In this paper I analyse the contrast between three kinds of places that offer public access to Internet: On one hand Internet Cafès, that are private business, and on the other, Plazas Comunitarias (Community Squares) and Centros Comunitarios Digitales (Digital Community Centres), that are public and government owned and operated. I will focus my analysis in a predominantly rural area in the Estado de Mexico (State of Mexico), a few miles to the east of Mexico City, in the region of the Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl volcanoes. The aim of this paper are to illustrate the profile of Internet Users that visit these places, the uses they give to such a digital instrument as Internet, the goals that are searched for in the contents consulted, and the habits created by these kinds of users, in a phrase, their "digital praxis".

The Internet Cafès appear as private businesses that offer connectivity services as a profitable goal, while the Plazas Comunitarias and the Centros Comunitarios Digitales are part of the Mexican federal government's initiative to connect the population, free of charge, to the Internet, via the "e-Mexico" program. See www.e-mexico.gob.mx. Internet Cafès are usually located in private homes, rented locales or in previously established small businesses, such as shops, small cafes or recreational centres that manage to accommodate a few computers in their reduced spaces. On the other hand, the appointed locations for the Plazas Comunitarias and the Centros Comunitarios Digitales are spaces owned by the municipal governments: schools, government offices, health centres or cultural centers that may be inside and outside the town hall.

I will present a brief summary of the telecommunication infrastructure for the Internet Cafès, the Plazas Comunitarias and the Centros Comunitarios Digitales. Furthermore, I will present a profile of the people that stimulated the creation of those centres (entrepreneurs on one hand, and federal or municipal government promoters on the other) as well as the operators and users of this centers. All of them have an opinion about the Internet, its significance, and about the impacts the installation these centers have in their communities.

I will include a small ethnography in order to compare the private facilities (Internet Cafès) with the government-owned centers (Plazas Comunitarias and Centros Comunitarios Digitales). I will also compare the behaviour and habits created outside and inside these spaces. My focus will pay special attention to some obstacles that the designers of the "e-Mexico" program face, such as the confrontations with political groups that have nothing to do with the project, but that are responsible for municipal governance where the new centers are being installed. Additionally, I will mention minor but important details regarding the functioning of these centers, such as the maintenance requirements and access to useful Net contents, the quality of connectivity and the efficiency in the administration of the centers, among other issues. I will also present an example of the incentives used so as to attract and qualify new users to the Net.

My presentation concludes with a reflection about the Internet Cafès (with their technical and human infrastructure), and the cooperation and determination of their owners plus the authorities in charge of implementing public policies on a local and regional level. While these spaces can be used to offer courses and tutorials for the search of contents in the Net that are relevant for the population, this is not happening; contents that can be used to establish a tie between the citizens and different levels of government are few in number. The Internet Cafès are places where users can get closer access to relevant contents, but it must be said that the contents being consulted in the region under study are shaped, in the main, by their entertainment value. There are few appropriate incentives to take advantage of what the Net offers today, even in Spanish. I will include a sample of the contents consulted by users in these establishments and these contrast dramatically with a vision of the Net as a learning tool. This profile has implications for public policy design in the near future.

In Asian developing countries like the Philippines, there have been government efforts to introduce ICT in business, education, and governance. Recognizing the importance of ICT in the country\'s development, the Philippine government has undertaken steps to ensure that the country will be an active player in the field. The goal is to make the Philippines as an e-services hub in the Asia Pacific region. However, the disparity in awareness and use of ICT exists within the community and local government levels. The domestic digital divide is an issue which needs to be addressed if the goal of development is indeed to be achieved. This paper will illustrate a case study of an ICT initiative in Cebu City, Philippines, which seeks to bridge the domestic digital divide. while most-egovernment initiatives are initiated from the national government, this case study emanates from the community level. Dubbed as the Barangay.Net project (barangay referring to the basic political unit in the Philippines), this initiative involves government, private, and NGO sectors with the view that ICT can help link the local communities to the global economy and transform them into active participant in nation-building. In examining the requisities of making e-government work in the community level, the paper shall tackle the factors that facilitate and impede this initiative, particularly the human and institutional infrastructures. This will lead to a discussion of who in the domestic digital divide are excluded, and what are the reasons for exclusion. While the computing and telecommnication infrastructures are essential to e-readiness in the community, the cultural factors that facilitate and restrain the implementation of ICT shall be discussed in the paper to hopedully understand the problems and opportunities inherent in introducing computer technologies into cultures with little previous experience of them.

