact is more likely to achieve genuine peace than any number of troops sent
Re:Intriguing (Score:2)
Exactly. The problem is always how to mitigate the desire for them... I've always found that having some pocket change, not being under immediate threat, and having some of lifes basic needs (food, shelter, etc) has generally been enough to at least get me to use my pointy sticks for tent poles or a bar-b-que spit for awhile.
Re:Intriguing (Score:3, Interesting)
Amen.
Of course, once those things are accomplished, having the beginnings of an educati
Re:Intriguing (Score:5, Insightful)
ETHIOPIA IS NOT A CRAZY UNSTABLE NATION FULL OF WARLORDS. ETHIOPIA IS NOT A CRAZY UNSTABLE NATION FULL OF WARLORDS. ETHIOPIA IS NOT A CRAZY UNSTABLE NATION FULL OF WARLORDS.
Thank you, had to get that out of my system.
All of you, talking about the Ethiopian warlords----
GET A FRIGGING CLUE
The government is extremely stable. And pro-capitalist. And understands the nature of the problems the country is facing.
The people of Ethiopia also understand the need for development.
And not robber-baron style of development, either. They get it, they really, really do, when I was there for a bit, speaking with all levels of individuals, from the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, to Industrialists, lowly taxi drivers, farm laborers, and even Tribal leaders.....
THEY GET IT.
That country is hobbled, because it was an Empire under a backwards ruler till the 70s, then a crazy, totalitarian communist government till the 90s.
Then they got into an unfortunate war of succession.
They've had, what, 6 years of peace?
You expect them to repair 100 of years of damage in SIX FRIGGIN' YEARS?????!
Ethiopia is populated with intelligent, caring, educated individuals.
What they don't have is capital, or organization.
(That means jobs, and corporations, for those of you who refuse to see what I am saying).
It is a nation rich in resources, which hasn't had much time to get it together yet.
Trust me, they will, on their own.
But faster if the rest of the world invests.
And in MY HUMBLE OPINION, open source is high on the list of priorities. Why? Because corporations will be able to equip the employees in Ethiopia with perhaps 10 times the number of computers they would otherwise be able to afford (under traditional, MS'ian licensing scheme).
And many of those systems can be recycled from 'waste' piles of wasteful nations like the U.S.
Ethiopian no longer wants food aid.
Trust me, everyone from the Deputy Prime Minister to 14 yr old farm labor told me that, face to face.
What they want is jobs, and opportunity.
Stability is not the problem. War is not the problem. Crime is not the problem.
Capital is. And Open Source reduces the cost of capital.
I don't know what I am getting on this rant. Not like I'll even have much to do with Open Source in Ethiopia. We are going to farm there.
But it pains me to see this impression of Ethiopia as a war-torn battleground, of despondents.
That is simply no longer the case.
It is a beautiful nation, with a proud people, who are looking to join the developed world.
Try and visit there before you talk about 'their' problems.
And don't be afraid of being a tourist. Your tourist dollars will go FAR for the street vendors that you are buying stuff from.
Re:Intriguing (Score:1)
Re:Intriguing (Score:2)
Not because of the environmental conditions.
There is desperate poverty, but all the 'alternative' revolutionary governments have already come and gone.
People want change+stability, and the current government is strongly in control of the reins of power.
But the Penguin is so cute. (Score:1)
Get in my tummy!
Get in my tummy!
Capital and access to financial services (Score:1)
If someone wants to start a shoeshine business in Addis they need a box, some soap and a rag. To get a shoeshine box you need capital. You can get money from moneylenders who often charge upwards 100% interest per day. Even if you do manage to start a business, there is no secure way to save the money you earn. Money under the mattress is still the dominant savings scheme throughout much of the world.
Most development methods
Do they get it? (Score:2)
I really don't know if you are rather naive or blissfully and completely misinformed [afsc.org].....
As long as the Ethiopian goverment does not settle with Eritrea and balk at agreements by independents organizations, all the rest is secondary, since oportunities of development will never exsit because the few resources of the country will be squandered in the war effort....
Re:Intriguing (Score:3, Interesting)
and some other minor things like tha. Yeah he must have been evil because he used weap
Open source not a priority, getting connected is (Score:1)
Every computer I used in Ethiopia was Windows and
Um.. (Score:1, Insightful)
Re:Um.. (Score:3, Interesting)
A vibrant information economy in Ethiopia can only be a good thing. Greater access to computers and more local programmers can help stir economic growth. Economic growth means higher salaries which means more money for food.
