International Institute for Communication and Development

The International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) was a Dutch nonprofit foundation established in 1996 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. Based in The Hague, it focused on applying information and communication technologies (ICTs), especially computers and the Internet, to development challenges in lower-income countries. Rather than operating as a conventional commercial technology company, IICD worked as a development organization, combining policy support, institutional partnerships, practical projects, knowledge sharing, and capacity building. Its central premise was that access to digital tools and communication networks could improve social and economic development when those tools were connected to local institutions and sector priorities. IICD therefore supported ICT-related policy processes and programs in areas including health, education, livelihoods, agriculture, and governance. Its work was directed toward practical development outcomes: improving access to information, strengthening public and community institutions, supporting farmers and other livelihoods, and helping governments and civil-society actors use digital communications more effectively. IICD operated in nine countries: Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ghana, Jamaica, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. The geographic portfolio covered Latin America, Africa, and the Caribbean, reflecting the institute’s international development mandate. Its activities were generally carried out with local and national partners rather than through a consumer-facing product model. The organization’s offerings consequently consisted of advisory work, policy support, project implementation, training, partnerships, and knowledge resources rather than branded hardware or software products. Funding came from public development institutions. The Netherlands’ Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS) was a principal funder, and the institute also received support from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), among others. This funding structure placed IICD within the broader international development ecosystem and linked its work to government-supported digital-development and aid objectives. IICD ceased operations on 31 December 2015. It is therefore a defunct development organization rather than an active technology or consulting brand. Its historical significance lies in its early emphasis on using Internet and communications infrastructure as tools for development policy and service delivery, at a time when digital-development practice was becoming an established part of international cooperation.

The International Institute for Communication and Development was established in 1996 as a nonprofit foundation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. Its creation reflected growing interest within international development policy in the potential of information and communication technologies to improve access to knowledge, public services, economic opportunities, and government services in developing countries. Operating from The Hague, IICD developed an ICT-for-development model centered on practical cooperation. Its work was not limited to supplying computers or connectivity. The institute supported policy processes and projects that connected digital tools with sector-specific development goals. Health programs could use ICT to improve the flow of information and strengthen service institutions; education initiatives could support learning and access to educational resources; livelihoods programs, particularly those associated with agriculture, could improve access to market or technical information; and governance work could use communication technologies to support public administration and participation. IICD worked in nine developing countries: Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ghana, Jamaica, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. The portfolio spanned three regions and involved cooperation with public authorities, civil-society organizations, educational institutions, and other local or national partners. This partnership-based approach was intended to make digital initiatives more relevant to local conditions and more sustainable after external support ended. The institute’s activities were funded largely through international development assistance. The Directorate-General for International Cooperation of the Netherlands provided funding, alongside institutions including the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. These relationships enabled IICD to combine policy engagement with field-level implementation and knowledge dissemination. IICD belonged to an early generation of organizations that treated the Internet and digital communications as instruments of development policy rather than solely as commercial technologies. Its approach connected infrastructure and access questions with institutional capacity, sector reform, and the ability of communities and public bodies to use information effectively. The institute’s work consequently occupied an intersection between international aid, public-sector modernization, telecommunications, education, agriculture, and civil-society development. IICD ceased operations on 31 December 2015. No current operating structure, executive team, product portfolio, or successor commercial brand is established in the supplied reference material. The organization is therefore best understood historically as a Dutch development foundation whose principal contribution was the promotion and practical application of ICTs in international development programs.

• 2015

  Operations ended

  [1]International Institute for Communication and Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  IICD ceased operations on 31 December 2015.

• 1996

  Foundation established

  [1]International Institute for Communication and Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  The International Institute for Communication and Development was established as a nonprofit foundation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.

• Operations expanded across nine developing countries

  [1]International Institute for Communication and Developmenten.wikipedia.org

  IICD developed programs in Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ghana, Jamaica, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

A public-interest ICT-for-development organization focused on using digital communications, computers, and the Internet to strengthen sustainable development, public services, livelihoods, and governance.

• Development advisory

  ICT-for-development policy support

  IICD supported policy processes that addressed how information and communication technologies could contribute to national and sectoral development. This work connected digital policy with practical concerns in public services, economic opportunity, and institutional capacity rather than treating ICT as an isolated technology sector.

• International development programs

  Sector development projects

  The institute supported projects applying computers, the Internet, and related communications tools in health, education, livelihoods, agriculture, and governance. Programs were implemented with development partners in the countries where IICD operated and were oriented toward local institutional and social needs.

• Professional development

  Training and capacity building

  Capacity building was an integral part of IICD’s development model. The organization worked with public, community, and other partner institutions to improve their ability to use digital communications and information resources in support of development objectives.

• Knowledge services

  Knowledge sharing and partnerships

  IICD combined field projects with partnership and knowledge-sharing activities intended to circulate experience about ICT applications in development. Its institutional role included connecting funders, policymakers, implementing organizations, and local partners around practical digital-development initiatives.

• 2015

  Decision to end operationsOther

  Background

  After operating as a Dutch nonprofit ICT-for-development foundation since 1996, IICD’s institutional activities were brought to an end.

  Action taken

  The institute ceased operations on 31 December 2015.

  Aftermath

  IICD became a defunct organization, with no current operating activities identified in the supplied reference material.

  Source

1. 1International Institute for Communication and Developmenten.wikipedia.org
2. 2International Institute for Communication and Development official websiteiicd.org
3. 3Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)en.wikipedia.org