E-government in Authoritarian States: Content Analysis of E-Government Websites in Central Asia
Why do authoritarian governments develop e-government web presence? Most models of e-government assume that a government’s online presence carries the goal of government-to-citizen services and develops as a result of citizens’ demand. These models assume that the ultimate goal of e-government initiatives is increased democracy, transparency, and accountability. While plausible that democratic governments pursue such goals, we would expect authoritarian regimes to care less about increasing transparency, democratic accountability, and online services through the creation of e-government sites, especially in countries with low volumes of Internet users. Nevertheless, e-government sites have emerged in autocratic regimes around the globe. Using content analysis of national and city level e-government websites in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, this paper explores web sites in authoritarian regimes and how they differ from e-government sites in more democratic countries. National-level e-government sites do not increase transparency or service provision of government institutions and agencies. City level e-government initiatives are more citizen-oriented, but they do not reflect greater commitment to democratic practices in the city administration. Understanding whether e-government facilitates government-citizen connections or serves as mechanism of authoritarian control over media is important for scholars, the international development community, and IT professionals.

Asking Internet Users to Explain Non-Use in Kyrgyzstan
Explanations for slow adoption of the Internet in developing countries tend to break down when examining specific populations or fall into overly broad commentary that doesn’t really allow for meaningful interpretation. In Central Asia, and specifically Kyrgyzstan, Internet adoption seems to be tapering off well below saturation levels. Survey data helps to explain why this is happening, but offers too much of a bird’s eye view to really understand what using and not using the Internet means. In depth interviews with Internet users give a clearer picture of how to define Internet use in Kyrgyzstan, and why some people are adopting ICTs and why others aren’t.

Mobile phone users in Kyrgyzstan: A case study of identifying user requirements for diverse users
Mobile phones are widely recognized as a potentially transformative technology platform for developing nations. However, for designers and programmers in the developed world to create viable applications for mobile phones involves first identifying and communicating user requirements for diverse users. We define diverse users as those from a substantively different cultural context than that in which the technology design occurs, including developing regions. This paper presents a case study outlining our process of using data from prior research to (1) identify a tenable mobile phone product concept for mobile phone users in Kyrgyzstan; (2) detect and communicate user requirements for that product concept to a design team; and (3) develop a working prototype of the concept for usability testing. Our resulting concept meets important user needs and goals for mobile phone users in Kyrgyzstan. We believe the process by which we developed and discuss these user requirements and the subsequent prototype can serve as an example to others concerned with creating user-centered products and services for diverse users including those in developing countries.

Getting online but still living offline: the complex relationship of technology adoption and in-person social networks
Previous research in Kyrgyzstan has demonstrated the importance of close social networks as avenues for gathering and sharing information, assistance and goods in the country. However, the relationship between technology use and social network use has not been investigated; understanding this relationship is important when considering the design of technology applications that support existing social networks. Contrary to Robert Putnam’s hypothesis that technologies have an ”individualizing” force on populations, we have found that social network patterns do not appear to be negatively associated with higher technology use. In fact, the higher the technology use, the more face-to-face social networks were used for multiple types of information seeking.

Building a Transportation Information System Using Only GPS and Basic SMS Infrastructure
This work consists of two main components:(a) a longitudinal ethnographic study in Kyrgyzstan that demonstrates the importance of transportation resources in the developing world and how to plan for an appropriate ICT solution, and (b) the results of a proof-of-concept system engineered to create a bottom-up, transportation information infrastructure using only GPS and SMS. Transportation is a very important shared resource; enabling efficient and effective use of such resources aids overall development goals. The system, *bus, involved the development of a hardware device (a *box) containing a GSM modem and a GPS unit, that can be installed on a vehicle and used to track its location. The *box communicates via SMS with a server connected to a basic GSM phone. The server runs route a prediction algorithm and users can send SMS messages to the server to find when a bus will arrive at their location. The paper discusses the system and early testing, as well as the development implications for a range of urban and rural environments where transportation is scarce or inefficient, and where a central authority or institution is not in a position to provide robust information resources for users. We describe how the solution is also situated within technology usage patterns common to the developing world.

Computer Games in the Developing World: The Value of Non-Instrumental Engagement with ICTs, or Taking Play Seriously
This paper argues that it is important to study non-instrumental uses of ICT, including computer games. Specifically, the article presents the results of qualitative and quantitative work spanning eight years of investigation in Central Asia focused on computer gaming in public Internet cafes as well as private spaces. The results presented demonstrate that people do indeed play games in resource constrained environments. The paper demonstrates that games constitute a significant portion of the ICT ecology in developing regions and provide a pathway to people’s “first touch” of a computer, that gamers have more frequent interaction with technology than basic Internet users, that games bring more diverse users to computers by providing a pathway to ICT use for people with lower levels of education, and that games can motivate innovation in the technology space. Additionally, our findings indicate that both genders engage in game playing. The article makes the case that games can be a source of informal learning about ICT, and as such, games and gaming culture in the developing world merit further study.