IT for the have-nots

IT has, for long, formed the basis of knowledge-based economies of the

developed world. It is interesting that the very IT-based market systems that

were used as a source of economic and social elitism by the West have now become

the source of competitive advantage for emerging economies such as India. As the

list of G-7 countries demonstrates, the knowledge economies of the West have a

head start spanning several generations over their counterparts in the ‘Third

World’.

This can be attributed to their socio-economic culture, that has thrived on

decades of entrepreneurship and innovation, attracting the best and the

brightest professionals from around the world including those from labor ‘surplus’

countries such as India. It is therefore not surprising that visitors from

overseas experience the breathtaking American technology leadership firsthand

through the use of IT in every aspect of the daily life of a consumer or

business enterprise.

Untapped opportunity



Against the backdrop of the growing role IT has been playing in the global

economy, it is important that we remember that the current pessimism about the

prospects of the Indian IT industry, is based on a knee-jerk reaction to a

short-term recession in the US economy and is as misplaced as the euphoria that

preceded it. IT is and will continue to be the driver for business

transformation empowering and transforming the way organizations are managed

around the world. The continuing shortage of knowledge workers in the US and in

other parts of the world, numbers in the millions even today, and once the

current recession gives way to growth by the beginning of 2002, the pent-up IT

demand will refuel the software juggernaut for decades.

This pent-up demand for software talent will ensure that we continue to read

success stories of IT professionals of Indian-origin who generate substantial

wealth and fame for themselves and in turn, act as a source of inspiration for a

generation of young professionals in India to become entrepreneurs.

Facilitating social uplift



It is absolutely imperative for us to realize that the IT boom presents as

much of a challenge as an opportunity. Care needs to be taken to ensure that

this ‘IT Revolution’ facilitates social and economic development and

regional integration rather than increasing the economic disparity that exists

in the country.

The wealth generation potential from the IT sector has been illustrated by

the 1999 Nasscom-McKinsey study that predicts that 1.6 million additional jobs

for software professionals will be created by 2008 — generating over $50

billion in export revenue for the nation. The unfortunate side to these

statistics is the fact that the IT boom is significantly skewed towards the

privileged English-speaking urban classes who have access to IT education,

side-stepping the large chunk of our population who do not have access to such

services. Another drawback highlighted by these statistics is that less than 1%

of the population will generate more than 30% of our trade with the rest of the

world in less then seven years from now.

Hence, amidst the euphoria of closing in on a once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity

for global leadership, the government and the academia must think long and hard

on how to mitigate the reality of increasing inequalities due to the IT export

boom. Like all opportunities for wealth generation, this one too poses a

challenge for civil society to address the increasing gap between the English

educated ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’.

An activist approach to bridging this gap in a small measure to identify

pragmatic approaches as to how some from amongst the socially and economically

backward classes can participate in this $50 billion opportunity of a lifetime.

Can we overcome our cultural weakness of poor relationships between government

and industry and create institutional mechanisms that assist capable, but

economically and socially disadvantaged individuals, access quality IT

education?

Looking ahead, it is clear that the future of millions of families is tied to

the software industry. We need to ensure that this wealth is distributed more

evenly so that society as a whole benefits from it.

BY Harsh Singh Lohit The author is CEO,

TechSpan India