COMMUNICATIONS OR TRANSPORT: DECISION-MAKING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Abstract

Comparison is made of the uses of investment in transport and in communications for developing countries. A method for investment decision- making is proposed, and relevant data are presented and analyzed. It is hypothesized that in achieving development goals transport and communications may be substitutable or at least complementary. National investment strategies are seen to depend on Communist or non-Communist ideology, on theories of economic planning, on situational conditions, and on methods of analysis. The construction of rural roads is posited as the major transport investment for developing countries in the future. It is suggested that increased rationality in decision-making in the transport and communications sector is possible through the application of cost-benefit analysis at the village level. This is seen to require the collection of cost and descriptive data for a range of communications media and for various types of roads, as well as increased knowledge of the benefits they afford. A model is proposed for the staging of investment.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 1967
Accession Number
AD0658816

Entities

People

  • Paul S. Shapiro

Organizations

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Business Administration
  • Commerce
  • Communication Systems
  • Dry Batteries
  • Economic Development
  • Economic Systems
  • Geography
  • Mass Media
  • Multiple Access
  • National Governments
  • Political Science
  • Public Policy
  • Radio Broadcasting
  • Radio Equipment
  • Radio Receivers
  • Students
  • Telephone Systems

Readers

  • Economics
  • Instructional Design and Training Evaluation.
  • Theoretical Analysis.