Nexus Between Country Context and the Role of External Actors in the Formulation of National Information and Communication Technology Policies

摘要

This paper examines the nexus between the context of a developing country and external actors' influence in the formulation of a national Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policy. It questions whether context of a country affects the way external actors influence formulation of a national ICT policy following that external actors have mostly influenced policy formulation in Africa. Drawing on Bourdieu's concepts of field, habitus, capital and practice, the study uses eighteen interview transcripts, three draft policy documents, two copies of minutes of policy meetings and three reports to analyse the relationship. The paper finds that external actors overtly influence the formulation of a national ICT policy in developing countries with limited economic, social and cultural capital. This finding offers stakeholders of public policy and government important insights into how they can effectively manage external actors during the policy process in developing countries.