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Open Economies - A Digital Ecosystem in Jordan [Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index] A Digital Ecosystem in Jordan
In early October I traveled to Jordan for a technology conference, and was
mightily impressed with the open, pluralistic, competent community of people
thriving there. Jordan can be an important source of BOTH technology people
and open, innovative thinking for the entire Middle East. This is why Jordan
matters.
I wrote up a brief trip report. Before I could send it out, a top USAID
official was assassinated, non-essential US staff of projects began to be
pulled out, and uncertainty about war in Iraq deepened. So I kept holding
back sending out my little story, hoping for a bit more stability and
information...
Then two days ago Robin Miller's more recent trip report on Jordan was
referenced on Slashdot (Slashdot December 26, 2002). Her story, which I
commend to you, inspired me to go ahead and send mine out, as well. Both
are similar in spirit and conclusion: Life goes on in the Jordanian tech
community so far, despite the challenges. And life there is quite
interesting!
Here is the Slashdot abstract of Robin Miller's story:
Last week, NewsForge editor and Slashdot poster Robin ("roblimo") Miller
traveled to [0]Jordan to [1]observe, talk about and foment the free software
scene there, in part by speaking at the [2]Open Source Software Workshop
held in Amman. How do you grow a software industry in a country with a 30%
poverty rate, where water supplies are a bigger concern than ATX power
supplies? At the conference Robin spoke at, clearly a big part of that
answer is high-quality free software. He notes that "Two gentlemen from
Microsoft also spoke. I was in favor of Linux and Open Source. They
weren't." Aside from the software side of things (including another plug for
the awesome demo power of [3]Knoppix), the report is worth reading to anyone
as ignorant of Jordan as I am just to find out more about the place.
Discuss this story at:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=02/12/25/1452255
Links:
0. http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/jo.html
1. http://newsforge.com/newsforge/02/12/24/0349250.shtml?tid=19
2. http://www.intaj.net/calendar/event.cfm?id=232
3. http://www.knoppix.org
Below is my story, text only. For those who would like to see a version
with photos, and have broadband, I'm appending a PDF file, at about 3.4
megs.
I would be quite interested in comments from readers who are either in
Jordan, or have been there recently.
Best wishes, and have a great New Year,
Jim
A Digital Ecosystem in Jordan: October 2002
Dr. James F. Moore
Berkman Center for Internet and Society
Harvard Law School
Amman, Jordan, October 4, 2002
Amid talk of war, I am an American visiting Jordan to join a conference on
the digital future of Jordan and the Middle East: a delicate, organic future
of some fragility. I have discovered a vibrant community of entrepreneurs,
with values strikingly similar to those I know in Austin, Boston, Silicon
Valley, Atlanta, Northern Virginia and other centers of innovation in the
United States. Most heartening, I have been welcomed warmly not only by
Jordanians, but by Syrians, Palestinians, Saudis and other Arabs. A number
of American Jews are present with me at the conference, and they tell me
they feel personally appreciated, comfortable and respected in this setting.
Moreover, my hotel is host to a number of Israelis who have come to vacation
in Jordan, in part because they perceive it to be a safe and peaceful place.
I need not emphasize how remarkable all this is, in a world riven with
strife and polarization, particularly now on the eve of possible war in
Iraq, just a few hundred kilometers from this city.
Digital culture is establishing itself rapidly here. Public and private
universities are producing large numbers of graduates in computer-related
fields, and constantly expanding their offerings and student population.
Internet cafés by the hundreds have sprung up in college districts,
combining traditional Arab coffee culture with cyber access to the world.
Software developers abound. In Amman there are over 250 small companies
assembling personal computers on demand, selling to the digerati. In a
store I visited, I could specify any one of 6 different Intel chips, among
the fastest available in the world.
I find myself especially interested in the values of the people who make up
this community. Consider the role of women. I was moved by the
presentation of Jordanian Director of Information and Communication
Technology Policies, Ms. Dima Anani, about the need to create "inclusive
technology" and transform society by changing the roles of women, both in
the workforce and in villages. Ms. Anani described a woman who attended a
local community center, and learned computer skills despite the fact that
she had not previously completed primary education, though she could read
and write. Now she has a job doing data entry, which she performs at night,
and is continuing her studies in the day. In her own words "the best thing
about the experience is that my father treats me differently, with more
respect, now that I make more money than him." Money may not assure
happiness-but in the developing world it goes a long way toward ensuring
freedom from exploitation. Such changes in status, replicated by thousands
of women across the society, can have a substantial influence on the future
social structure of the nation and region.
To succeed in technology, traditional values like trading must be combined
with openness to ideas and to change. Thus digital trade in ideas as well
as goods is changing the landscape in adjacent countries like Syria. I had a
conversation with a warm and gracious man who runs a PC assembly company in
Syria. The act of acquiring components links him with the world. Parts are
paid for in dollars, purchased through companies in Bahrain, and for the
most part are manufactured in the Far East or the United States. He had
freely traveled to Jordan for the conference--which in itself I found
notable. The reason for his trip: the only way he can keep up with the
innovation of technology is to seek out and adopt new ideas. He and others
describe extensive cross-border flow of people, goods, and ideas among the
creative high tech players in the region. Positive seeds of open culture
are being carried from valley to valley.
