ICT Policies as a Means to Inhibit Social Exclusion: The South African Case

Abstract

Social exclusion is a multi dimensional phenomenon that manifests itself in the exclusion of an individual from one or more of the four following activities: production of goods and services, consumption, civil engagement, and social interaction. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have been argued to have the potential to reduce these forms of social exclusion. However, the extent to which they deal with these different forms of social exclusion remains unknown. Therefore, in this study we examine how ICT policies in South Africa are being employed to reduce social exclusion. In particular, we analyze which dimensions of social exclusion are targeted in telecommunication laws and one of the ICT initiatives of the South African government, Multi-Purpose Community Centers (MPCCs). Using a framework that portrays the four forms of social exclusion within the discourses used in phenomenon debates (redistributionist, moral underclass, and social integrationist) for analysis, we find that ICT policies in South Africa address two of the four forms of social exclusion: production of goods and services and civil engagement, spanning both the redistributionist and social integrationist discourses of social exclusion.