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I found an article at www.itworld.com that really caught my attention and I wanted to share it with everyone. It involves telecommunications an industry I am very interested in. This article discusses how the war introduced the first mobile phone networks into Afghanistan. Today, Afghanistan has four privately-owned networks and, mobile phones are the only way most Afghans are able to communicate, especially in remote areas. The importance of mobile technology hasn't gone unnoticed by the Taliban either who destroy towers to eliminate security forces. Communication resources are the core to any security strategy so many have turned to the growing influence and availability of mobile phone networks because it gives the ability to communicate swiftly, broadly, efficiently and effectively.
In January 2007 a major international humanitarian organization began using FrontlineSMS for field communication in their Afghan operations. FrontlineSMS is free software that allows for two-way group text messaging using a laptop computer and an attached mobile phone. This makes it particularly useful in situations where messages need to be communicated quickly and in a coordinated fashion. The Windows version of FrontlineSMS is in daily use in their main operations room, while the newer Mac version is kept as a backup by a senior security officer.
The increasing use of mobile technology by humanitarian organizations reflects a growing recognition of the significance of communications in the wider effort to promote security and democracy in the country. Mobile phones won't solve the security problem alone, but they clearly have a significant role to play.