Inforum for quality of life of seniors

and e-Inclusion

Gabor Dombi

Secretary General, Inforum

www.inforum.org.hu

dombi.inforum@gmail.com

About Inforum

• Umbrella organization with 19 Non Governmental Organizations in IT Field

• Founded by Tibor Gyuros (†) and Gabor Dombi in 1997.

• Speciality: Policy making non governmental organization and pressure group for social interest and information society

• Mission:• Enforce the information society in Hungary• Eliminate digital divide• Defend user’s interest• Involve adults (senior citizens) in

information society • Reconciliation all of interests in

information society

Aims• To advertise the use of information and

communication technologies (PC, Internet) for elderly and disadvantaged people.

• To awake demand • To awake social attention • To support marketing actions• To develop training opportunities• To promote service clubs and movements• Positive discrimination • To reduce negative social attitudes towards

elderly• 1.000.000 new Internet user from the age

group above 50

Inforum: Forum of the Hungarian Information Technology Organizations for Information Society

Situation• Information technologies slowly reach the age group above 50• Public education system provides only students with computer and

Internet education (Sulinet). No systematic computer and Internet adult education in Hungary, except by civil associations, community centers, telecenters.

• The adults meet with computer only at their workplaces or when their children use computer at home.

• Not everyone takes the opportunity to use information and communication technologies: seniors did not meet PCs in workplaces.

• Low motivation to use Internet, ICT (until 2008)• Non users are taking risk of loosing their jobs and loosing social

network (loneliness, psychosomatic deseases , early death)• Grandchildren are digital natives, so grandparents have to speak digital.

Problem identificationIn Eastern-Central Europe the issue of eInclusion is raised rather as a social, equal opportunities,

life quality and civilisation issue, and it is raised from the aspects of IT and economy only secondarily. The essence of the Hungarian scope of the problem is the fact that above the age of 45-50 the period of "uncertainty of survival" arrives, since those who lose their jobs in this age group will not find a new job in spite of great efforts. The cohesive and retaining bonds of the family, small community, settlement are weak in the majority of the society. The age group above 40 did not have the chance to put aside for their elderly days (therefore the issue involves poorer generations), and although they do have some savings, these savings are not too extensive. In their lives IT offers the following: in an online manner they may obtain information cheaper, they may stay within their social networks, or they may join new ones; they may participate in such training forms with the aid of which they may further educate themselves in order to preserver their labour market competitiveness. And in the case of the cumulatively disadvantageous groups the value of this increases multifold, since for them even contact keeping with the mainstream society (no matter whether they are people living with physical disabilities or even Roma people) is burdened with biases as well. Therefore West of river Elba the subject of the eInclusion policy is an aging related, economic, ICT-development and ultimately a competitiveness issue. In East and Central Europe societal-economic development did not reach this level yet. Here the policy of eInclusion serves primarily social (equal opportunities) objectives, and it serves only secondarily quality of life and labour market purposes, and the IT, economic, state administration yield of this complex topic will be visible only after this.

Those who have dropped behind!

• Who is elderly (disadvantaged) in Hungary?

• Number of the population is 4.000.000 above 50 years old in

Hungary! • Internet users 50-60 yrs: 21%• Internet users: 60- yrs: 3.6%.• Access to the Internet would assist this

age group• to remain on the Labor market • to prevent psychosomatic diseases• to decrease solitude• to remain within social public life• to take advantage of the cheapest way

of access to information, culture, entertainment and family

• to keep and to advance their quality of life.

The opportunity in the grandchildren's (and families’) hands

Grandchildren-Grandparents Informatics Competition ™

• An intergenerational soulution by Inforum• Motivation program for seniors and families• The first competition took place in 2003• 9 competitions have been organized so far: in Budapest, Kecskemét, and

Miskolc• 120 families participated in each competitions (cca. 360 persons)• Some firms provide the winners with their gifts (Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard,

Albacomp, T-Online, Pannon GSM, SzinvaNet, Xerox, and so on) • The oldest competitor 90, and a youngest was 4 years old. • Huge media participation followed the competitions. (about 120 publications)• Searching cooperations and partners to implement this project outside of

Hungary

• 2003. Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics. The first competition

• 2004, Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, Budapest, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2005, Budapest, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2006, Kecskemét, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2006. Miskolc, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2006. Budapest, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2008. Budapest, Hungary

• Grandparents –Grandchildren Competition of Informatics, 2009. Budapest, Hungary

Aims of InforumMotivation for all group of Hungarian societyCooperation: NGO, goverment, politics, companiesMinimum 1 million new users until 31, December 2010.New methods and paradigm on this fieldeInclusion and digital literacy, access and higher standard of living

Special target groups of e-Inclusion

Their numerosity

50+ year old people 3,990,000 persons

Handicapped people 600,000 persons

Roma (gipsy) population 600,000 persons

People living in small and remote arias, in small disadvantageous regions

400,000 persons

Unemployed people 400,000 persons

Total (reduced with their estimated overlaps)

3,500,000 persons

eInclusion: the edge of the sword and the age of new policies

First book published in Hungary for seniors about Internet („Hírvilág” by István Váncsa, 1999)

