A Knowledge-based Development Model for Primate Cities of the Developing World

Abstract

This mixed methods research study seeks to develop, validate and assess the policy-relevance of a Knowledge-based Development Model. The model is based on UNESCO’s Knowledge Societies Conceptual Framework, developed from the literature, validated through expert panels and field tested through application in selected primate cities of two developing countries in Africa and Asia. The study uses the model to gain insights into how knowledge assets in these cities can be leveraged to address the United Nations post-2015 sustainable development goals (SDGs). Hevner’s (2004) Design Science Research provides an overarching epistemological, ontological and axiological frame for structuring this investigation. Scoping, design and evaluation of the model was guided by Mettler’s (2009) parameters for model development. Drawing on the extant literature, indicators for the nine constructs in the UNESCO framework – human rights, pluralism, inclusion, equity, openness, freedom of expression, universal access to information, cultural and linguistic diversity and education – were developed and the model populated. Consultations with subject experts and a purposefully selected Delphi panel of some 66 global experts enabled the model to be validated. Pilot studies in Addis Ababa and Bangkok enabled an empirical exploration of the model, an assessment of the city’s knowledge maturity and provided insights into the model’s policy relevance. These findings contributed to the model’s refinement. This research is the first attempt known to the author to develop and apply a knowledge-based development model based on the UNESCO Framework. The study supports the Organization’s mission of creating policy tools and resources for developing countries and provides a concrete response to Recommendation 10 of the UNESCO World Report: Towards Knowledge Societies (UNESCO, 2005). The potential for knowledge and knowledge processes in overcoming strategic societal challenges, such as the SDGs, is recognized, but there is still limited understanding around how to effectively identify and leverage knowledge at the societal level and to extend knowledge management from the realm of the organization to the society (Bresnahan & Gambardella, 2004; Ergazakis & Metaxiotis, 2011; Ritter, 2006; Yigitcanlar et al., 2012; Yigitcanlar & Lönnqvist, 2013). This field is still in a pre-paradigmatic phase with methodologies, frameworks and approaches still evolving (Ergazakis & Metaxiotis, 2011), so the dissertation and the model it advances contribute to theory-building in the area of societal-level knowledge management, and supporting policy-makers in their response to the SDGs. This research also builds transdisciplinary linkages across disparate fields of endeavor such as knowledge management, intellectual capital, human rights and human development.