Links to Non-Formal Education projects which utilize ICT

Contents 

• General Resources
• ICTs towards Education for All
• ICTs for Job Creation/ Poverty Reduction
• ICT in Development Programmes
• ICT in NFE for Children
• ICT in Literacy and Adult Education
• Bridging the Gender Divide
• Community Empowerment: Connecting Rural/ Remote Areas
• Special Needs and the Disadvantaged
• Connectivity

General Resources

The Bridges.org Toolkit for NGO Application of ICT
http://www.bridges.org/toolkit/index.html
Bridges.org is an international non-profit organisation with a mission to help people in developing countries use information and communications technology (ICTs) to improve their lives. Their free IT guide offers information on a wealth of free resources for individuals, NGOs and businesses to use computers and the Internet. Included are where to get free or low cost computers, where to get free email accounts, how to develop and host your website for free, and where to get free software. On telecentre resources, there are links to how-to guides and analyses, while the E-Readiness resources section provides information on how to assess your community's or country's ability to benefit from ICT. E-Literacy materials include training documents to help improve ICT skills and knowledge. Finally, the database of online resources offers a detailed list of ICT organisations and reports, amongst others.

ICT and Non-Formal Education: Technology for a brighter future?
http://www.techknowlogia.org/TKL_active_pages2/CurrentArticles/main.asp?IssueNumber=17&FileType=HTML&ArticleID=426 
This article from the July - September 2002 issue of Techknowlogia discusses recent uses of ICTs in NFE, while examining implications for the future. Drawing on an extensive body of research and case studies, the author finds that the introduction of new ICTs into disadvantaged communities can create both positive and negative effects, detailed here. His therefore concludes that the future use of ICTs in NFE in developing countries find “a balance between the need to increase human capital for production in a ‘knowledge-based’ economy, and the needs of marginalized communities to maintain their social capital against the continuing pressure of globalization.”

Right to Know - Using multimedia to help youth understand AIDS http://www.comminit.com/pdsRTK/sld-6769.html
By making young people key players in the design, evaluation, and implementation of HIV/AIDS communication strategies, the Right to Know initiative aims to develop effective ways to provide young people with information about HIV/AIDS, and help them reduce their risk of infection. Young people are involved in most research for the project, organised into teams and assisted by UNICEF and outside experts. UNICEF, along with UNFPA, WHO, UNESCO, and the World Bank, has created a guidebook of facts (called ‘Facts’) of the minimum that every adolescent should know. These are to be adapted, according to the country needs. Fourteen countries are currently participating, including India and Thailand in this region.
Contact: "Right to Know" Country Initiatives, UNICEF HQ/NY, 3 UN Plaza, Rm. 854, New York, NY 10017, USA. Tel.: 212-326-7000

ICT towards Education for All

ICT Application for Non-formal Education - http://www.unesco.org/bangkok/education/ict/unesco_projects/JFIT/ictapplication.htm
To respond more effectively to the diverse learning needs among and within Asia-Pacific states this project will take advantage of the power of ICT to contribute to promote Education for All and encourage the application of alternative strategies to APPEAL activities. Using the potential of ICT, the project will also explore more effective use and delivery of existing resources and develop new resources to widen access and improve the relevance and quality of learning.

Establishing Effective Use of ICT in Education for all in Cambodia http://www.unesco.org/bangkok/education/ict/unesco_projects/JFIT/cambodia.htm
The long-term objectives of this project are to contribute towards achieving the Education for All goals, reducing poverty, bridging the digital divide, and promoting digital inclusion through the use of ICT in education. ICTs in education at universities and teacher training institutions will be promoted and developed, mobile ICT teams will reach out to deprived groups, and community-involvement will be ensured in both formal and non-formal education programmes.

ICT for Job Creation and Improvement

The Asia-Pacific Regional Technology Centre (APRTC)
http://www.aprtc.org
APRTC, a non-profit corporation dedicated to improving the welfare and knowledge of Asia-Pacific farmers and the promotion of sustainable agricultural practices is currently running an e-learning Programme. The so-called ‘agLearn’ programme currently offers a range of on-line courses and is in the process of developing more. Together these will form a comprehensive curriculum of learning opportunities related to sustainable agriculture for agricultural professionals in the public, private, academic and NGO sectors.
Contact: Asia Pacific Regional Technology Centre (APRTC), 28th Floor, Rasa Tower, 555 Pahonyothin Road, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand, Tel No: (662) 937-1321, Fax No: (662) 937-0491

Agriculture Knowledge Integrator System (AKIS)
http://www.akisnet.com.my/ 
AKIS is a fully integrated, web-enabled management system designed to support the national drive towards technology-intensive agricultural practices. With the principal objective of fostering ICT competency among members of the farming community and using technology to help farmers achieve higher productivity and profitability, AKIS aims to develop replicable models to help expand this system throughout the agricultural sector. The idea is that this will help realise the vision of producing future generations of modern IT-savvy farmers. 

Why the Poor Need Technology
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2295447.stm
More than 600 million people worldwide have at least some access to the internet. However, that still leaves about 5.5 billion people who do not use the net and who have no access. Most of these people live outside the developed Western countries. While over half of UK households are online, only 0.1% of homes in Bangladesh can claim the same. This story is a part of BBC News feature on digital divide.

UNDP IT Centres/ Cisco Networking Academy - Afghanistan http://www.undp.org/afghanistan/projects/ict_mar.html
A model for public/private partnerships in the region, the first Cisco Networking Academy in Afghanistan opened in January 2003, as part of the wider UNDP programme aiming to help bridge the digital and gender divides. The Academy, based at the University of Kabul, aims to create a cadre of Afghan specialists who can help ease and catalyze the country’s transition into the digital age. Cisco trains the Afghan teachers and provides the web-based curriculum and networking equipment for the Academy, while UNDP supports the training, provides computer hardware and facilitates the partnership with the University. UNDP has also set up four new training centres, with a fifth underway. Meanwhile, Cisco and UNDP are especially expanding efforts on trying to narrow the gender divide in education and IT in Afghanistan. Over 2,500 Afghanis are expected to take part in the initial part of training – of which women will comprise 45 per cent.
Contact: UNDP Afghanistan, Shah Mehmood Ghazi Watt, Kabul, Afghanistan. Tel: +93 20 210 1682 – 85

All India Co-ordinated Programme (AICP)
http://www.aisect.org/
In an effort to achieve the aim of "IT FOR ALL BY 2008", AICP is setting up Multipurpose Information Technology Centres throughout the rural and tribal areas of India, supported by the government's Department of Electronics (DOE) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). So far, over 2300 training centers in 24 states have been set up, offering a wide variety of training and servicing modules in Indian languages, and nurturing entrepreneurship in electronics and IT. With enrollment of over 75,000 students each year, courses cover school through to university level and include a Special Training Programme for Women. Additionally, a National Centre for Electronics and Information Technology (NCEIT) has been set up to support and continue the programme.
Contact: AISECT, E-8/54, Bharat Nagar, Shahpura Bhopal, India. Phone: (0755) 567333, Fax: (0755) 562875