About the Author(s)

Maria Divina Gracia Roldan is an assistant professor in political science at the University of the Philippines Cebu College. She teaches courses such as international politics, philippne foreign policy, philippine national and local administration, and governments and politics in Asia. Her research interests include international relations, organizations, governance, and ICT. She is currently the associate dean of the University of the Philippines Cebu College.

Information and communication technology (ICT) is the driving force of the present century. Change and transformation is the order of the day. ICT is creating economic, social and political empowerment opportunities for poor people in developing world. Connectivity through telephones, radio, television, and Internet can represent the voices of the people and put pressure on government for more responsiveness. ICT can thus help to overcome people's powerlessness and voicelessness even the structural inequalities exist in the distribution of traditional assets. Improvement in the lives of the poor people is not automatic, and it depends upon the development of policy, infrastructural facilities and low cost access to information. Public-Private partnerships, services of NGO's and community-based organizations of the Civil Society are important for sustainability of the ICT projects. The growing impact of ICT has changed the government administration enormously and the new techniques of administration like quick decision-making, data based-planning, effective implementation through quantitative techniques, reengineering of service systems, performance management, transparency of government operations, and emphasis on citizen service with citizen satisfaction replaced the traditional model of administration. A new terminology has emerged in the academics and society viz., 'e-government', 'e-governance' and 'e-citizen' etc. Based on the above proposition this paper highlights three important areas: a) Empowerment through ICT; b) Working through ICT in developing world c) Case Studies. The Present Study: The objective of this paper is to examine and analyzing the citizen empowerment through electronic means in developing world. For this purpose we selected the Andhra Pradesh (herein after referred as AP) state in India. AP is one of the more backward states of India with a population of 76.7 million is larger than of many countries. Per capita income is lower than the national average and the same with the literacy field. The relative backwardness of AP and its aspirations to become a knowledge society provides a useful case study of the strategic use of ICT for achieving development. Empowerment through IT In the state of AP, IT is an important tool for governance. AP is the first state in India for designing a state - wide computerization programme covering al levels of the administrative spectrum from the smallest- the village level revenue offices- to the top. The success of any IT initiative by the government requires a "buy-in" from the public. The State Government skillfully used the print and the electronic media for effectively communicating the importance of IT for future development of the state. On-line administrative reviews through video-conferencing facility between the state capital and the 25 cities/towns have been operational from November 1999. This is being used effectively for demonstration of best practices from the departments to all over the state. The poverty databases created for use in conjunction with the GIS include Land Information System, 71 Socio-economic indicators, Multi-purpose Household Survey database and Human Development Indicators. This information is accessible on the Government intranet and provides tremendous support for research, analysis, project design and monitoring of various development and poverty alleviation initiatives. Along with the above methods the government of AP has initiated various steps in order to maintain the citizen friendly methods e.g., e-Seva (Electronic Citizen Services), CARD (Computer Aided Administration of Registration Department) etc. Conclusion: The successful implementation of e-Governance in administration has indicated positive response by various communities. The analysis indicates that almost 100 percent respondents are appreciating the electronic means of operation of citizen services and use of computers in administration. It is saving their valuable time and money. The e-governance is helpful in establishing a two-way information communication network vertically and horizontally across the public and administrative system and helps in reinstalling and reinforcing people's faith in government.