In pursuit of a vibrant knowledge society, many e-Initiatives are active in ensuring citizens use ICT as a tool for development.

While “connectivity and access” gaps are slowly being bridged, other challenges exist to enabling citizens to effectively harness the benefits of ICT in their daily lives.

The next Phase should be strengthened by a consultation process at the community level that would attempt to derive the general priorities that ordinary citizens, not just community leaders, attach to various options.

The objective will be to ensure that e-Initiatives and communities build a joint implementation plan, addressing the citizens’ common access, content, sustainability, and awareness challenges.

Actions Include:
• The organization of an e-Initiatives Task Force
• The implementation of a common “connectivity and access” benchmark survey
• The engagement of communities in a national dialogue on citizen ICT usage challenges
• The development of a national grassroots “Connecting Jordanians” implementation plan involving all national ICT initiatives
• Continued monitoring and joint planning function


Widespread, Pervasive Public Access

Given the relatively low rate of family computer ownership and internet access, there needs to be a much larger number of access sites

Actions Include:
• Jordan is estimated to require 750 access sites
• Schools are the lowest cost access sites
• Strategy on the way a widespread public access program through schools should be undertaken


Greatly Expanded ICT Youth Engagement

Youth are Jordan's greatest unexploited asset in the march toward e-readiness and e-growth. The NetCorps program has shown high level of interest from youth, communities and businesses in supporting young people to play an ICT outreach role. It Is time to scale things up to gain critical mass.

Actions Include:
• A program that engages at least 2,500 youth at any one time over two years
• The youth could be focused on four areas aimed at driving higher levels of awareness and access


Distance Education

One of the immediate pay-offs for the Network projects is to facilitate collaborative distance education amongst the 8 public universities and to the public through the expanding network of Knowledge Stations.

Actions Include:
• A virtual university environment where courseware can be shared across institutions in Jordan and throughout the Arab region
• Hardware, software and application services
• Faculty awareness raising and training
• New administrative services and collaborative arrangements


Community Content

The capability to harness the internet for local economic and social development comes primarily from the production and sharing of community information, not from use of corporate, government and foreign sources. Jordan is not seem very well positioned presently to develop content and services at the community level

Actions Include:
• Community portals as a tool to encourage local organizations to create and share their own content
• A suitable technology needs to be identified and diffused to communities