JIVA Community Learning and Information Centres - http://www.learningchannel.org/cgi-bin/index.cgi?root=1470&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ejiva%2Eorg%2Fprograms%2Fdescription%2Easp%3Fprogram%5Fid%3D4Demonstrating how ICTs can be used effectively in rural areas to achieve a turnaround in the local economy, Jiva has set up a model Community Learning and Information Centre (CLIC) in Haryana, India. The CLIC is designed to facilitate information-access, as well as to offer income-generating opportunities to the villagers. Activities include computer workshops and video-making skills, which the village youth can use to earn a living. Project success may be largely due to the development of Programme-performance Indicators, the detailed programme-assessment methodology and recording success stories. By December 2005, Jiva aims to have established 5 CLICs that will provide opportunities to 25,000 people in rural India.
Contact: Jiva Institute, Jiva Marg, Sector-21B, Faridabad- HY, India- 121001. Tel: 91-129-5431198, 5429640, Fax: 91-129-5295547, 5296174

Infothela Mobile Telecentre
http://www.iitk.ac.in/MLAsia/infothela.htm
The Infothela was designed to deliver information and spread knowledge at the village level where fruits of modern technology have not yet reached. The unit is a pedal driven vehicle with a personal computer on board which will be connected to Internet using wireless technology. An added pedal generator recharges the battery pack that powers the computer while the vehicle moves from village to village. The unit serves a variety of purposes including education or entertainment, and providing agricultural, weather and government information. It also can accommodate diagnostic equipment, such as a blood pressure testing machine. Designed as a self-sustaining project, the thela will generate a self-employment avenue for urban and village populations. 
Contact: Media Lab Asia, Samruddhi Venture Park, Central MIDC Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai 400093, India

Information and Communication Technologies and Poverty
http://www.techknowlogia.org/TKL_active_pages2/CurrentArticles/main.asp?IssueNumber=12&FileType=HTML&ArticleID=292 This article would argue that lack of access to information and communication technologies (ICTs) is an element of poverty in the way that insufficient nutrition or inadequate shelter are. If being poor is defined as lacking access to the Internet, for example, no one in the world escaped poverty before 1969, when the first network was built. But, ICTs are increasingly central in the effort to escape poverty. This article discusses the use of ICTs in poverty alleviation, the poor’s limited access to ICTs, and government policies that might help to overcome this ‘digital divide.’

Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) Technology Information Centres in Gujarat
http://www.sewa.org/
The Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) is establishing Technology Information Centres in eleven districts of Gujarat, India to help their constituents rebuild their lives in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in January 2001. The Centres will provide training to their barefoot managers, build capacity of their women organisers and leaders, and strengthen the micro-enterprises of their members. Furthermore, by networking these centres, the various cooperatives such as dairy, tobacco processing, weaving and live stock raising can work more efficiently and develop new programmes to support the economic empowerment of their members. After the pilot phase, these centres will also serve as educational nodes for supporting girls’ education.
Contact: Self Employed Women's Association, SEWA Reception Centre, Opp. Victoria Garden , Bhadra, Ahmedabad - 380 001. India, Phone: 91-79-5506444, 5506477 Fax: 91-79-5506446

UNITeS Mongolia
http://www.unites.org/html/projects/mongoliaf.htm
UNITeS is collaborating with UNDP to enhance the ICT capacities of students and the educated workforce by familiarising them with using ICT to solve real-life problems, expanding the uses and opportunities of ICT to enhance the lives of people in Mongolia. One volunteer, as a Content/Electric Publishing specialist is teaching content creation, while another volunteer is a Network Specialist, responsible for building the capacity of national technicians in designing, establishing and managing computer networks. This project is part of the global UN volunteer initiative to help bridge the digital divide.
Contact: United Nations Volunteers, Martin Luther King Str. 8, D-53175 Bonn, Germany. Tel:(49-228) 815 2229,

VillageLeap.com Cambodia
http://www.villageleap.com/
Established with international funding, VillageLeap.com is the result of a permanent Internet connection to a primary school in the village of Robib, in remote north central Cambodia. In addition to providing computer education and Web access to a school of 400 students, the Internet project is supporting the creation of a small woven-silk industry in the village, which plans to sell products on the Internet through VillageLeap.com. The project aims to show the tremendous untapped potential of such a village to use ICTs to market hand-made products, to access information, to communicate internationally and to enjoy better healthcare via the Internet.
Contact: Robib c/o P.O. Box 27, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Phone: 81-3-3486-4337, Fax: 81-3-3486-6789

DigitalDivideData 

http://www.developmentspace.com/dms/servlet/BS?serviceName=DMSService&ACTION=getProjectPage&projectID=1089
DigitalDivideData provides sustainable opportunities for the disadvantaged in Cambodia by educating people, providing jobs and bringing capital into the country. Under-privileged and rural Cambodians, such as land mine and polio victims, can become empowered by following a carefully staged technology-related job creation programme, beginning with data entry jobs. DigitalDivideData currently employees thirty such individuals and has three U.S. digitisation contracts. The idea is to establish a sustainable business that can reinvest its profit in order to benefit more people, while providing the income, education and confidence building required, allowing employees to realise better futures.
Contact: DataNo. 119, St. 360, toul sveyprey I, khan chamkon mon, Phnom Penh. Tel: 85512735930

Bicycles Bring Connectivity in Rural West Bengal http://www.comminit.com/ctrends2003/sld-7431.html
Spreading the telecom revolution to the 700 million rural communities of India, a new project from the non-profit Grameen Sanchar Seva Organization (GRASSO) sees young men riding out on bicycles, carrying mobile phones equipped with CDMA Wireless Local Loop into 5,000 West Bengal villages. These men get to keep 25 percent of profits from all calls made while bringing telephone services to villages for the first time. The idea is to use telecom and IT to strengthen the distribution network of agricultural produce and make it more profitable. However, transport to carry produce to markets is also lacking, so GRASSO will help villagers start their own small businesses. Previously unemployed men will become owners of telephone booths, Internet kiosks and vehicles that will carry agricultural produce.
Contact: Grameen Sanchar Seva Organization (GRASSO), 336 SDF Building 2nd Floor, Saltec Complex, Block - GP, Sector 5. Salt Lake, Kolkata - 700091. Phone: 91-33-23577076

TakingITGlobal Employment Generation Scheme
http://projects.takingitglobal.org/irdoprojects
TakingITGlobal, an international youth organisation, is conducting a project to develop the rural youth in Chennai, India. Training these youths in the field of Information Technology, Skill Training for better employment opportunities and developing better employment opportunities, the project aims to train and to find employment for at least 350 to 500 youths per year, especially those from villages and rural communities. The Project also aims to provide free kits for IT, especially books which are too expensive for a poor, rural student.
Contact: TakingITGlobal, 42 Charles Street East, 5th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M4Y 1T4 Canada, tel:(416) 928-3362 x4225

