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108 International Development

problems of low-income countries. This is an important distinction to make, as the
notion of the ‘technical fix’ has long pervaded the field of international development.
Indeed, it could be argued that the field of international development has grown up
historically around a mind-set of recasting social, political and economic problems
into neutral scientific terms with neutral scientific solutions (Escobar 1995). In this
sense, it is easy to see how digital technology has assumed a central and usually
unchallenged role within contemporary international development efforts – not
least in the area of educational development. Yet as has been discussed from the first
chapter of this book onwards, it is a mistake to see educational technology as a
neutral tool through which economic, political and societal fortunes can be
improved. If we are to make full sense of the role of educational technology within
low-income contexts, we therefore need first to unpack the assumptions underlying
the role of technology in international development.
Here, it is important to remember that ‘pre-digital’ technologies have long
played an important role in international development efforts. Many international
development contexts during the twentieth century included a focus on ‘appro-
priate’ and ‘sustainable’ technology – i.e. the support of technology use that was felt
to meet local needs and capabilities, but had a minimal impact on environments
and societies. Appropriate technologies are seen to offer a transitional stage of
technological development, promising a means of ‘shifting’ countries towards fully
modern technology use (Hazeltine and Bull 1999). One of the advantages of this
‘intermediate’ approach is that tools and technologies are more effective than
existing traditional methods, but cheaper and easier for local populations to pur-
chase than the most technically-sophisticated technologies that could be provided.
Appropriate technologies also have an advantage of remaining close enough to
traditional methods as to be produced and sustained through locally available
materials and knowledge – remaining sensitive to local issues of resources,
environment, knowledge and customs.
One of the earliest – and most enduring – examples of appropriate technology
was Mahatma Gandhi’s championing of the charkha (spinning wheel) within rural
Indian communities. For Gandhi, the charkha was a technically efficient means
of production that was also capable of supporting the increased economic partici-
pation of the general peasant population (Rybczynski 1980). More subtly, it was
also a powerful symbol of self-reliance and freedom from colonial rule – eventually
being depicted at the centre of the national flag of the independent Indian nation.
As this now iconic example illustrates, the use of technology in international
development has long been infused with political intent as well as practical benefit.
As Anthony Akubue (2000, n.p.) observes, “appropriate technology cannot be seen
simply as some identifiable technical device; rather, it is an approach to community
development consisting of a body of knowledge, techniques, and an underlying
philosophy”.
Of course, these principles and processes of appropriate technology sit in stark
contrast to the more recent ‘digital turn’ taken by many international development