Re:Um.. (Score:4, Insightful)
Teach a people to fish...
Teach a man to fish (Score:3, Interesting)
"Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime"
(Not trolling or flamebaiting)
Re:Teach a man to fish (Score:2)
Well, yes, but fortunately the gunslingers seem to prefer red meat.
Re:Teach a man to fish (Score:2)
Um..Growing a society. (Score:1, Insightful)
Food is for their bodies.
Linux and computers are for their minds.
Both need to be fed if a society is to grow.
Re:Um.. (Score:2)
Well, they could put up pr0n for pay sites and revitalize their national economy, for one thing. And that's before you even start talking about the possiblities if you can get their lawmaking bodies involved on the side of Open Source. Data havens, anyone? Maybe they could market diamonds direct to customers using ecommerce freeware. Or ... what is it, uranium that Ethiopia has in abunda
Get your priorities straight! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:2)
Never!
Trivially doable, and the developers will demand it. Trust me on that.
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:2, Insightful)
The same goes for 'plumbing' and other similar suggestions. The ethiopians already have 'open plumbing technology' in the form of buckets. I presume you were actually refering t
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:4, Interesting)
It just that food doesn't help them next year.
Sure, they need the food now, so they don't starve.
But there are no rampaging warlord in Ethiopia. UN Food programs actually distribute food to people who are starving.
I've seen it, and can atest to it.
What they need is jobs. Trust me, that's what they are asking for.
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:1)
Ethiopia != Somalia.
Ethiopia != Somalia.
Ethiopia != Somalia.
Repeat after me.
Ethiopia != Somalia
Regardless of what you might have seen in movies about other countries, Ethiopia does not have marauding gangs of heavily armed goons wreaking havoc in the streets. It does have a serious underdevelopm
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:1)
Rather than attacking my post without adding any further information you could try presenting some facts.
A quick google for 'ethiopia food aid' finds me plenty of articles like
http://www.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/0/dbe7c656f4 d 19 d4c85256beb0051bddc?OpenDocument
which say that food aid is unhelpful. Of course, you can find just as many that say it is. So I haven't learnt anything new from your post and I now wil
Re:Get your priorities straight! (Score:1)
But not for the reasons you claimed. Had you taken 2 minutes to skim the article, you would see that the reasons the authors found food aid to be unhelpful were:
interesting (Score:3, Interesting)
I know what many might say, but i'm guessing dealing with the social problems there prior to trying to inflict technology on them might be the better option.
Re:interesting (Score:1)
THEY MUST USE LINUX, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE!
Re:interesting (Score:5, Informative)
Look to the model India used to launch itself onto the world stage and become a real force to be reckoned with. When adapting technology from overseas, it would always opt for trying to buy the right to use the technology behind a product, rather than just buy the rights to use the end-product. It's still got poverty, but it's a lot better off than it once was, because its sucessive governments since independance have frequently pursued a policy of metaphorically wanting to be taught to fish, instead of just being given fish.
Re:interesting (Score:1)
Re:interesting (Score:2)
Re:interesting (Score:2)
Re:interesting-Boating Technology. (Score:2)
OK, so what computers came over on the Mayflower?
Ones that were just as good was what the rest of the world had at the time. The relative gap in tech level is what keeps some countries poorer than others, not the absolute value of their tech level.
Re:interesting (Score:3, Informative)
Here's a clue:
1 - Not every Ethiopian is poor and hungry. Most are, some aren't
2 - Reasonably wealthy Ethiopians get into Linux
3 - Reasonably wealthy Ethiopians can get access to computing thanks to Linux' low-low-cost, get good at it, start exporting their expertise
4 - Reasonably wealthy Ethiopians bring money into Ethiopia, become more wealthy, pay more taxes, create
Re:interesting (Score:3, Insightful)
Not every resource on Earth is spent trying to cure cancer and solve poverty. Lots of resources are spent making designer clothes, perfums, etc. Humanity does lots of things and it's the sum (or actually the process) that's good.
