Web 2.0 and Social Media, An Introduction

Web 2.0 represents the World Wide Web at a new level of development. It is everything the web has brought us with a lot more extra benefits. The web brought us information to our very own door steps, now web 2.0 adds a new dimension to the whole idea by enabling us to be the sources or the makers of the information. With web 2.0, it is no longer a matter of simply receiving information; it is about becoming a part of the informants ourselves.

In our daily lives, web 2.0 tools can be used to connect and collaborate with our intended target audience. This can therefore be a solution for many problems faced by organisations. Web 2.0 tools provide an easy communication platform that can be used by anyone to create, find and share whatever content they may need to share with the rest of the world. So in a nutshell, web 2.0 makes the World Wide Web, any mans’ platform. Anyone with basic knowledge of computer use is now able to not only get information from the internet, but also add information to the World Wide Web, or as it’s now called, the “cloud”.

The basic uses of web 2.0 tools, also known as Social Media tools, are as follows;

1. To connect with people through social media networks,
2. To collaborate with people in accomplishing a task,
3. To create and share whatever material or content one may want to share, and
4. To find, use, organise and reuse content other people’s content if allowed.

In an organisation, this simply means increased efficiency and collaboration. Because people can now work together even over long distances or across international borders using various web 2.0 tools. Various tools such as Groupware tools, Social Networking tools, are all examples of web 2.0 tools or social media tools that can help individuals and organisations to connect, communicate, work and collaborate more effectively and efficiently than before.

As with all things, social media tools must be used with caution as they do present a number of issues to watch out for. Privacy, copyright, and intellectual property concerns are all topics of concern when it comes to anything you may share using social media tools. So while these tools present an effective way of working, caution should always be taken while using some of the web 2.0 tools.

IT Growth and Population in Africa

IT has revolutionised how business is done, with this new age in IT everyone is presented an opportunity to air their views, do business, or any other business on the internet. With the ever increasing importance of the internet and other IT services, how disadvantaged is Africa? Can Africa move with the rest of the world finally, or will Africa be left behind once more?

Firstly we need to analyse the costs of IT. What has been observed the world through is that costs reduce as numbers increase. But with a number of countries in Africa having small populations in comparison with most western countries, it is almost inevitable that Africa may find itself disadvantaged once more even in this new era.

Take for instance a country like Zambia, with about 13 million people spread out over an area of 752612 sq. Km it can hardly compete for IT service provision against a country like Nigeria with a population of about 162 million people spread over an area of 923,768 sq. Km. It now seems that the greater a country’s population, the greater its spending power or market power. The Nigerian market is one of Africa’s most attractive markets for any service or product. The question now is, what is the way forward, do we encourage population growth in order to have a greater market for IT services in African countries? Great countries like China, Russia, and the USA all started out with a powerful internal market demand for services and products in there early growth stages. It is an essential part of development in service provision. If a foreign business was looking for new markets, one major concern would always be market size. Countries with smaller populations will therefore always be disadvantaged in this regard.

The necessary infrastructures needed in IT service provision are tremendously costly. Most African governments find it a hard decision to allocate resources to IT infrastructure. Faced with many other pressing problems it is difficult for many African governments to simply re-direct insufficient resources to IT development despite the many benefits of IT in development. 

The question now is, what options does Africa have?

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