The Intel Computer Clubhouse Project with KATHA
http://www.katha.org/KathaIT/Iccha%20Ghar.html
Slum children and women from New Delhi are learning how to use a computer as a means for peer learning and for economic and social advancement in the Intel Computer Clubhouse at Katha. A learning centre has been set up for adults in the community, along with two Labs for the 1200 pupil-school, where the community, including illiterate women train in and use IT. An innovative programme for those living in Bhumiheen, Navjivan and Jawahar Camps in Govindpuri, New Delhi, this project works in partnership with Katha’s Challenge 2010 Project for self-determination and addressing the economic and social needs of slum children and women through the use of ICTs. Katha is a non-profit organization that seeks to promote literacy, break down gender, cultural and social divides, and promote life-long learning. 
Contact:  Katha Sarvodaya, A-3 Sarvodaya Enclave, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 017, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 6524511, 91 11 6524350. Fax No: 91 11 6514373 


ICT in Development Programmes

ICT for Education in Asia and the Pacific http://www.unesco.org/bangkok/education/ict/about/ap_programme/rationale.htm
In order to reach the target audiences and assist countries in planning and implementing the introduction of ICTs in education, the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau for Education implemented the Asia-Pacific programme on ICT in education, financed through Japanese Funds-in-Trust. The project will have the following components: (a) the development of national policy environments which promote effective, affordable, and sustainable use of ICT in education; (b) successful models which demonstrate the use of ICT in both formal and non-formal education; (c) training and professional development of teachers and other educators in the use of ICT in education; (d)a meta-survey of existing reviews and research on the current situation of ICT use in education in the Asia-Pacific region; (e) a regional clearing house on ICT in education; and (f) performance indicators to measure impact of ICT in teaching/learning. 

Development Gateway Foundation Centres of IT-enabled Projects  http://www.developmentgateway.org/node/118859/en/programs
Development Gateway Foundation, part of the World Bank, set up its first research centre on in Bangalore, India, on August 26, 2002. The centre is developing IT-enabled projects in the areas of agriculture, health and education and support for e-governance, which will be implemented in countries all over the world in an aim to bridge the digital divide. The next centre was launched in the Republic of Korea on November 13, 2002. The Development Gateway Foundation Korean Training Center (DGF KTC) will focus on training and capacity building, providing training on e-government and ICT policies.
Contact: 815 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 620, Washington, D.C. 20006, USA

The Virtual Colombo Plan Initiative

http://www.ausaid.gov.au/hottopics/topic.cfm?Id=3386_9936_271_4644_4552
ICTs such as computers, radio and video-conferencing can be powerful tools to help overcome constraints to development. To address this issue, the Australian Government and the World Bank launched the Virtual Colombo Plan in August 2001. The major focus is to improve education and access to knowledge in developing countries, through distance education and support for policy development using ICTs. In 2002-03, activities under the Plan will include enhancing the quality of basic teacher education, expanding physical infrastructure to improve access to and the cost-effectiveness of ICTs for distance learning and knowledge dissemination.

Amader Gram (Our village) 
http://www.amadergram.gq.nu/
Amader Gram is a model project of integrated rural development through capacity building of the disadvantaged community people, conservation of bio-diversity and sustainable use/mobilisation of natural resources and environmentally sound income generation activities. Since 1996, Amader Gram has helped to improve the lives of the disadvantaged poor people and children in 20 villages under 2 Upazila (Sub-District) of Bagerhat (Rampal) and Khulna (Paikgacha) districts in Bangladesh.

Drishtree
http://www.drishtee.com
Drishtree is an organisational platform for developing IT enabled services to rural and semi-urban populations through the usage of state-of-the-art software. It offers access to government programmes and benefits, market related information, and private information exchanges and transactions. Using a tiered franchise and partnership model, Drishtee facilitates the creation of approximately 50,000 Information Kiosks all over India within a span of six years. These kiosks would potentially serve a market of 500 million people. In less than two years, Drishtee has successfully demonstrated its concept in over 90 kiosks across five Indian states.
Contact: Drishtee, D-81, Kalkaji, 110019, New Delhi, India

Leveraging ICT Through Market Centres for Tribal Communities http://www.apdip.net/ictrnd/satpura.asp
The project was implemented in a remote tribal and rural area of Central India. About 70 per cent of the population in the project area lives below the poverty line. The project provides email and Internet facilities as well as computers to about 40 villages. Approximately 0.5 million villagers were exposed to the facilities. The project is centred on a weekly market that is visited by around 13,000 villagers.
Contact: Satpura Integrated Rural Development Institution,   V & P.O Behiram Karanja, Taluka Chandur Bazar, Distt Amrawati, (Maharashtra) 444809, INDIA

Sustainable Access in Rural India http://edevelopment.media.mit.edu/SARI/mainsari.html
The SARI (Sustainable Access in Rural India) Project is dedicated to demonstrating that the creation and deployment of information and communication services and technologies in poor rural areas leads to improvements in health, empowerment, learning, and economic development amongst the poorest and most disadvantaged communities. The initial pilot phase will provide Internet access and applications through roughly 1000 connections in 350 villages in the Madurai District of the southeastern Indian State of Tamil Nadu.

JIVA Community Learning and Information Centres http://www.learningchannel.org/cgi-bin/index.cgi?root=1470&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ejiva%2Eorg%2Fprograms%2Fdescription%2Easp%3Fprogram%5Fid%3D4 Demonstrating how ICTs can be used effectively in rural areas to achieve a turnaround in the local economy, Jiva has set up a model Community Learning and Information Centre (CLIC) in Haryana, India. The CLIC is designed to facilitate information-access, as well as to offer income-generating opportunities to the villagers. Activities include computer workshops and video-making skills, which the village youth can use to earn a living. Project success may be largely due to the development of Programme-performance Indicators, the detailed programme-assessment methodology and recording success stories. By December 2005, Jiva aims to have established 5 CLICs that will provide opportunities to 25,000 people in rural India.
Contact: Jiva Institute, Jiva Marg, Sector-21B, Faridabad- HY, India- 121001. Tel: 91-129-5431198, 5429640, Fax: 91-129-5295547, 5296174

Baatchit
http://www.jiva.org/outreach/baatchit/index.htm
Baatchit is a Media Lab Asia project, led by the Jiva Institute, that aims to facilitate Information Access, Communication, Entertainment and socio-economic Opportunities (ICEO) within villages, while promoting Indian heritage and cultural values. Aiming to empower villagers by providing them with easily accessible information through the Baatchit Community Software (BCS), Baatchit was conceived as a technology research programme with the objective of rural empowerment. The research team is focusing on priority areas such as government, schemes, employment, animal, agriculture, banks, vehicle, health, and housing, transcribing into the local language, so that the literate villagers can understand the information being provided to them. Audio-visual presentation of the information helps the illiterate users. The development of modules for awareness workshops for the rural people is also in the pipeline.
Contact: Jiva Institute, Jiva Marg, Sector-21B, Faridabad, HY 121001 India, Tel: 91-129-5431198, 5429640, Fax: 91-129-5295547, 5296174

Internet Reaches Iranian Village
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/3601630.htm
While the first computer in this new computer centre was purchased with money raised by villagers, a government grant paid for a second and several more came courtesy of a charity formed by Iranians in London. Villagers who know about computers volunteer as teachers in the centre, set up in a local mosque. Classes are free. The village even has its own Farsi-language Web site, Shahkooh.com. The goal is to teach computer skills to anyone and everyone who is interested.