Besides, out of hundreds of thousands (or more) of people wordwide helping Ethiopia, 2 are trying to bring Linux and related computer skills. So it seems
Re:interesting (Score:2)
needs? (Score:5, Insightful)
Technology (Score:2, Insightful)
Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:2, Insightful)
Okay, I could be wrong, but it is only on Slashdot that I believe I could find an article trying to sell a free OS to a populace that's known for its poverty and starvation levels. The religious parallels are pretty plain here, I think, where we've got Linux zealots,
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:1)
There are in fact two issues competing for attention here, a) the immediate need for food and water, and b) the long-term need to build economy and infrastructure (as pointed out in a previous post somewhere). While certainly
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:2)
And in the US the average 80486 machine is a doorstop. That doesn't mean that it can't still function as a webserver.
Do you completely fail to understand how to use free stuff to make money when you have no money to begin with, or would just prefer that Ethiopia not benefit from the global economy?
Go for it. You probably believe Microsoft is the penultimage example of capitalism, too. S
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:2)
Could it be that he showed no interest because he's grown up in a country where people die of malnutrition and corrupt leaders reserve aid money for their own consumption? But in the face of that he's got some quasi-religious technodipwad pointing out the oh-so-bitter ironies
Exactly! (Score:2)
I've been to places where the average wage is US $40/mo, yet manage to sustain things like internet cafes and cellphone coverage. Obviously there must be a very wide income spread, but things like this surely mark the start of something better.
When people talk of bringing internet access to the developing world, they don't dream of bringing them icq and porn. It's a practical way to spread knowledge
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:3, Interesting)
Linux is both a good operating system and a good teaching tool. It's the sort of thing budding IT p
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:1)
And yet they aren't.
Re:Linux for those poor Ethiopians (Score:1)
Windows XP Professional and a Corned Beef on Rye.. (Score:1)
average annual income vs licensing type (Score:1)
No wonder why they whould be interested by open source... not even enough to pay for one Microsoft Windows licence...
Iceboxes to Eskimos (Score:4, Insightful)
There is no expressed or implied Linux trolling in this post. However, the obstacles facing anyone trying to bring Linux to Ethiopia are huge. My father taught me to fish where I knew there was fish. To me this is a project a decade too soon, clearly iceboxes to Eskimos.
Oddly though, I think Eskimos do need refrigerators to keep foods at an even temperature :P
Re:Iceboxes to Eskimos (Score:2)
Good advice. My father taught me that if you give a man a fish, he eats for a day, but if you teach him to fish, he never goes hungry. Equally good advice, imo, and very germaine to this situation (Open Source for Ethiopia).
The "iceboxes to eskimos" ("coals to Newcastle") analogy doesn't hold, since the eskimos arguably already have ice. The old "bicycle to a fish" is the form I think you're looking for...
Re:Iceboxes to Eskimos (Score:2)
Sure Ethiopians Will Choose Linux (Score:1)
It's complicated (Score:2, Interesting)
Making them aware of free, powerful software gives opportunities to people/natives of the country who otherwise may not be able to contribute to making a place in their economy due to t
Free Software means more Computers and more food (Score:3, Insightful)
There is not yet a single post here which does NOT say something along the lines of "who cares about software, these people need to eat/drink/quit starving to death". Screw your thinking caps on, people.
I'd like to remind everyone that legitimate copies of Windows and Office cost real money, in addition to money that must be spent on the HARDWARE used to educate Ethiopian IT students.
Cutting proprietary software out of the equation means IT workers in developing countries can spend LESS money on software and MORE money on hardware, which increases the availability of hands-on learning tools for these people.
RTFA (Score:1)
Anyone here speak Amharic? (Score:3, Interesting)
Anyone here speak Amharic [uoregon.edu]? (See also Wikipedia: Amharic language [wikipedia.org].)
From the travel report [relevantive.de]:
From the Links to African Projects Page:
And the Ge'ez ftp server:
ftp://ftp.ethiopic.org/ [ethiopic.org]
Anecdotal story: (Score:5, Insightful)
The digital divide (Score:3, Interesting)
__
The general definition of the digital divide, by consensus of websites inquired
on Google[1], seems to be that of a "technological gap" between the
"haves" and "have-nots." The Digital Divide Network defines
the digital divide as "this gap between those who can effectively use new
information and communication tools, such as the Internet, and those who
cannot." A key point to raise is the importance of this "gap"
and whether or not such technological benefits like the Internet are holding the
"have-nots" back. One thing to note is that the "digital
divide" does not necessarily lie upon a line between the rich and the poor,
but even between people who choose not to use new technologies (either through
lack of access or through lack of knowledge and the fear that may come with
that) and those that do. The Digital Divide Network has more information on
this[3].
