Policy-makers and donors should seize the opportunities new ICTs provide to reduce the amount of public information that is under-utilised or captured by local elites while avoiding the temptation to pursue ‘one-size-fits-all’ ICT applications. They should also realise that the rural poor need to be able to operate in increasingly sophisticated input and output markets: ICTs can improve inadequate extension services and ensure farmers have access to reliable information about agricultural technologies and markets. This is according to an Overseas Development Institute (ODI) paper that examines the untapped potential of ICTs to free up public information resources to stimulate rural development and more efficient markets and institutions.