Jhai Internet learning Centres in Lao PDR
http://www.jhai.org/technology.htm
The project is aimed at wiring the country, building internet learning centres to help the people maintain their traditional way of life, using the Internet to improve their economic return from diversified, organic agriculture and hand made silk textiles. The first internet learning centre in the country was set up by the project at Phon Mi High School. This centre is now becoming self-sustaining, with the whole community sensing ownership. Together with partner Schools Online, Jhai has provided three new Internet Learning Centers in Vientiane, Savannakhet, and Pakse. It is also exploring the feasibility of using computers, solar energy, wireless networking, and hand-held devices to connect remote villages together with close neighbour villages, for education, for communication, and - through hand-held devices - to the internet, through close-by Internet Learning Centres.
Contact: Jhai Foundation, PO Box 6269, Vientiane, Lao PDR. Telephone: 1-415-334-2100 856-20-521037, Facsimile: 1-415-334-210

E-Bario
http://www.unimas.my/ebario/
By bringing the Internet to Bario, Sarawak, the project sets out to define the extent to which contemporary ICTs could deliver sustainable human development to remote rural communities in Sarawak. The aim is to identify further needs and opportunities within such communities that can be satisfied by the ICTs, and to show how remote communities through such implementations can achieve significant and sustainable development. Computers are introduced systematically beginning two computer labs at the schools and a community telecentres, to provide community access to computers and to the Internet. Central to this strategy are two measures: to provide the community with access to the Internet and assess the impact that would have.
Contact: Universiti Malaysia, Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, Tel: +6-082-672502, Fax: +6-082-672392.

People’s First Network
http://www.peoplefirst.net.sb/Projects/projects_main.asp
The People First Network was initiated by UNDP/UNOPS participatory development and is strengthening the Solomon Islands Development Administration and Participatory Planning Programme. The Network (PFnet) is an email system based on robust, proven and sustainable technology that permits remote locations on islands across thousands of square kilometres to have access to the Internet and emails using a simple computer, short-wave radio, and solar power. PFnet aims to promote and facilitate equitable and sustainable rural development and peace building, by enabling better information sharing and knowledge building among and across the communities of the Solomon Islands.

ICT in NFE for Children and Youth

Radio Education for Afghan children http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/1427098.stm
To reach children in Afghanistan who have been deprived of normal schooling by almost 20 years of warfare and Taliban restrictions, the BBC World service launched this radio series in July, 2001. The radio programmes are not a replacement for school, as they do not teach, but rather get children to learn by themselves, by awakening their curiosity and helping them question the world. REACH is funded by the UK Department for International Development, United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and managed by BBC Afghan Education Projects in Peshawar.
Contact: UNICEF Zonal Sub-Office, P.O. Box 54, Char Rahi Ansari, Kabul, Afghanistan.

TakingITGlobal
http://projects.takingitglobal.org/irdoprojects
TakingITGlobal, an international youth organisation, is conducting a project to develop the rural youth in Chennai, India. Training these youths in the field of Information Technology, Skill Training for better employment opportunities and developing better employment opportunities, the project aims to train and to find employment for at least 350 to 500 youths per year, especially those from villages and rural communities. The Project also aims to provide free kits for IT, especially books which are too expensive for a poor, rural student.

The Cybercare project
http://www.lion-cybercare.org
The Cybercare project aims to form an electronic community by connecting orphanages, Home administrators, the private and public sectors and NGOs. Their mission is to empower underprivileged children and the Homes through the use of information and communications technology to improve their quality of life. Funding has enabled the orphans and Home staff to be trained in computer applications with assistance from volunteers. Programmes already initiated are Young to Care (Y2Care) to nurture leaders among the children and e-Mentoring which allows volunteers to electronically guide, coach and counsel a child. The Putting Orphanages Online (POOL) programme has linked 33 homes and currently benefits over 1600 children, with 600 of them already trained in computer usage. The completion of the project has seen both tangible and intangible benefits for the orphans. Besides ICT skills, the orphans have also gained self-confidence, personal acceptance and social skills.
Contact: CyberCare Office, Lions Club of CyberCare, Kuala Lumpur, 28, Jln. BK 5/5, Bdr Kinrara Puchong, 47100 Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia Tel: (603) 8075 9909, Fax: (603) 8076 2592.

Each One Teach One Computer Lab http://www.eachoneteachone.org/activities.htm#computer
A charitable foundation in India's commercial capital Mumbai is keeping school children in touch with the latest developments in technology. Each One Teach One uses its small computer lab to offer daily classes to municipal school students who otherwise cannot afford computer training. The Each One Teach One Charitable Foundation grew out of a deep commitment to help under-privileged children in Municipal Schools. These children are provided with daily necessities such as uniforms, books, stationery, extra coaching and a healthy mid-day snack.
Contact: Kiki Tanna, Each One, Teach One, 32,Gope Nivas, 275,Sion East Road, Mumbai-400 022. INDIA Tel: 91-22-409 4778/ 91-22-409 4510 Fax: 91-22-401 7430.

E-learning in Asia and Beyond
http://www2.coca-cola.com/citizenship/education_asia_digital_divid.html
This project is an attempt to bridge the digital divide by giving thousands of children across the region the opportunity to learn about computers and the Internet, and develop their ICT skills while furthering their studies and development through e-learning. The Coca-Cola company is conducting a wide range of ICT related activities in partnership with governments, multilateral organisations and NGOs to pursue this goal,  including the establishment of learning centres in Vietnam, Australia and China, a computers-to-schools project in the Philippines and ICT training initiatives in Malaysia.

