USE OF MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY 67% 66% FIGURE 1 ACCESS TO MEDIA DEVICES IN MON STATE (PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL SAMPLE THAT HAD THE FOLLOWING IN THEIR HOUSEHOLD) 59% 25% 6% DVD/VCD PLAYER TV RADIO MOBILE PHONE MP3 PLAYER 4% 4% LANDLINE PHONE DIGITAL CAMERA 2% 2% INTERNET COMPUTER 1% TABLET PC BASE: 500 RESPONDENTS T his part of the report focuses on interpreting the significance of the findings in Mon State within the framework of the national information ecosystem, and highlighting potential future scenarios for information access and flow in Mon State. Of course the dynamic nature of multiple factors inherent in both ecosystems makes it impossible to predict such scenarios with a high degree of certainty, but in identifying potential confluences of key factors, the exercise provides a baseline for tracking them over time. Electricity Availability Limits Use of Technology In 2011, 74% of Myanmar’s population lacked access to grid-connected electricity.14 While average electrification rates are highest in urban centers like Yangon (67%) and Mandalay (31%), in rural areas where 70% of Myanmar’s population lives, rates average a mere 16%.15 electricity supply ““As becomes regular, people mainly watch TV. People in places without electricity listen to the radio.” Looking at Mon State within the broader context of the national information ecosystem, there are a number of factors to consider that should moderate expectations of rapid information access via electronic (radio and TV) or digital and social media across the country. The most significant of those is, without question, access to electricity. In Mon State, 77% of respondents did not have access to the electricity grid. Close to three-quarters reported intermittent access to electricity by generator (72%), while almost one-quarter reported access to electricity in their communities by solar power (22%). Until access to electricity improves, this will remain a key constraint. Even if new technologies such as lowcost mobile phones and SIM cards extend into rural areas, many will lack the ability to regularly charge their devices. Planned investments in Myanmar are projected to result in a growth in electricity output of less than 5% per year. Additionally, as some assessments argue, “even if electricity output doubled every five years (a 15% annual rate, similar to Vietnam’s), it would take five years just to meet today’s needs. In that time, demand would have grown by 12% a year.” 16 U rba n r e s p o n d e n t, Z ay Yar M o n W ard , K yaik H t o T o w n s hi p 14 World Economic Forum, “New Energy Architecture: Myanmar” (2013). 15 Asian Development Bank, “Myanmar Energy Sector Initial Assessment” (2012). 16 Harvard Kennedy School, Ash Centre for Democratic Governance and Innovation, “Electricity in Myanmar: The missing prerequisite for development” (May 2012). 24 INFORMATION ECOSYSTEMS in transition: a case study from myanmar part one: rese arch findings Mobile – Significant Expansion Despite Cost In the two years since Myanmar’s recent political and economic reforms began in 2011, mobile phone access and use has changed rapidly. In 2011, only 3% of Myanmar’s population had a mobile phone.17 Recent news reports placed the 2012 figure at 9%—higher, but still a way off the Myanmar government’s ambitious goal of 75-80% mobile penetration by 2016. Significant decreases in mobile phone costs, however, hold great potential to expand domestic use, generate increased economic activity, and change the way Burmese access news and information and communicate. The Mon State study mirrors the national picture, in that penetration is highest in urban areas, lower in rural areas in general and lowest in former conflict areas. 54% of all urban respondents in Mon State have a mobile phone in their household, while 47% own one themselves. This huge change from just a few years 17 The World Bank, World Development Indicators (Washington, D.C.: The World Bank, 2011). 25 how to inform, empower, and impact communities INFORMATION ECOSYSTEMS in transition: a case study from myanmar how to inform, empower, and impact communities PART ONE: RESEARCH FINDINGS