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Internet for Population Research

Objectives:

To speed up the adoption of Internet-based methodologies by population research and training institutions in developing countries, so as to enhance the quality, timeliness, visibility and impact of their work, in particular with respect to the implementation of the population-related aspects of the major United Nations Conferences and the Millennium Development Goals; to explore the potential of those methodologies for the delivery of technical cooperation and other capacity-building activities, including peer-to-peer cooperation among regional networks of population research centres.

Effects and Impact:

The project established two regional networks of population research and training institutions. One of these networks, Demoneta, comprises six centers in Francophone western Africa; the other, Demonetasia, comprises eight centers in Asia. Both networks have active web sites and electronic discussion groups.

Demoneta (http://www.demoneta.org) training activities have made it possible for the four major population documentation centres in Western Africa to publish their library catalogues online for interactive consultation over the Internet – an important asset for population research and training in the region and a technological breakthrough for African documentation centres. The Paris-based Center for Population and Development (CEPED) continues to provide support for Demoneta.

The Demonetasia network is the most comprehensive electronic portal to high quality resources relevant to population research worldwide (http://www.demonetasia.org). The Chr. Michelsen Institute of Norway provides generous web-hosting support for the Demonetasia website. In addition to the two regional networks, the project has also established a portal giving access to all known online population resources in the world’s eight Portuguese speaking countries (redeluso.org) and discussions were held on establishing a network of lusophone population institutions. A number of research institutions expressed interest in establishing a network similar to Demoneta for the Anglophone population centres in Eastern and Southern Africa. In essence, the project has created durable new and important resources for population research in developing countries, has promoted South-South cooperation and has helped the transition towards more ITC-based knowledge management activities in population research institutions in developing countries.