The Role of Information and Communication Technology in Small and Medium Enterprise Development in Botswana. Results of the pilot phase of a project sponsored by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and Institute for Development Policy

Abstract

The paper analyses the role of information and communication technologies (ICT's) in small and medium enterprise developments in Botswana. It outlines the economic and policy background to SME development, and presents an analysis of the SME sector with regard to firm size, location and market sector. It presents the results of a pilot survey of firms in the SME sector examining the information and communication practices of a small sample of firms. Current developments in information and communication technologies are outlined, and some prelimary findings relating to ICT impact on SMEs are summarised. Finally, some policy considerations are mentioned and the objectives of the main fieldwork phase of the project are outlined.