Research

Key Research Contexts

The Geonet project focuses on three key research contexts:

mapping-widgetWork package one: will focus on economic geographies of knowledge-production and digital participation from Sub-Saharan Africa. We will map the geographies of Sub-Saharan Africa’s knowledge economies, examining how they are changing over time, and what factors explain them. These initial data will inform the sampling strategies and research design for the rest of the project’s work.

Microwork-widgetWork package two: will look at outsourcing, and ‘bottom-of-the-pyramid’ labour: focusing on microwork and call/contact centres and projects. By interviewing and surveying workers and managers, we aim to find out how these labour practices impact on the lives of workers – do they represent new opportunities or new forms of exploitation made possible by more efficient communication technologies?

innovation-widgetWork package three: will look at specialist and high-end services being nurtured in Sub-Saharan Africa’s innovation hubs, looking at how and where they are taking root, and whether they play an important role in the development of the region’s knowledge economies. By interviewing and surveying workers and managers in both the hubs, and the cities in which those hubs are located, we aim to find out who ultimately benefits from the spread of knowledge work in the region.