Cellular Phones for Women's Empowerment in Rural Bangladesh
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12499377 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Monir Hossain Moni (0000-0001-8548-0143, corresponding author), Md Ansar Uddin |
| Year | 2004 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 70-89 |
| Publication date | 2004-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Asian Journal of Women s Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1225-9276 • E-ISSN: 2377-004X |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/12259276.2004.11665966 |
| OpenAlex | W2247322378 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 4 |
Despite some limitations by bringing electronic connectivity to rural Bangladesh the VPP program is bringing the digital revolution to the doorsteps of the rural poor. By connecting them to urban areas or even to foreign countries a whole new world of opportunities is opening up for the villagers in Bangladesh. Thus the telephone had become a weapon against poverty. Grameen Telecoms experience in Bangladesh indicates that the village pay phone program is having a positive impact for the socioeconomic empowerment of rural individuals and communities. Early findings suggest that the program has had considerable development benefits. It has reduced the cost of communications relative to other services such as transportation. It has boosted returns by enabling village pay phone users to compare prices of items they traded in thereby increasing their bargaining power with middlemen. The program has also enabled the village pay phone entrepreneurs poor by most standards but among the better off in their villages to profit from this technological development. The pay phone initiative has benefited from a number of factors: the level of demand for communications in rural areas; the use of the Grameen brand name and facilities; the large number of Bangladeshis working abroad and wanting to call home; and the countrys very high population density. But the initiative has also been hampered by problems of interconnectivity within the network and a regulatory framework that has not yet developed the strength and independence to create fair rules of the game for all operators. Grameen Phone has not created any new technologies but it has established a new way of using these one that is compatible with the economic and social circumstances of rural Bangladesh. (authors)
Business · Developing country · Economic growth · Economics · Empowerment · Microfinance · Phone · Political science · Population · Poverty · Rural area · Sociology · ICT in Developing Communities · Innovation and Socioeconomic Development · Microfinance and Financial Inclusion · Marketing
| Citations per year | 0.18 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2009 - 2024 (16) |
| Highly cited | No |