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on Information and Communication Technologies |
| By: | Yan Carrière-Swallow; Felipe Labbé |
| Abstract: | Most economic variables are released with a lag, making it difficult for policy-makers to make an accurate assessment of current conditions. This paper explores whether observing Internet browsing habits can inform practitioners about real-time aggregate consumer behavior in an emerging market. Using data on Google search queries, we introduce a simple index of interest in automobile purchases in Chile and test whether it improves the fit and efficiency of nowcasting models for automobile sales. We also examine to what extent our index helps us identify turning points in sales data. Despite relatively low rates of Internet usage among the population, we find that models incorporating our Google Trends Automotive Index outperform benchmark specifications in both in-sample and outof- sample nowcasts while providing substantial gains in information delivery times. |
| Date: | 2010–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:chb:bcchwp:588&r=ict |
| By: | Mupela, Evans (UNU-MERIT); Mustarde, Paul (Virtual Development UK); Jones, Huw (Virtual Development UK) |
| Abstract: | This paper is a commentary on a project application of telemedicine to alleviate primary health care problems in Lundazi district in the Eastern province of Zambia. The project dubbed 'The Virtual Doctor Project' will use hard body vehicles fitted with satellite communication devices and modern medical equipment to deliver primary health care services to some of the neediest areas of the country. The relevance and importance of the project lies in the fact that these areas are hard-to-reach due to rugged natural terrain and have very limited telecommunications infrastructure. The lack of these and other basic services makes it difficult for medical personnel to settle in these areas, which leads to an acute shortage of medical personnel. The paper presents this problem and how it is addressed by 'The Virtual Doctor Project', emphasizing that while the telemedicine concept is not new in sub-Saharan Africa, the combination of mobility and connectivity to service a number of villages 'on the go' is an important variation in the shift back to the 1978 Alma Ata principles of the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO). This overview of the Virtual Doctor Project in Zambia provides insight into both the potential for ICT, and the problems and limitations that any 'real-world' articulation of this technology must confront. |
| Keywords: | Telemedicine, Satellite, Primary health, Alma Ata |
| JEL: | O25 O41 O43 O47 F15 F43 |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:unumer:2011002&r=ict |
| By: | Allan Pineda; Marco Aguero; Sandra Espinoza |
| Abstract: | Honduran farmers are at a disadvantage when dealing with intermediaries because they lack timely information about market prices. This paper first analyzes which information and communications technology (ICT) would be most suitable for sending price information to producers scattered throughout the country at a reasonable cost and in a sustainable way. Negotiations by two groups of farmers were compared: one to which market prices were not sent (control) and one to which prices were sent (treatment). A simple uninterrupted time series research design was used, followed by linear regression analysis and univariant analyses to determine the cases in which the treatment had an impact on farmers’ negotiations. Findings are reported, as well as recommendations and lessons learned. |
| JEL: | D24 O33 Q12 Q13 |
| Date: | 2011–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:idb:wpaper:4713&r=ict |