Community Mediation through ICTs: Seeking to Bridge Digital and Community Divides

Information and communication technologies are being utilized to support social and economic development in marginalized communities in developing countries.  In this paper, we explore an emerging role for telecentres - that of community mediation.  Our research is based on empirical observations through a field study, and an analysis of local newspaper articles.  We investigate ways in which these community mediation strategies through telecentres may support social inclusion and development of social capital.  The evolving role of telecentres in the area of peace-making suggests that the factors explored in this study will be of interest to researchers and practitioners in telecentre implementations.