First book published in Hungary about children in the information society (Growing up digital, by Don Tapscott, 2000)

Hungarian Charter of Information Technology (2000), national action plan by IT professionals

Lobby for founding the Committee of Informatics and Communication in Hungarian Parliament (200-…)

Lobby for founding the Commission of Information Technology in Prime Minister Office (2000-2002)

Lobby for founding the Ministry of Informatics and Communication (2002-2006)

First Steps towards eInclusion, 1997-2002

Milestones of Inforum Towards eInclusion 2007-2008

Taking part in Equal (IT Mentor) and Safer Internet Programs (2005-2007)

First eInclusion report in Hungary (2007)

eInclusion.hu website as a knowledge base (2007)

eInclusion movement in Hungary (November, 2007)

Declaration and cooperation all Hungarian Parliamentary Parties and Inforum (8, January 2008)

Founding Council for eInclusion and Information Society (23, January, 2008)

e-Adoption program (March, 2008). Proposal for IT companies to adopt a digital community center or telecottage or library

Spring of Digital Hungary

Inforum & Hungarian Parties for eInclusion on Press Conference

First eInclusion Report, 2007

Award for Seniors Inforum members in Parliament Inforum Press Club

Inforum initiatedSpring of Digital Hungary,

May 2008

The aim of the chain of events was to draw Internet users’ attention to support those on the other side of the digital gap. The chain of events included:

50+ Internet User’s Party

Internet Ship (Professional Conference on the River Danube)

The Global Telecentre Alliance Conference in Hungary

Grandparents-Grandchildren Competition of Informatics

Senior Idol Awards at Competition

Newsletter about eInclusion

Press Conference with National Development Agency

on Spring of Digital Hungary

Spring of Digital Hungary, May 2008

50+ Internet User’s Party on Day of Information Society

The aim of the event was to help to draw the attention of this population on the benefits of the Internet use, among which the opportunity to be an active member of society while staying healthy and avoiding social isolation. 

Spring of Digital Hungary, May 2008

"Internet Ship" (Professional Conference

on the River Danube)Global Telecentre AllianceConference Parliamentary

Commettee on the ship

Spring of Digital Hungary, May 2008

Grandparents-Grandchildren

IT Competition

and Award for Senior Idols

•Children under 14 and their grannies above 50 could apply for the competition. Altogether 120 competitor-pairs registered and solved the test which included common knowledge-based questions. The competitors were allowed to search on the internet while choosing the right answers.

•The first 3 winners have received a great value of awards offered by the 17 supporters. It is essential to mention that the oldest competitor is an 86 years old lady.

New Initiative: Award for Senior Idols: for the oldest

competitors and who is coming from the longest distance in

Hungary

Parliament votes for closing digital divide by Inforum initiative

• On 6 October 2008, the Hungarian Parliament unanimously voted two resolutions aimed at solving the eInclusion issue in the country. Deputies called for the establishment of an ‘e-Inclusion Temporary Parliamentary Committee’ and formulated recommendations for closing the digital divide.

• The Hungarian Parliament has been the first Parliament of an EU Member State to adopt an eInclusion declaration to reduce the digital divide.

• Rising the living standards through equal digital opportunities is a priority of common interest;• Halving the digital gap is not only the EU’s undertaking. It has to be a national aim as the digital gap

in Hungary is higher than the EU average.

• Background:This political move originally stems from the eInclusion initiative launched in November 2007 by Inforum, the Forum of Hungarian IT Organisations. Inforum had drawn the Parliament’s Informatics Subcommittee’s attention to the Riga Ministerial Declaration of 2006 that urges to have the digital divide in the EU countries halved by 2010.

• In Inforum’s view, more had to be done by the Hungarian Government for closing the digital divide. All Parliamentary parties agreed with Inforum’s initiative. In January 2008, a Parliamentary committee made of five parties held a meeting on the occasion of which they acknowledged that rising living standards through equal digital opportunities is of common interest.

Inforum autum of eInclusion Year

• 50plusz.net website and senior movement

• Temporary Commettee in Hungarian Parliament on eInclusion

• Decralation by Hungarian Parliament of eInclusion

• Research and report on eInclusion in Hungary

• E-Hungary eInclusion Conference

• Digital Literacy Conference• Documentary film on IT-

Mentors• Documentary film of

eInclusion Year

Ageing Well Award for Inforum by European Committee,

1st of December, 2008

Best practices by Inforum

• Grandparents-Grandchildren Competition of Informatics (2003- …)

• Inforum – Infomediator Interest Safeguarding Office for Internet User Citizens in Information Society (2004-…) services for internet users via web problems with contract between providers and

users, user rights, e-commerce questions, Mediations Internet domain problems Internet Ombudsman

• Leading the eInclusion movement in Hungary Website Promotion Lobby Events

• 50plusz.Net website and movement• 50+ Remembrance Writing Contest (2009)• 50+ Internet User Party (2008, 2009)• Publications , studies (web & offline), eInclusion

Reports• TV-Series for seniors: Computer is a Child”s Play

Links

• www.inforum.org.hu

• http://einclusion.hu

• www.50plusz.net