Juvanet
Juvanet was designed to promote the use of ICT to assist in the managerial and operational functions of the Pejabat Kebajikan Kuala Langat. Among the objectives for this project are to provide a conduit for the dissemination of information between the Pegawai Akhlak (Counsellor) and the parents and youth. JuvaNet will also function as a channel for the community to discuss and contribute ideas for youth formation. It is hoped that through JuvaNet, youths will be able to communicate freely with their Pegawai Akhlak and members of the community. They will also learn more about their rights, career opportunities and be able to share their problems and interests via an online forum.
Contact: Ismail Idris, DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Phone: 03-3187 1317 

Beanbag Net Centres for disadvantaged youth in Australia
http://www2.coca-cola.com/citizenship/education_asia_digital_divid.html
The Inspire Foundation, a non-profit Internet-based organisation that helps disadvantaged youth improve their lives and career prospects by using ICTs, has partnered with Coca-Cola and Microsoft Australia to establish ten “Beanbag Net Centres”, benefiting an estimated 80,000 young Australians in poor urban areas. Set up in youth-friendly community centres around the country, the centres provide free Internet access facilities, IT and Internet training, and the opportunity to develop a local website that enables young people to add content relevant to them and to others in their area. The initiative is continuing in 2003 with the launch of five new Beanbag Net Centres, as well as ongoing training and development at existing Centres.
Contact: Inspire Foundation, PO Box 1790, Rozelle NSW 2039, AUSTRALIA, Phone: +61 2 9818 3055, Fax: +61 2 9818 3855

Auto Learning in India
http://www.niit.com
Reaching out to rural school children, this project has installed computers for children in schools, and courtyards of their homes to give children an opportunity to use the computers on their own and get some first-hand ICT knowledge. Part of a larger project in coastal Maharashtra, 10 computers have been installed in this region. The idea is, that by using computers, children are learning how to 'self organise' themselves, setting norms of group behaviour, and their own goals.
Contact: National Institute for Information Technology Limited, Corporate Munjal Marg, Kalkaji New Delhi 110019, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 620 3409 Fax No: 91 11 620 3499, 620 3333

ICT in Literacy and Adult education

Tata Computer-based Functional Literacy Programme
http://www.tataliteracy.com/index.htm
Launched in February 2000 in the Beeramguda village in Medak district of Andhra Pradesh, this ground-breaking project seeks to combat illiteracy with a new approach to learning, using multimedia and flashcards to fortify the learning experience. The lessons focus on reading, tailored to fit different languages and even dialects, and are based on the theories of cognition, language and communication. The CBFL programme is currently operational in 415 centres in Andhra Pradesh, having helped more than 8,500 people to read. Tata claims that if implemented properly, the project can make 90 per cent of India literate in three to five years.
Contact:  Tata Services, Bombay House, 24, Homi Mody Street, Fort, Mumbai 400 001, Maharashtra, INDIA. Tel No: 91-22- 5665 7924 / 5665 8156 Fax No: 91-22-5665 8160

ASHA 2005 - Educating Illiterate Adults through ICT
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020729/himachal.htm#3
A participative programme of rural awareness started by a Non-Government social organisation, the Science Awareness Trust (SAT), has proved a huge success in the remote villages of Nagrota Surian in the Kangra district of Himachal. SAT, set up in 1999, planned to educate illiterate adults by using local Devnagri script in computers and also to train rural youths in computer applications. A project - ASHA -2005 - was launched this year to reach the most backward villages of Nagrota Surian, educating the villagers in health, social welfare and environment. The target is to train 2,100 people in three years, and with their help educate 15,000 illiterate adults. Computer education is improving rapidly.
Contact: The Science Awareness Trust, Principal Secretary (Info Tech), Government of Himachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh Secretariat, Shimla-171002 Tel No: Office: 0177-221867, 880674, 880774 Res: 0177-22085

FamilyPlace
http://www.familyplace.com.my
FamilyPlace is an initiative for parents by parents using ICT to bridge families and build communities. It was started in 1998 by a husband-and-wife team, KV Soon and Chong Wai Leng, who had wanted to start a virtual community for parents to network and learn from one another. In 1999, FamilyPlace successfully obtained the DAGS grant from the NITC and then, in 2001, was nominated as a finalist for the Pikom/Computimes Best Community Website Award. FamilyPlace has successfully created both virtual, as well as real community through its many initiatives, continuing to work alongside a non-profit organisation with community-education as its first priority. It is self-sustaining through revenues from its parent-education programmes, as well as various children’s programmes.
Contact: DAGS, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur. Phone: 03 5636 7562

UNDP IT Centres/ Cisco Networking Academy - Afghanistan http://www.undp.org/afghanistan/projects/ict_mar.html
A model for public/private partnerships in the region, the first Cisco Networking Academy in Afghanistan opened in January 2003, as part of the wider UNDP programme aiming to help bridge the digital and gender divides. The Academy, based at the University of Kabul, aims to create a cadre of Afghan specialists who can help ease and catalyze the country’s transition into the digital age. Cisco trains the Afghan teachers and provides the web-based curriculum and networking equipment for the Academy, while UNDP supports the training, provides computer hardware and facilitates the partnership with the University. UNDP has also set up four new training centres, with a fifth underway. Meanwhile, Cisco and UNDP are especially expanding efforts on trying to narrow the gender divide in education and IT in Afghanistan. Over 2,500 Afghanis are expected to take part in the initial part of training – of which women will comprise 45 per cent.
Contact: UNDP Afghanistan, Shah Mehmood Ghazi Watt, Kabul, Afghanistan. Tel: +93 20 210 1682 – 85

Government CIC Project in North-East India
http://www.cic.nic.in/multimedia.htm 
In order to enable rapid socio-economic development in the North-East of India and bring the area closer to the national mainstream, in April 2000, the then Ministry of Information Technology launched a project to establish Community Information Centres (CICs) in all blocks in North-Eastern States. Under this project CICs are in the process of being setup in all 487 blocks of the North-Eastern States in local schools, colleges or government buildings. In order to ensure uninterrupted communication, the Centres are connected through a satellite based computer communication network. Each CIC is equipped with a VSAT, computer systems, printers and networking equipment. So far, experience has been very encouraging. Many of the CICs receive over a 100 visitors every week who use e-mail facilities, word processing applications, browse the Web, attend Training sessions and generally improve their familiarity with computers and awareness of IT.
Contact: National Informatics Centre, Block A 4th Floor,CGO Complex, New Delhi –110003, Tel: 91 - 11 – 4362359, Fax: 91 - 11 – 4362628

E-learning in Asia and Beyond
http://www2.coca-cola.com/citizenship/education_asia_digital_divid.html
In an attempt to bridge the digital divide by giving thousands of children across the region the opportunity to learn about computers and the Internet, and develop their ICT skills while furthering their studies and development through e-learning, the Coca-Cola company is conducting a wide range of ICT related activities, in partnership with governments, multilateral organisations and NGOs. Project activities include the establishment of learning centres in Vietnam, Australia and China, a computers-to-schools project in the Philippines and ICT training initiatives in Malaysia.
Contact: Coca-Cola Asia, Hong Kong, Tel: 852 2599 1262

