Over the past decade some ICT4D projects have registered success while others, for various reasons, have registered failure; there are many challenges involved in implementation of ICT4D projects and conducting research on such projects. Some of the challenges are related to methodology approaches for example how the research is carried out, how researchers associate with and approach communities, how ICT solutions are designed, developed and implemented to address social problems, how ICT4D research and the designed solutions are evaluated to meet project requirements and community needs, etcetera.
In this workshop we will present and discuss action and design science research approaches and show their relevance and applicability in ICT4D. The aim of the workshop is to demonstrate the significance of these approaches and their application both in research and practice. We will present our field work experiences and discuss how we applied these approaches to solve practical problems, and conducted evaluations on ICT projects.
Action and design science research methodologies are some of the research approaches that assist in immediate practical problem solving through collaborative and feedback oriented, and evaluation procedures. The approaches aim at improving practice, and have rigorous methodological processes – processes that guarantee quality evaluation of research activities and practical implementation of solutions.