Development organisations have not thought so. They have concentrated on infrastructural projects, increasing the number of health workers and clinics, and programmes to eradicate infections. But now we are in the information age, and we understand better the importance of information. The recent millennium assembly of the United Nations emphasised this in their statement on the right of access to information and communication.
Information underpins the learning, research, and debate that drive a country forward.
Access to information is essential for describing and understanding the deficiencies of the present, building visions of a better future, developing practical ways to achieve those visions, and educating and inspiring those who must make the future. Information empowers, and those who work with information must realise that its flow, like good communication, must be two way. The information gap between rich and poor is currently widening, both between and within countries. Meanwhile, the electronic revolution is providing scientists and health workers in the developed world with unprecedented access to information. Whereas doctors in rural Africa may not have access to any information apart from outdated textbooks, doctors in the United States or Britain are able to access hundreds of journals and other databases from their homes and hospitals.