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PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION & ICTs PHASE II REPORT Costa Rica
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Date
2008-08-15Author
Sánchez González, Adriana
Camacho Jiménez, Kemly
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Show full item recordAbstract
A study focused in "public access to information" represents a big challenge. For the Costa
Rican team, this challenge offers the opportunity to find out what are the information
processes in our country, were the culture of information has no deep roots among
population and public libraries and telecentres are seen as a possibility to improve the
education offer for children and young people, but not as public venues that can help the
hole population to change their conditions and improve the quality of life.
Our study, based on three different venues (Public Libraries, CECIs and Cyber cafes), tries
to picture the diverse strategies of communication that Costa Ricans use to inform
themselves according to culture, gender, age, and other variables that will complete an
overview which does not pretend to cover the hole population but to illustrate the general
conditions of the country in terms of information processes and the use of libraries and
telecentres for this purposes, as well as the possibilities given by the high presence of
Cyber Cafes around the country.
This study does not cover "public information" but "public access to information". The
research is focused in daily information practices that fulfills particular immediate needs of
people. This information is of general interest and is not referred to particular nor specific
issues and is not technical, specialized or political related. And it is important to point that
this study understands "public access to information" as an access not limited by gender,
age or citizenship. Access in venues open to the public and limited by specific
organizational conditions, schedules and resources. What is understood as a "venue" is an
open place were anybody can look for information, and since they do look for particular
information to fulfill their needs, the venue adapts to the information needs of its users.
It is very importan to make clear that any generalization found in this report generalizes
from the sample selected for the field work, and does not pretend to picture the reality of
the totality of venues existent in the country. The research team is awared that the sample
selected for the study is not representative of the hole country reality and do not pretend to
establish absolute conclusions.
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