THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ON THE POOR COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT IN PLEBURAN AREA, SEMARANG CITY

Abstract

Information Technology (IT) in this era plays a vital role in driving growth and economic development. This study explores the impact of information technology on the poor community empowerment in Pleburan area, Semarang City. The data were drawn from questionnaire of 32 Pleburans people and analyzed using quantitative descriptive analysis. The questionnaire consists of six indicators such as informational indicators, economic indicators, social and political participation indicators, digital skills and education indicators, organizational and institutional indicators, and social and cultural development indicators. The focus of this research is to find out how important the development of digital education and skills is, which are the key to Information Technology-based economic empowerment. But this study shows that Information Technology not only has an impact on the economic empowerment of the community, but it can also make the social and cultural structure of the community stronger. In turn, the environment created will become more conducive to sustainable development. The results show that the Information Technology (IT) has an overall positive impact on the economic empowerment of the poor in the Pleburan area of Semarang City, which can be seen through empirical evidence. One of the positive impacts can be seen from the easiness that the community feels through Information Technology facilities in accessing various information widely and quickly, so that the knowledge and skills they have will also increase their income and welfare. For this reason, Information Technology should always be encouraged and integrated into regional economic development policies so that digital and economic inclusion can be created more broadly.