THE ROLE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS IN ECONOMIC-GROWTH - PROPOSAL FOR AN ALTERNATIVE FRAMEWORK OF ANALYSIS

This article reviews the literature on the relationship between teleco mmunications and economic growth and argues that its weakness is its t echnocratic perspective. It then goes on to argue for an approach that does not view telecommunications as an exogenous driver of economic d evelopment, but which assesses the relationship between telecommunicat ions and economic growth within the broader framework of global econom ic transformation and the location of the specific country within the matrix of a world capitalist system. This approach is then exemplified by a study of Singapore and the stages through which its telecommunic ations and economic development has passed over the last 30 years.