Foreign hightech funds to flow into developing world rulers coffers

The BBC reports: Digital tax to aid poor nations, which might at first seem like a good humanitarian idea:

A plan for wealthy nations to contribute a digital tax to provide hi-tech tools for poor nations has been officially launched in Geneva.

However if you look at it closer you see that this is just another example of a smart ruler of the developing world finding away to fund his already corrupt government using other funds. Not knowing anything about Senegal I can tell you that this will fail.

The problem in almost all “developing” countries is one of over government and ridiculous restrictions. See this Interview with my hero Hernando de Soto for more. With regards to technology countries like Senegal stagnate because of a combination of high tariffs on equipment and telecomunications monopolies. A quick search on google shows me I am right:

Senegal is a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and works towards aligning its laws, customs tariffs in particular, with those of the Union. The government henceforth applies a zero tariff to priority products of a social, cultural or scientific nature, including computer and telematic equipment not manufactured locally. This type of equipment is now taxed at 5% instead of 26%. A distinction must be made within the computer category, since peripherals (printers, scanners, etc) and the electrical equipment that goes with them are subject only to a reduction of 55% from 61% for the former (peripherals), and of 55% from 73% for the latter (electrical equipment). Futhermore, it is important to make a note that computer and telematic equipment manufactured locally is subject to a 25%. I agree with Mr. Sagna when he asserts that this particular regime is a good demonstration of the lack of coherence in government policy. IT landscape in Senegal

The government owned Sonatel has a telecoms monopoly until the end of 2006. Which also means they are milking it there. In the developing world internet and mobile use is actually much higher than most well educated european guardian reader types think. However the costs are often high. The only thing stopping this “digital divide” is the countries own governments.

The BBC writes further:

The digital divide is acute between the information-rich Western nations and African nations, many of which lack basic infrastructure.

The fund would help to provide not just internet access and computers, but mobile and satellite phones to aid e-learning and e-health projects.

Basically all countries no matter how poor have acheived decent infrastructure in amongst other things telecoms and internet, the moment the government has taken its greedy mits out of this market. See Dominican Republic, Panama, Jamaica, Colombia, Somalia amongst other places. Many of those places have better infrastructure than you have some places in the US or Europe.