ABSTRACT

This study aims at understanding how various actors interacted in establishing and managing an Information Communication Technology (ICT)- based initiative called Agricultural Knowledge Centers (AKCs) in Ethiopia. Additionally, it explores the diverging and shared interests of the actors in the benefits of the AKCs. We gathered and analyzed data from in-depth interviews in five extension offices in the South Wollo zone, Ethiopia, and supplemented it with project documents and observations. We used the Actor Network Theory (ANT), particularly the four moments of translation, to analyze the results. The findings show how people and technology came together to establish the AKCs and to provide extension experts access to digital knowledge. Factors that contributed to creating and stabilizing the AKC actor network included the presence of an actor to facilitate the process, alignment of interests among actors in the network, building the capacities and motivation of the various actors to execute their roles, and availability of computers with strong internet connections. These findings contribute to practical and policy debates on harnessing ICT’s potential for facilitating socioeconomic development in the Global South; and to the theoretical discussions on the merits of the ANT perspective in analyzing the adoption of technological innovations.

摘要

这项研究旨在了解在埃塞俄比亚建立和管理基于信息通信技术（ICT）的倡议，即农业知识中心（AKC）的过程中，各种参与者之间如何相互作用。此外，它还探索了行为主体在AKC利益中的分歧和共同利益。我们从埃塞俄比亚南沃尔洛地区五个推广办公室的深入访谈中收集并分析了数据，并补充了项目文件和观察资料。我们使用演员网络理论（ANT），尤其是翻译的四个时刻来分析结果。调查结果表明，人们和技术如何共同建立AKC，并为扩展专家提供访问数字知识的途径。有助于创建和稳定AKC参与者网络的因素包括：参与者的存在以促进流程，网络中参与者之间的利益一致，建立各个参与者执行其角色的能力和动力以及计算机的可用性。强大的互联网连接。这些发现促进了关于利用信息通信技术的潜力促进全球南方社会经济发展的实践和政策辩论；以及关于ANT观点在分析技术创新采用中的优点的理论讨论。这些发现促进了关于利用信息通信技术的潜力促进全球南方社会经济发展的实践和政策辩论；以及关于ANT观点在分析技术创新采用中的优点的理论讨论。这些发现促进了关于利用信息通信技术的潜力促进全球南方社会经济发展的实践和政策辩论；以及关于ANT观点在分析技术创新采用中的优点的理论讨论。