Abstract
Union Digital Centers have been inaugurated to accomplish the vision ‘Digital Bangladesh’ to empower rural people by providing digital services. The study attempts to assess the role of union digital centers in reducing social inequality. It also tries to identify the barriers in providing digital services to the local disadvantaged people. In this purpose, the study exerted a cross-sectional mixed-method approach. Data were collected from 399 service receivers of UDC through questionnaire survey, 16 KIIs and 5 FGDs. From principal component and correlation analysis, it is found that the grassroots people’s easy accessibility, citizen’s empowerment by minimizing information gap, quality service delivery at affordable price and time-cost-visit reduction play a significant role in reducing social inequality in rural areas. These factors are positively correlated with the effective service delivery of UDCs to reduce social inequality. Lack of awareness, conflict of job responsibility with UP secretaries and weak network connection are the major barriers in providing effective services of UDCs. Still UDCs bring a new dimension in the public service delivery system which empowers the people and reduce social inequalities in rural areas.
Highlights
Bangladesh is a developing country in South Asia with a huge population of 163 million (World Bank, 2019)
This study attempts to assess the role of union digital centres in reducing social inequality and to identify barriers in fulfilling this aim
Union Digital Centre has prepared a new avenue for the rural people in Bangladesh
Summary
Bangladesh is a developing country in South Asia with a huge population of 163 million (World Bank, 2019). This study discusses the Union Digital Centre (UDC) and considers the literature that demonstrates the electronic services toward reducing social inequality in the rural arena. The viewpoint of Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D) considers ICTs a powerful tool to bring socio-economic development with tremendous potential support for the world's poorest populations (Gutterman et al 2009). In the age of ICT, telecentre is a great innovation, similar to the UDC, which helps access the internet and services for remote and isolated communities (Char land and slums) toward leveraging economic growth and enhancing the quality of life (Proenza 2001; Hanna 2010). Li and Feeney (2014) stated that social inequalities would be significantly reduced when ensuring the eservices in the communities and people engage with them
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