Primer 1: An Introduction to ICT for Development seeks to provide an introduction to and preliminary understanding of the linkages between ICTs and the achievement of the human development goals in society. Today, this newly emerging academic discipline is called ICT for Development (ICTD or ICT4D).

The Primer is designed to provide background information that students in undergraduate and graduate programmes can use as a starting point in the exploration of the various dimensions of the linkages through case studies of ICT applications in key sectors of development in Asia-Pacific countries. The aim is to foster a better multidisciplinary understanding of how ICTs can be used for social and economic development, and to equip students of different fields, from engineering to the social sciences with the understanding needed to use ICTs to meet a country’s development goals and needs. This primer can be used by all students, it does not focus on any aspect in detail; and it seeks to avoid the technical jargon that a specialized study of any aspect of ICTD may entail.