One major factor that the Internet seems to bring into is the effect it has on
education. The proliferation of information and the speed of that proliferation
on the Internet is often breathtaking. The immediacy and breadth of access that
students, particularly in Western-industrialized nations, is unlike anything we
have had before within human history. This could be an argument in favor of
defining the digital divide, and all attempts to bridge it. However, many times
this does not address more immediate needs that often exacerbate the digital
divide, particularly in poverty. Impoverished nations, especially, have
problems beyond simply lack of access to new technology and the Internet, such
as the quality or lack of education, which, however, could be helped by access
to new technology such as the Internet for the very reasons stated above.
India, the Philippines, Russia, and other such "Third World" nations
have been making headlines for "usurping" American jobs. An argument
could be made that they are simply taking advantage of new technologies and
their lower standard of living, just as any other person would use their
advantages to get a job. With that argument, one could further it by saying
that those nations are taking one route to "bridge the gap of the digital
divide."
Another issue to deal with is simply the lack of access certain areas,
particularly rural areas, have to technology. Getting technology to such areas
is often costly, and uneconomical for commercial entities. Technological access
to such areas must often be "donated" or some clever solution, such as
wireless access, must be conceived.
Finally, the lack of access is often created by a lack of education,
particularly within US schools. There are many who do not use something such as
the Internet simply due to lack of education, and possibly the fear of not
understanding how to use the technology. This is often exacerbated by the
cultures of the Internet that quite often have disdain for those who have little
or no understanding of how to use it. Another problem with the lack of
education is that there can be difficulty in obtaining education due to the fast
pace at which technology advances. However, one could argue that while
technology often advances at blinding speed, the usage of such technology
usually stays the same for long periods of time, and so the education in the
usage of technology is unlikely to be quickly antiquated.
Bridging the digital divide may not be necessary for the "have-nots"
to survive, or, in the case of the impoverished, necessary to find wealth, but
it can be a route out of poverty. The United States went through some horrific
times to get to the point it is at now, as did many other modern industrialized
nations, but many would argue that currently impoverished nations should n
At least Bill Gates... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:At least Bill Gates... (Score:2, Insightful)
German Open Source Advocacy (Score:4, Interesting)
You can't really see a US sponsored team going to Africa without peddling chriatianity and Windows, can you?
cd pub (Score:2, Funny)
Good stuff! (Score:1, Insightful)
A good place for Linux (Score:2, Insightful)
http://www.worldbank.org/data/databytopic/GNIPC
"Buy Win Xp? Eat? Buy Win Xp?... Eat."
Another case where open source != free software (Score:3, Insightful)
Piracy is actually a legitimate reason why open source isn't as easy to spread in poorer countries. People in poorer countries tend to pirate and not have the threat of any punishment hanging over their heads. Of course, I salute the march of open source software the world over, but it won't be until these countries fully step up onto the world stage that they'll get a significant advantage out of it over using pirated stuff.
Will work if you bundle Linux with MS Office (Score:3, Informative)
We tried selling Compaq computers a few years ago, and failed. Now our supplies are limited to the UN, OAU and Embassies.
And besides local assemblers sell a computer most of it based on SIS chipset/motherboards for about Birr 4000 about 450 dollars including a 14" monitor. And these come with all sorts of software including Win XP, MS Office,etc.
nice job! (Score:2, Interesting)
meanwhile, in Nigeria... (Score:2)
Geek Corps (Score:1)
For such non-profit organizations, Linux and OSS provide a very nice platform.
Note: Geek Corps was founded by a good friend of mine.
-John.
Self Serving Sig: Steampunk [steampunk.com] | Carbs Rule! [carbsrule.com] | Angela Walker Jewelry [angelawalkerjewelry.com]
Re:Won't happen (Score:1)
Well, Christians have a zealot quotient of about 6. OSS advocates on the other hand....
Re:Won't happen (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Won't happen (Score:4, Insightful)
Muslims, bud ... (Score:2)
Re:Muslims, bud ... (Score:2)
No it isn't. The Church of Ethiopia is one of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, along with the Coptic Church, the Syrian Jacobites, Armenians, and several other local Churches. They are not in communion with the Eastern Orthodox Churches, i.e. the Greek or Russian Orthodox, due to a Christological controversy dating back to the 5th Century.
There's a strong possibility that communion will be restored sometime in t
Re:Muslims, bud ... (Score:2)
Re:Won't happen (Score:2)
Re:Are you fucking serious? (Score:1)
Re:Getting slashdotted, here is the report (Score:2)