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New technology, especially the internet, is changing the way we communicate and get information.

With the internet today, you can

	have an on-line bank account
	trade money and shares in different countries,
	chat to people on chatlines
	play games with people you've never met
	get radio and TV from all over the world
	buy clothes, books, holidays - even a house!

But this is not the same everywhere. In rich countries, one in every two people use the internet. In Africa, only one in 150 people use the internet.

Why? Is it because they hate computers, like my Mum?

No, there are several reasons why people in poorer countries do not or cannot use the internet. Roll over the pictures to find out why.

Yet better communications could really help poorer people. Using the internet, they can learn how to keep healthy, and get training in new skills.


	©Crispin Hughes/Panos Picture

Through a website, people can sell to a global marketplace. Read the boxes which show what happened to one mountain village in Peru before and after it was connected to the internet.
Drag the sentences into the right order in time.

What could happen next to the people in this village?

The internet is also a great way of connecting with people in other countries to get to know them and to learn about their lifestyles. Go to the next page that shows how schools in the UK have linked up with schools in Ghana.