Most striking to me is how the digital culture taking root and establishing
itself in Jordan and surrounding Arab nations is broadly continuous with
digital culture around the world. I study the phenomena of digital culture
in far-flung parts of the world. I've observed a rich global
cross-fertilization of shared values, with digital culture leading local
cultures in being open to innovation and new ideas, being socially inclusive
and generally youth-orientated, and celebrating a diversity of worldviews
and lifestyles. This worldwide interchange is enabled by the Internet, and
mirrors its structure: eclectic, peer-oriented, fast-changing.
The attraction of this culture is everywhere evident in Jordan. Stores and
cafes are hotbeds of tech talk and excitement. The newspapers are full of
tech business developments. One of my favorite new acquaintances is a
Palestinian-Russian, born in Algeria, now Jordanian software engineer. As
he said, "The Internet connects us all. If I want to know something, almost
anything, I go there. And in going there, I meet others. This is how we
make our future." Within this global community of know-how, a new culture
is emerging.
The government is encouraging this vibrant, open, and somewhat chaotic
digital ecosystem. The King of Jordan attended the conference, delighting
in the Jordanian entrepreneurs, in the social initiatives, as well as in
digital wizardry highlighted by keynoters Craig Barrett, CEO of Intel, and
John Gage, Chief Researcher of Sun Microsystems. The local technology
industry association, Intaj, sponsored the conference and is partnering with
the government to promote digital development in Jordan.
The digital culture of Jordan is receiving seed stock and support from many
quarters. Cisco Systems is sponsoring technical training for women, in
cooperation with the United Nations. Intel has opened a research center for
digital innovation at the University of Jordan. Microsoft has invested in a
local systems integration company, and is helping to make the firm a major
contributor in the middle east. Qualcomm just announced that its regional
headquarters will be established in Amman. A major Open Source Software
Conference is scheduled for December.
With the help of American aid money and expertise, as well as assistance
from Canada, Europe and Japan, Jordan is making digital progress available
throughout society. A USAID-led health care information technology project
is connecting hundreds of health centers. A Canadian team is creating a
broadband network linking 3000 local schools. Community education and
connection centers have now been established in more than forty poor areas
around the nation, with more underway.
What we have here in Jordan, today, is about as close as one gets to a
success of American foreign policy and American aid. Jordan is a fertile
valley for progressive ideas, and winds carry seeds of change throughout the
region. This is an achievement that is likely to bring a harvest of
economic and social benefits far into the future.
Of course, the potential for a US-led invasion of Iraq is having its effect.
Some here support the effort. As one of my drivers observed-"If the US
wants to spend the billions of dollars needed to eliminate Saddam, why
should we object? In the long run we will benefit." But many more,
including supporters of the US presence in Jordan, are quite concerned. To
them the US seems narrowly focused on the war effort, and less aware of the
need to protect the rich bed of relationships and trust that have been
established in digital Jordan. The threat of war is already having a strong
negative effect. One harbinger of trouble is the ripples through the
currency trading system, so necessary for global business relationships. My
Syrian acquaintance noted that this is a hard time in business in Syria,
"The uncertainty over the possibility of war in Iraq is driving currency
values to fluctuate daily--like a bourse." In the event of actual war,
currencies will become untradable, making exchanges with Bahrain and Taiwan
impossible, not to mention cutting air and sea-based product deliveries.
But of course this is just the beginning. Commercial travel will be
stopped, and cross-valley emissaries of technology like my Syrian traveler
will be called back to their homes. If events follow the Gulf War of 1991,
Americans and Europeans will be evacuated from Jordan-and both commercial
and humanitarian projects will be severely disrupted. Even in the event of
a short war, restoring momentum, relationships, and trust will take time.
There is also a real possibility of direct collateral damage. Jordan is a
small country sandwiched between Iraq and Israel, Syria and Saudi Arabia.
In peace, this is what makes Jordan such an attractive cultural bridge. In
war, it makes it exceptionally vulnerable. If Iraq attacks Israel, Jordan
is in the flight path. If chemical or biological weapons are used, Jordan is
in the wind path. In addition, like a forest fire out of control, the war
may expand across the region. For example, in the past few weeks rockets
have been moved into southern Lebanon and are poised to be unleashed at
Israel.
On an individual level, there is the personal threat to Jordanians who work
in the technology industry, especially those who work on US-funded projects
or with US companies. Many are educated in the US, and are noted
progressives here. They are concerned about whether they will be adequately
protected by the US, in the event of a backlash against them by anti-US
elements in Jordanian society.
There are already boycotts against American products, and there were
anti-American street protests during the summer, until the Jordanian police
moved forcefully to stop them. In the event of war, our friends in Jordan
believe that they likely will be blacklisted and prevented from working, and
may be targeted for more violent retribution.
I believe that the dynamic high technology ecosystem emerging in Jordan can
survive a war, but I also think it can be severely damaged. I hope that
policy makers both in Jordan and the US will make a special effort to
support digital culture in this time of uncertainty and worse. People in
Jordan are engaged and the society is being transformed. I am concerned that
policy makers assume that this rich, open culture can be taken for granted.
On the contrary, it is as fragile as shoots of new spring growth. We must
strive to make sure that hot war does not consume trust across the region,
and does not poison a digital future that is bringing great hope to people
today.
Make new networks!
Dr. James F. Moore
Senior Fellow
Harvard Law School
Director, Open Economies
Berkman Center for Internet and Society
Baker House
1587 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
www.openeconomies.org
jmoore@cyber.law.harvard.edu
jmoore@geopartners.com
Office phone number US 1 617 495-7547
Attachment:
James Moore Jordan Oct 2002.pdf
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