With the proper harnessing of information and communication technologies, the goal of basic education for all is within reach. However, no technology can fix bad educational philosophy and practice, nor can it compensate for a lack of political commitment. The decisions about what to use, how and when, are political and educational decisions that must be made consciously and daringly.

Two articles entitled, Technology for Basic Education: A Luxury or a Necessity?,  Asia and the Pacific into the Twenty-First Century, Public Consultation on Education Policy, and Information and Communication Technologies and Poverty stress the need for a systematic approach in the planning of ICT use in education. These papers point out that the ICT evolution will take place with or without a systematic, comprehensive and articulated policy. However, the lack of a coherent policy is likely to contribute to the development or prolonged existence of ineffective infrastructure and a waste of resources.

The fundamental purpose of making a policy statement is to articulate and clarify goals and to provide a conceptual framework to guide progress towards those goals.

Thus, to a certain extent, a formulated policy becomes a statement of vision. Only a systematic approach can ensure that educational goals are met in the best possible way. In other words, a strategy is needed in order to reach those who have been hard to reach so far and educate them in an effective way. If appropriate, ie quantifiable, measurable, and realistic objectives are set to meet the overall goals, the outcome of any strategy becomes measurable and people involved get a clearer picture of which steps to take for what reasons. Without clearly defined goals and objectives any strategy becomes less valuable.

Experience globally and regionally demonstrates that most of the fundamental issues of education development cannot be resolved in isolation from each other and cannot therefore be resolved in the absence of a coordinated framework that establishes clear goals and priorities for reform - in other words, in the absence of sector policy.

Even when promulgated as distinct policy pronouncements, ICT policies of necessity have to take into account other policy areas, such as education policies, information policies, trade and investment policies, and cultural and linguistic policies.

However, the mere establishment of a written national ICT policy has value in itself. At a minimum, it conveys the message that the government is forward-looking and intends to pursue the utilization of ICT in society. Governments should, of course, aspire to more by putting the policy content into actual practice and becoming a role model in applying ICT in their own administration and services.

Information and communication technologies can be used to achieve a range of educational goals, they have the power to enhance the effectiveness of educational systems.

In developing countries, access to the Internet and other communication tools becomes one of the crucial factors in the exploitation of ICTs for bringing education to the poorest of the poor. It has been suggested that only national policy makers have the power to significantly increase access to Internet and telephone by allowing for a substantial reform of their telecommunications sector through privatization, competition, and independent regulation.