Role of Universities in Digitising Rural Communities

Abstract

Today’s real border are not between nations, but between powerful and powerless, free and fettered, privileged and humiliated(Kofi Annan, 2001). The humiliated, fettered and powerless, in this context are the rural population, mainly because they are remote, they lack information. With small and widely – dispersed population, rural areas, constantly face deteriorating services. They often face difficulty in obtaining even the essential services, being forced to travel, despite the fact that there is an abundance or saturation of goods and services in their neighbouring urban areas. Many of the services, essential for everyday life are available only in the urban areas. This paper describes the ways in which universities can bridge the digital divide.