  The past century ended with an unexpected explosion of Information and
Communication Technologies (ICT), both in planning/managing public policies,
and in exchanging knowledge. However, the extent to which ICT-based tools
increase the level of public knowledge, or help decision makers is still
uncertain. Although indirectly, the overload of unfiltered Web-based
information seems able to hamper the knowledge growth of people, particularly
in some developing communities, whereas Decision Support Systems (DSS) and
Geographical Information Systems (GIS) prove to be ineffective if managed by
unskilled planning bodies. Given such warns, this paper outlines how the
different social and cultural awareness of local communities can affect the
outcomes of ICT-based tools. It further explores the impacts of ICT-based tools
on community development and spatial planning, emphasizing the role of proper
literacy and education for effective management.
