Poor and developing countries should concentrate more on developing knowledge-based products so that these can be utilised locally and sold in the global market, the meeting suggested.

Policies should be formulated with the focus on local issues and local conditions and 'imported' policies should be discouraged, the meeting recommended, adding that civil society actors should try to feed policymakers with right solutions.

However, at least in South Asia policymakers hardly consult the civil society, the meeting observed.

Bangladesh Friendship Education Society (BFES) hosted the three-day 'The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) Regional Consultation Meeting on ICT Policy in South Asia'.

Information and communication technology (ICT) experts, researchers, professionals and development practitioners from Australia, Japan, South Korea, Philippines and South Asian countries participated in the meeting. Dr Kamal Uddin Siddiqui, principal secretary to the prime minister, inaugurated the meeting Wednesday.

ICT policies should not be only technology-driven but should encompass all other relevant areas, the participants observed adding that formulation of policies should not be a onetime effort.

There is a need for holistic approach to infrastructure creation, suggested a group that worked on infrastructure issue.

Lack of reliable power is a major hindrance to deploying telecoms infrastructure in the rural areas, the group mentioned.

In her presentation, Jehan Ara of Pakistan said poor people are not included in policy formulation. She mentioned 10 to 15 percent of the population in Pakistan have different types of disabilities, stressing the need for doing something for this disadvantaged group in the ICT sector.

Citing an example of an institute in the US that works for the disabled people, she said an institute should be set up in South Asia.

Nazneen Sultana, managing director of Grameen Communications, observed micro finance creates entrepreneurs and if these entrepreneurs can work in the ICT sector, it will help create opportunities in the rural areas and generate employment.

"But ICT infrastructure is not accessible in the rural areas," she said noting that people at the grassroots level can be benefited from ICT if necessary infrastructure is there.

A participant from Bangladeshi said top and primary ICT management units at the ministerial levels are in disarray.

While Korea, China and India have restructured their ICT functions under one ministry for integration, standardisation, and optimum regulation, Bangladesh has distributed the ICT functions among four to five ministries or council and commission without even defining various functions, he noted.