The Practice of Opting for Open Source Solutions in Higher Education Institutions of Ethiopia
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Date
2010-07
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Open source software is gaining favor as an affordable ICT alternative in bridging the digital
divide, enhancing universal access to information, facilitating technology diffusion and fostering
local innovation in many developing countries. In Ethiopia, higher education institutions are one
of the major consumers of ICT like in any other developing nation. However, given the fact that
higher education institutions have limited resources and budgets and on the other hand with their
increasing demand for technology, the need for these institutes to consider the open source
alternative to balance the situation is very apparent. Yet, no researches had provided empirical
analysis on the current status of open source software in higher education institutions of the
country. The aim of this research was to reveal the current status of higher education institutes of
Ethiopia towards open source adoption, to investigate the motivations behind the acceptance and
rejection of OSS in these institutions and to forward contextual solutions and recommendations.
The survey for this research was conducted in March 2010 on six selected Universities in
Ethiopia. The survey was complimented with qualitative interviews and observed data in
addition to a self administered questionnaire to ensure the depth and quality of data. A total of
26 ICT officials (ICT directors, Policy makers, ICT budget administrators, software developers,
technical staffs, trainers and those that have close relation with software procurement and
deployment) in the six Universities were contacted for this purpose.
No ICT policy at work is found in any of the institutions, nevertheless, 50 % of them indicted
they have draft policies to be approved which mentioned OSS. The attitude and awareness of
OSS among ICT officials of higher education institutions of Ethiopia have been found positive in
this research, however, awareness among the rest of the community is very low. On an individual
scale a few selected ICT officials have an extensive awareness while the majorities have basic
awareness in most of the institutions.
The server level practice of opting for open source solutions had been found very high in higher
education institutions of Ethiopia. More than 90 % of server level applications are open source in
83 % of the institutions. However, desktop level open source software deployment is at a very
The Practice of Opting for Open Source Solutions in Higher Education Institutions of Ethiopia
Master of Science in Information Science Thesis Report Page IX
infant stage in one of the institutions and almost none in the rest. Results indicate the most
prominent reasons for using open source software at the server are saving on total cost of
ownership, better security from viruses and localizability and customizability. The main
challenge in the use of OSS at the server according to this study is lack of expertise. Major
barriers towards the adoption of open source software at the desktop found out by this research
are the wide spread usage of pirated software, lack of awareness, resistance to change and
training needs.
The results of this study highly indicated the necessity for a coordinated effort between
government and higher education institutions for a better utilization of open source software
through policy consideration, awareness creation, skills development and trainings, advocacy,
open standards development, including OSS in student curriculum and creating appropriate
environment for research and development in the area.
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Keywords
Open Source Solutions in Higher Education