All India Co-ordinated Programme (AICP)
http://www.aisect.org/
In an effort to achieve the aim of "IT FOR ALL BY 2008", AICP is setting up Multipurpose Information Technology Centres throughout the rural and tribal areas of India, supported by the government's Department of Electronics (DOE) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). So far, over 2300 training centers in 24 states have been set up, offering a wide variety of training and servicing modules in Indian languages, and nurturing entrepreneurship in electronics and IT. With enrollment of over 75,000 students each year, courses cover school through to university level and include a Special Training Programme for Women. Additionally, a National Centre for Electronics and Information Technology (NCEIT) has been set up to support and continue the programme.
Contact: AISECT, E-8/54, Bharat Nagar, Shahpura Bhopal, India. Phone: (0755) 567333, Fax: (0755) 562875

Akshaya - Bridging the Digital Divide in Kerala  http://www.keralaitmission.org/Kerala_launches_project_Bridging_the_Digital_Divide.html Akshaya is the Kerala government’s ambitious programme aimed at making Kerala the first completely e-literate state in India by 2005. The project aims to connect every household in the state with local self-government bodies through the Internet. Software to send and receive email in Malayalam is also being developed. A pilot project, which aims to train half-a-million people to handle computers, general business practices, government services and social welfare activities, began in November 2002 in the Malappuram district. Multipurpose community training centres will train people in income-generating ventures, such as providing content to portals and research institutions, data entry, desktop publishing, Internet browsing, Web-based matchmaking, real estate, placements and other related services.
Contact: Kerala State IT Mission, Narayana Bhavan, Kurup's Lane, Sasthamanagalam, Trivandrum - 695 010, Kerala, India. Tel: ++91-471-724277, Fax: ++91-471-314284

E-Pondok
http://www.epondok.com.my
E-Pondok aims to awaken members of the Pondok community to the benefits of ICT. Activities such as ICT training and seminars, the setting up of computer rooms and the creation of Pondok websites have heightened ICT awareness and knowledge in the community. 850 people from the community have attended basic training in ICT skills and about 1500 have attended a series of five ICT seminars. So far, the project has been most successful, with a recent survey showing that 90% of the community now takes a positive interest in ICT.
Contact: E-Pondok, Iqra Soft Sdn Bhd, 5337-H,2nd Floor, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, 15150 Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Phone: 609-7419187.

ICT-LitPro
http://www.ict-litpro.com
ICT-LitPro is aimed at inculcating computer literacy among the 13, 14 and 15 year old youths in the community, taking them beyond only using computers for games. This programme, divided into three different levels, has a set curriculum of 80 hours each. At the end of each topic, there is a test and practical assessment. This curriculum will fully prepare students to move into ICT-related courses later in their schooling years and augurs well for not only their future, but also for the future of the country. A complete understanding of the curriculum will also enable these students to pursue higher education in the field of ICT; thereby producing many ICT experts for the knowledge economy (k-economy) Malaysia is so striving for. An additional focus of this programme is the training of the teachers and parents in ICT skills, aiding them in their work and in self-development.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Phone: 012 327 6319 / 03 5638 3451

E-Kuantan.net
(site under construction)
E-Kuanten.net is aimed at addressing the problem of low ICT literacy rates, as well as heightening awareness of the potential of ICT among the various communities in Kuantan, Pahang. Functioning as the hub for this project, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tanah Putih has been earmarked as the community learning centre for ICT skills training and development. The school will also act as the community hub to promote the creation of local web portals. On the whole, e-Kuantan.net will provide channels for communication, content development, e-Commerce opportunities, and the creation of e-communities for the people of Kuantan.
Contact: Cikgu See Koon Suan, DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur. Phone: 09-5131182

Narrowing the Digital Divide: Vaancha ICT Association
http://www.challenge.stockholm.se/projects.asp?ProjectId=2736
With special emphasis on income generation, this project imparts ICT skills to socially disadvantaged and economically deprived youth with the aid of solar powered broadband wireless ICT centres in rural areas. The project has proven highly successful, with many trainees having got jobs and others even having started their own business facilities centres, cyber cafes, etc. In addition, the project is replicable at any remote place where conventional energy (electricity from grid) and telecommunication facilities are not available. Not surprisingly then, the project has spread all across India.
Contact: 14/9, Indira Vikas Colony New Delhi, 110 009 INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 27464597, 27431503 Fax No: 91 11 27251334. 

Bridging the Gender Divide

A World Bank Initiative on Gender and ICT for Development http://www.worldbank.org/gender/ict/
To redress the "digital divide" between men and women, the World Bank is conducting a study to provide guidance on the design of gender-responsive ICT policies and interventions for project managers, planners and policy makers around the world, including World Bank staff. The idea is that by ensuring that the needs of both sexes are met, developing countries can improve the efficiency and equity of their ICT policies and programmes. The study involves a review of existing ICT and knowledge economy projects funded by the World Bank, assessing their incorporation of gender-responsive analysis and actions, research to develop indicators of women and ICT in developing countries and global analysis of gender issues and the inclusion of women in ICT and knowledge economy projects.
Contact: KM International Co. Ltd. Tokyo, Japan, Liaison Office in Washington, DC, USA. Phone: +81-3-5548-1242, Fax: +81-3-5548-1242

UNDP IT Centres/ Cisco Networking Academy - Afghanistan  http://www.undp.org/afghanistan/projects/ict_mar.html
A model for public/private partnerships in the region, the first Cisco Networking Academy in Afghanistan opened in January 2003, as part of the wider UNDP programme aiming to help bridge the digital and gender divides. The Academy, based at the University of Kabul, aims to create a cadre of Afghan specialists who can help ease and catalyze the country’s transition into the digital age. Cisco trains the Afghan teachers and provides the web-based curriculum and networking equipment for the Academy, while UNDP supports the training, provides computer hardware and facilitates the partnership with the University. UNDP has also set up four new training centres, with a fifth underway. Meanwhile, Cisco and UNDP are especially expanding efforts on trying to narrow the gender divide in education and IT in Afghanistan. Over 2,500 Afghanis are expected to take part in the initial part of training – of which women will comprise 45 per cent.
Contact: UNDP Afghanistan, Shah Mehmood Ghazi Watt, Kabul, Afghanistan. Tel: +93 20 210 1682 – 85

Networking women

http://www.newwomen.net.
Under the auspices of the National Council of Women’s Organisations Malaysia, this project was started to provide networking facilities to women in voluntary organisations. Through this project, awareness will be created among women about the benefits of using ICT. The low level of ICT resources and the lack of knowledge and skills on ICT applications will be addressed. This project will also form the hub of communication for the different women’s organisations, tabling reliable quantitative and qualitative information about their work. Furthermore, it will provide a platform to conduct research on “The Impact of ICT on Malaysian Women.”
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur. Phone: 03 8929 2954

UNITeS Nepal
http://www.unites.org
As part of the global UNITeS volunteer programme to bridge the digital divide, a specialist for Information Delivery and Dialogue Promotion for UNDP (NUNV) UNDP's Gender and Social Development Unit in Kathmandu is carrying out a pilot project to empower women and girls in poor communities through information delivery and dialogue, addressing HIV/AIDS and other development needs. In support to this digital broadcast initiative, the volunteer's tasks include setting up the internet link with the digital audio studio, installing the audio and computer equipment including software and providing assistance in all technical problems of the programme.
Contact: United Nations Volunteers, Martin Luther King Str. 8, Germany D-53175 Bonn, Tel:(49-228) 815 2229.

