International Institute for Communication and Development
The International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) is a non-profit foundation established by the Ministry for Development Cooperation of The Netherlands in 1996. IICD's aim is to support sustainable development through the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs), notably computers and the Internet.
The Institute, which is based in The Hague, is active in nine developing countries: Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ghana, Jamaica, Mali, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. IICD supports policy processes and projects involving the use of ICTs in the following sectors: health, education, "livelihoods" (mainly agriculture), and governance. IICD receives funding from the Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS) of The Netherlands, the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
IICD has strong ties to alleged political cult originating in Denmark, called Tvind, or Teachers Group (TG). In 2003, Eight TG leaders were prosecuted in Denmark for serious financial crimes such as fraud and embezzlement. Upon acquittal, five of these leaders fled to avoid an appeal trial in which one remaining TG leader was convicted and sentenced to 30 months in prison. The five TG leaders are now fugitives avoiding an appeal trial in Denmark.
Critics say IICD volunteers are routinely exploited as free labor for profit-making TG enterprises worldwide.
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