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IT in Myanmar
緬甸IT業
Yangon's digital spring
仰光的數字之春
An isolated country gradually goes online
一個封閉的國家逐漸地走上了網絡前線
WHERE did BarCamp, a get-together of tech geeks (pictured), recently hold its biggest event since its founding in Silicon Valley seven years ago?
七年前Barcamp(即國際研討會網絡）在硅谷成立，這個科技業怪才的聚會（見圖），最近在哪里舉行其最重大的活動呢？
Not San Jose, nor Bangalore, nor even Singapore.
不在圣何塞（哥斯達黎加首都），不在班加羅爾（印度南部城市），甚至也不在新加坡。
On February 11th more than 5,000 developers and bloggers gathered in Yangon, the main city of Myanmar, one of the world's most tech-starved places.
2月11日，超過5000家開發商和博客達人匯聚緬甸的大城市——仰光，一個世界上最乏科技的地方。
The star speaker was the country's opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
本次集會的著名發言者是緬甸反對黨領袖Aung San Suu Kyi（昂山素姬）。
Myanmar's government continues to surprise the world with its new-found tolerance for change.
緬甸政府一再以其對新出爐的改革采取容忍態度而震驚世界。
Its apparent willingness to nurture a fledgling IT sector is no exception.
毫不例外，當局明顯愿意培養一個剛剛起步的IT信息部門。
Myanmar has lowered its firewalls, opening access to social-media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
緬甸已經放低了其防火墻，對外開放了如臉譜網facebook和推特twitter等社會媒體網站。
People can read international newspapers online or chat with family abroad via Skype.
人們能夠閱讀國際在線新聞，或者通過skype和國外親戚聊天。
Sponsors of BarCamp included the telecommunications ministry.
Barcamp的贊助方包括了政府通信部門。
Though the government now acknowledges the importance of an IT industry for economic development, much work remains.
盡管政府當局現在承認IT業對經濟發展的重要性，但仍有很多的工作要做。
Few people in Myanmar own computers and only a handful can afford the sort of connectivity that is commonplace elsewhere.
少數人緬甸擁有自己的電腦，且其中僅僅一小撮人能支付得起那種溝通無處不在的聯通方式。
Setting up an internet connection costs $850, and monthly packages range between $40 and $150.
設置一個互聯網連接得花費850美金，每月租金40美金至150美金不等。
A SIM card for a mobile phone will set you back $700.
一張移動手機SIM卡將花掉你700美金。
Yet demand for IT is soaring.
然而，緬甸IT業的需求是猛烈劇增的。
Firms from Asia and the West are paying unofficial visits, and local companies are scrambling to become their partners.
來自西方和亞洲通信企業的非正式造訪，緬甸仰光當地的公司正爭先恐后地成為他們的合作商。
The government faces a barrage of proposals on how to lower the cost of mobile phones and how to build data centres to compete with those in India and the Philippines.
政府部門接到了一大堆關于如何降低手機成本和如何組建數據中心用以抗衡印度和菲律賓的建議書。
A call centre was recently established, and there are even online-shopping sites in the works.
最近建立了一個尋呼中心，甚至有一些在線購物網站正在籌劃當中。
Transactions online are widely expected to start this year: the infrastructure is ready and a payment union has been formed.
在線交易在大眾期待下有望在今年運行：基礎設施已經準備好，一個支付聯盟也已經形成。
Yet despite these encouraging signs of liberalisation, no one expects Myanmar's cyber-awakening to progress at broadband speed.
雖然有這些鼓舞人心的自由開放化跡象，還沒有人指望緬甸的網絡發展會達到寬帶速度。
