This village phone project has been cited as one of the ten successful ICT business model by the Commonwealth Rural Connectivity Report following a study conducted by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation. The report that was issued in London, UK, on 19 June 2008, also highlighted Ghana's eCare services as an innovative ICT business model that can be replicated throughout Commonwealth Africa to bridge the digital divide.
The eCare project provides telecommunications services in peri-urban and rural areas through commercially run ICT centres. Entrepreneurs who have completed eCare training in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, can apply for a loan that covers 90 per cent of the cost of setting up the eCare centre which is a modified shipping container equipped with fixed cellular terminal phones, a computer and printer, and a solar panel system. About 70 eCare centres are in operation in Ghana, benefiting more than half a million people in different communities. It is estimated that up to 200 eCare centres will be in existence by the end of 2008. This eCare project is a partnership between Ghana Telecom, the Kumasi Institute of Technology and Environment, the UN Foundation and the UN Environment Programme.
Other projects in Africa operated in collaboration with telecommunications company Vodacom have been hailed as major successes in rural connectivity. The Vodacom Community Services Phone Shops in South Africa offer telecommunications services to disadvantaged communities at regulated prices below market rates. Entrepreneurs are trained by Vodacom to manage the phone shops that operate from converted shipping containers equipped with five cellular lines that provide affordable phone calls at a third of the market price. In Tanzania, Vodacom is working with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Marketing to implement its Agricultural Marketing Systems Development Programme which provides support to rural farmers and traders. Information provided by the ministry to Vodacom where farmers and traders can access the data, including the latest commodity prices through a short message service (SMS) sent from their mobile phones. This service enable farmers and traders to negotiate more effectively on the sale of agricultural produce.
CTO's Chief Executive Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah said these ICT business models have proven successful because of the involvement of public-private-peoples' partnerships which involves nurturing local ownership of rural ICT projects.
"It is essential to build on local, national and regional partnerships to develop rural ICT initiatives that will build infrastructure and human capacity," said Dr Spio-Garbrah. "It is also important for entrepreneurs to use equipment that are interoperable across networks and to take advantage of renewable energy sources. Profits generated from these businesses should be re-invested for expansion."
Dr Spio-Garbrah also cited the case of M-PESA mobile phone money transfer scheme in Kenya that is jointly operated by Vodafone and Safaricom. This mobile banking model allows subscribers to send cash to other mobile phone users by SMS. This service has attracted more than 1.6 million subscribers and transferred over $150 million a year. There has been demand for this service to cater to money transfers between urban Kenyans supporting relatives in rural areas who often do not have access to banking facilities.
Telecommunications giant, Ericsson, launched the Gramjyoti Rural Broadband Project in India in September 2007, bringing internet access to 18 villages and 15 towns in Tamil Nadu. This project allows students to learn through distance education with teachers based in New Delhi. It facilitates telemedicine, e-governance, voice and video call services, and online information.
Nokia Siemens Networks Village Connection also provides internet and voice connectivity in rural communities in India. This is provided through the Global System for Mobile (GSM) access points located in villages and regional access centres. These access points typically involve an antenna installed on the roof of a building, eliminating the need for costly towers. The operator can own the access points which the local operator can manage for a fee.
Motorola and Seaside Communications in Nova Scotia, Canada, have developed a partnership with the local government to connect every person in the community with affordable broadband internet by the end of 2009. This involves using Motorola's fixed wireless technology.
In the United Kingdom, British Telecom has teamed up with the North Yorkshire County Council, Yorkshire Forward, the Government Office of Yorkshire and Humber to deliver, monitor and maintain the NYnet Rural Broadband service. Today, NYnet represents one of Europe's largest public sector-led broadband infrastructure initiatives to address rural connectivity.
In Malaysia and Mauritius, the governments have brought internet to rural communities through cyber coaches and caravans. A vehicle equipped with computers and multimedia learning material travels to rural schools to instruct teachers, students and the local community on basic internet and computing skills.
The CTO believes that these initiatives can be adapted throughout the Commonwealth to bring ICT to marginalised communities so that they too can benefit from the knowledge to be gained from the worldwide web.
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Quelle/Source: AllAfrica, 24.06.2008