Community radio in Andhra Pradesh: local women broadcast for development
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/10/06/stories/2002100600691200.htm
Mana Radio is a community radio station run by members of the women’s Self Help Groups (SHG) in Orvakal village, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh. Realizing the role that Community Media can play in development, empowerment and the right to information, the SERP (Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty) decided to set up community broadcast centres under the World Bank funded Velugu programme. The SHG members now actively involved in running the station are all from rural poor families, mostly Dalits and minorities, now capable of producing varied radio content thanks to workshops run as part of the programme. The topics the women plan to cover are diverse - education, gender and caste sensitization, agriculture, health, history and culture, using various methods to convey their messages, such as documentaries, plays, songs, jokes, humour and interviews.
Contact: SERP, Summit Apartments, 3rd Floor, Hill Fort Road, Hyderabad-500 034, India

Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) Technology Information Centres in Gujarat
http://www.sewa.org/
The Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) is undertaking an initiative to establish Technology Information Centres in eleven districts of Gujarat, India to help their constituents rebuild their lives in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in January 2001. SEWA is the largest primary women's trade union in India, serving over 250,000 poor, self-employed members in Gujarat. The SEWA Technology Information Centres will provide training to their barefoot managers, build capacity of their women organisers and leaders, and strengthen the micro-enterprises of their members. Furthermore, by networking these centres, the various cooperatives, such as dairy, tobacco processing, weaving, gum work, leaf-plate making, and live stock raising can work more efficiently and develop new programmes to support economic empowerment of their members. After the pilot phase, these centres will also serve as educational nodes for supporting girls education.
Contact: Self Employed Women's Association, SEWA Reception Centre, Opp. Victoria Garden , Bhadra, Ahmedabad - 380 001. India, Phone: 91-79-5506444, 5506477 Fax: 91-79-5506446

Tel-Nek: IT Enabled Education for Rural Women
http://www.evesindia.com/women/feature/IT_span-conn.html
Tel-nek provides vocational training to the community in and around Bidadi, a semi-urban area near Bangalore, focusing especially on the women of the community. Launched in May 2001, courses train the students in all major software, hardware basics, e-mail and the Internet, along with IT security, and computers and society. Courses and teaching manuals are in Kannada, the local language. Of the first batch of 31 trainees, 26 were female trainees. Future plans include setting up a Tele-centre, providing facilities in training, data entry, and also doubling up as an Internet cafe.
Contact: SUVIDYA No. 206, 39 A Cross, 9th Main, 5th Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore 560041, INDIA. Tel No: 91 80 665 8580 Fax No: 91 80 654 0710

The Seelampur Project: Putting ICT in the Hands of Slum Women
http://www.datamationindia.com
Targeted towards the poor and semi-literate Muslim women of East Delhi's slums, this project directly links the use of ICTs to the alleviation of poverty, offering ICT based training in life-skills, empowerment and the usage of ICTs in vocations such as tailoring, quilt-making and food preservation. Datamation, the project implementers, are in the process of developing 50 multimedia CDs focusing on skills enhancement, women's empowerment, and life skills to reach women who can not come to the Community ICT Centre. These CDs will be shown via the existing cable network, for which local cable operators are providing free telecast time.
Contact: Mr. Chetan Sharma, Executive Director, Datamation Consultants Pvt. Ltd., 361, Patparganj Indl. Area, New Delhi 110 092, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 2167230, 91 11 2167973, Fax No: 91 11 2166602, 91 11 2453010 

Open and Distance Learning in the Gobi Desert: Non-formal Education for Nomadic Women
http://www.ids.ac.uk/eldis/fulltext/GWPMong.pdf
This paper provides a case study, grounded in practice, of the first open and distance learning project for non-formal education in Mongolia aimed at nomadic women, and outlines the project and its context, explains the rationale for it, and analyses its achievements, limitations and lessons.

Gender Empowerment Project
http://www.digitaldividend.org/knwldge_bank/knwldge_bank_02_sita.htm
Since 1999, the programme Studies in Information Technology Applications (SITA) has been providing computer skills training to some of the neediest of India's poor - women. So far, the project has trained 448 needy women from in and around the city of Delhi using an adaptation of MS Office 2000. More than the specific technology used, the principal factor in its success has been SITA's customized, contextual approach.

e-Homemakers
http://www.mom4mom.com/
Homemakers of all ages, races and social economic classes are a vulnerable group in the digital divide. Usually they have little or no access to ICT. Those who are disadvantaged, such as the abused, handicapped, ill or widowed need support more than ever from the community. Those who own home-based businesses can also benefit from networking and e-commerce, as facilitated here with services such as bulletin boards, chat rooms, message boards, e-counseling sessions, a helpdesk, a feedback engine, buddy system, e-cards and e-survey tools. The web site serves as a one-stop information centre for busy homemakers who want quick up-to-date information, created to link homemakers all over Malaysia into an e-community, bound together by common interests in motherhood, homemaking and issues of economic, social and gender development. The portal, currently available in English, will soon feature Malay and Chinese versions.  

Community Empowerment: Connecting Rural/ Remote Areas

The Masjid as a Neighbourhood Centre
http://dagsclub.org.my/projects/masjid.php
The initiators of this project aimed to enable a mosque to become the hub of the networked communities around it, working closely with community leaders to provide the 200 neighbourhood communities they served with training in various ICT applications. A community website and a Management Information System were designed - the online MIS enabled more efficient mosque administration. Members of the community are also able to visit the website created to access the community database and an online mini resource library. Through a virtual bulletin board, advertisements can be uploaded. An online community classroom was also built using CoMIL software as a learning tool.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur. Phone: 03 2141 6066

Multipurpose Cybercafes E-community Hub http://www.mol.com/programmes/MCCH/index.htm.
Of late, Malaysian cybercafes have gained notoriety as havens for online gambling, gangsterism and the viewing of pornographic material, leaving ample opportunity for truancy and loitering around these premises. The Multipurpose CyberCafe's e-Community Hub (MCCH), aims to rectify this through encouraging communication among affected members of the community and disseminating information about the untapped potential of cybercafes. Using rich multimedia, classes and training sessions will be conducted on MCCH's educational programmes through appointed cybercafe operators. MCCH will also provide further support to cybercafes in terms of role expansion, infrastructure and professional consultancy. Cybercafes can provide the Malaysian community with opportunities to interact, transact and exchange ideas with the use of Video-On-Demand (VOD) and Voice-Over-Internet-Protocol (VOIP) as well as cyber shopping galleries. This has been lacking in cybercafes throughout Malaysia and MCCH sees this as a way to unlock the status quo, giving cybercafes the opportunity to contribute to community building.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur. Phone: 03 2148 3777 / 016 2011251

