ICT for the Development of Labour Productivity in Cameroon

This study attempts to investigate the impact of information technology (IT) investments on efficiency among banks in Ghana. The study further tests the presence of the productivity paradox in the Ghanaian banking sector. This study employs a random effect model (REM) using 23 banks in Ghana from 2000 to 2019, thus yielding 460 observations. The study revealed that there is a significant and negative relationship between IT investments and cost to income ratio used as a surrogate for banks' efficiency. This result, therefore, suggests that investment in IT translates into banks' efficiency. The study further revealed that varied results are produced when the same relationship is tested in terms of banks' ownership structures, different minimum capital requirement regimes and listing status of banks in Ghana. The findings also suggest that while investment in technology by locallyowned banks enhances efficiency, the introduction and changes of minimum capital requirements do not translate into banks' efficiency. The results have implications for the management of banks, governments and regulators. It shows the need for policy and investments that improve state-of-the-art technology.banks, cost to income ratio, efficiency, random effect model | INTRODUCTIONProductivity paradox of technology developed and popularized by Solow (1987) posits that as more investment is made in technology, performance may go down instead of up. The productivity paradox of technology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the service sector (Brynjolfsson, 1993). Notwithstanding, the empirical evidence on the banking industry is limited.Recent studies document that there has been considerable advancement in the banking industry globally over the years (Kayisire & Wei, 2016;Pathak et al., 2019). Kayisire and Wei (2016) concluded that most developing countries, particularly the African nations, have shown a significant improvement in technology adoption and usage during the last two decades. Abor (2005) asserts that apart from staff costs and other operational costs, technology is usually an item in the budget with the highest cost of most banks, and the fastest-growing item as well. A major change noticed in the Ghanaian banking system was the introduction of information technology (IT) in their operations. In the past, governments have attempted several digitization projects and policies. A sustainability-driven move embarked by the present government on a call for paperless transactions in the country has been embraced by a lot of businesses. Banks have also responded positively to this call by pursuing vigorously the integration of IT in modern banking services. Key among these initiatives are as follows:First, paper works have been reduced with the introduction of branch digitization projects that seek to automate branch banking. Second, to reduce the human traffic in the banking halls, staffs have been trained to educate and encourage customers to use the bank's plethora

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

The productivity paradox of information technology: The Ghanaian bank–level evidence

Boadi

Mawutor

Dzorka

et al. 2022

Practices in software testing in Cameroon challenges and perspectives

Carlos

Ibrahim

2020

Many software projects in Cameroon and elsewhere fail to produce the desired quality product due to low adoption of good software testing practices, including test automation. The fundamental questions are what are the local barriers to adopting structured approaches to specifying test cases? And what obstacles are preventing software testing from being automated? To answer these questions, this study analyzes software testing practices in Cameroon. The ultimate objective is to issue recommendations on the directions in which to direct research on software testing, in order to provide solutions promoting the adoption of good testing practices in projects, taking into account limited financial and human resources in developing countries. To do this, a survey was carried out among companies that carry out software development activities. The analysis of the results obtained reveals several interesting elements among which we can cite: (a) more than 80% of the respondents do not ensure that there has been a test other than that of the developer who does not follow a structured approach, (b) automated tests represent less than 8% of the number of tests carried out, (c) the most recurrent factors against test automation are the time required to configure or adapt the tools, the acquisition and implementation costs, costs of design, development, and maintenance of test cases.

Analyzing the Impact of Information and Communication Technology for Development: Lessons Learnt from the SIRCA II Program

Estévez

Montoya

2015

During recent years, we have witnessed revolutionary developments of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and their impact on people's lives. The way in which such developments contribute to socio-economic development and empowering people depends highly on the absorptive capacity of different societies. While in developed countries, their IT-ecosystems have the capacity for enriching themselves through empowered actors and enhanced interactions and, in turn, for continuous growth; in developing countries, such eco-systems face challenges to produce similar results. However, the challenges faced, particularly by the countries in the Global South; in Asia, Africa and Latin America, can be transformed into opportunities if countries are able to leapfrog in the learning process and develop their human and institutional capacities. In this context, capacity-building programs on ICT for Development (ICT4D), such as Strengthening Information Society Research Capacity Alliance (SIRCA), are of the upmost importance to developing countries. In this introduction to the SIRCA special issue of The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries we discuss the evolution of ICT4D policy and research, explain the experience of the SIRCA II Program, and summarizes the lessons learnt from it.