Multipurpose Community Telecenter (MCT) Project
http://www.mcst.gov.mv
The Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology in the Maldives is in the process of establishing community based telecentres in every inhabited island to help bridge the digital divide, to facilitate e-government, empowering the islanders to take the opportunities available through ICT connectivity. The MCT concept involves the creation of telecentres in a community based location, where a variety of ICT services such as telephones, fax, voice mail, Internet (including e-mail) TV and radio for information and recreation will be provided. The IT Policy formulation project has also components to formulate business models to ensure the sustainability of the Telecenters, along with digitising hands-on, instructive documents as an initial information package. More comprehensive content development is envisaged as a follow-on project.
Contact: Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology, 5th Floor, Bank Of Maldives Building, Boduthakurufaanu Magu, Malé 20-05, Republic of Maldives. Tel: +960 331696, Fax: +960 331694.

Pilot Multipurpose Community telecentres in Selected Barangays in the Philippines  http://www.idrc.ca/pan/tele04029.html
This project set up multipurpose community telecentres in four barangays (villages) in Mindanao. The MCTs are meant to deliver Internet services, with a primary focus on health care, agriculture, education and livelihoods. The project aims to investigate the legal, financial, operational and technical issues surrounding the establishment and maintenance of MCTs in the Philippines, identify the specific ICT needs of people in the rural villages and enlist the participation of local people and organisations in developing the conceptual framework for the MCTs.
Contact: IDRC, P.O. Box 8500, Ottawa, Canada K1G 3H9.

Thai RuralNet
http://www.thairuralnet.org/home.html
Transforming rural capability in Thailand through ICT empowerment, this project has three major objectives. First, to transform rural capability through Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) empowerment. The rural communities can make the best use of ICT and will be able to actively participate in ICT-driven sustainable community development, bridging the digital divide from the demand side. Second, to find practical models and practices that will turn the rural digital divide into sound business opportunities for the local communities. Third, to create an opportunity for the youth especially students, to get involved in development issues.
Contact: Thai Rural Net, Thammasat University, Bangkok Thailand.

The Lighthouse project
http://www.panasia.org.sg/news/rnd_st/ict_rnd06a.htm
In an innovative new experiment to bring ICTs to rural Thai villagers, the Population and Community Development Association (PDA) of Thailand has established a Community Based Integrated Rural Development (CBIRD) Centre for factory workers and students working or living in the neighbourhood. Field staff of the CBIRD Centre use the Internet connections provided by the project to research farmers’ problems and print out solutions for discussion with the farmers during their field visits. Furthermore, two schools nearby have established their own computer labs using grants partly received due to training schools’ teachers had undertaken at the Lighthouse Project on ICTs and the Internet.
Contact: Nutaporn Srisingha, CBIRD Nang Rong Centre, P.O. Box 13, Nang Rong, Buriram, Thailand 31110 

Budhikote Cable Radio Network

http://portal.unesco.org/ci/ev.php?URL_ID=8463&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201&reload=1048136837
Thirty-six women’s self-help groups in the Indian village of Budhikote are running a cable radio network, first set up by UNESCO. With a contribution of 50 rupees every month from each woman, the network has grown to cover 250 of the 750 households of the village. The audio programs are narrowcasted from the Budhikote Community Multi-media Center, where the women use computers to edit and produce the radio programmes on relevant issues, such as organic farming, sericulture, health, local electricity and water problems. The Budhikote project site is among the seven sites selected by UNESCO to assess the impact of ICTs on poverty reduction.
Contact: Wijayanand Jayaweera, UNESCO New Delhi Office, UNESCO House, B-5/29, Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi - 110 029 India, Phone/Fax: (91-11) 6713000 / (91-11) 6713001, 6713002

CyberGrameen Telecentres http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/bline/2003/01/18/stories/2003011801141700.htm Indian NGO the Swarna Bharat Trust has sought to empower people at the grassroots by offering entertainment, edutainment and a host of services including healthcare through telecentres named CyberGrameen. Supported by a broadband network, the villages will have access to information on primary, secondary and college education, the latest updates on weather, technology and credit facilities, along with up-to-date information on insurance and banking services. The project aims to become financially viable and self-sustaining through revenues collected from entertainment and other services. The pilot initiative in the Venkatachalam village in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh will be tested for some time before replication in about 100 villages.

The M S Research Foundation Information Village Research Project  http://www.mssrf.org/
The Information Village Research Project has connected ten villages near Pondicherry in southern India by a hybrid of wired and wireless network, consisting of PCs, telephones, radio devices and email connectivity through telephone lines. Enabling the villagers to access necessary information to improve their lives, the project involves local volunteers who gather information, put the information on an Intranet and provide access through nodes in the villages. The project uses the local Tamil language, while the local communities have participated right from the beginning with the project. Most of the operators and volunteers are women, empowering them with both status and influence. Information provided in the village knowledge centres is locale specific and relates to prices of agricultural goods, market, community information, health care, cattle diseases, transport, weather, etc. The project is an inspiring example of how breaking the information barrier can change rural lives.
Contact: The M S Research Foundation, 3rd Cross Street, Institutional Area, Taramani Chennai - 600113, India, Ph: +91-44-22542698, 22541229 Fax: +91-44-22541319

e-learning for life - Malaysia http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/2002/issue2/0202p22_elearning.html
The Malaysian Ministry of Education, Coca-Cola and UNDP launched “e-learning for life” in March 2002. Supporting the Malaysian government's vision to build a knowledge-based economy, the project is bringing e-learning opportunities and ICT training and access to more than 10,000 students, as well as to their teachers and local communities. Six ICT "hubs" have been set up in six secondary schools in suburban and rural areas across Peninsular Malaysia. The hubs are equipped with Internet connectivity, hardware and software through which students and teachers gain access to and training in ICT. The centres are also open to the local community.
Contact: Coca-Cola Asia, Hong Kong, Tel: 852 2599 1262

Silk Road Radio Soap Opera 
http://www.unesco.org/bangkok/education/ict/unesco_projects/JFIT/silkroad.htm
Building on centuries’ old tradition of story-telling in the region, the Silk-Road Radio Soap project highlights contemporary issues and priorities through a twice-weekly radio drama series, produced and transmitted in both Uzbek and Tajik languages. The themes dealt with in the radio dramas can be grouped in three categories, in accordance with the priority areas of the main funding agencies: family and reproductive health, agricultural themes and contemporary national issues such as humane and considerate treatment of displaced and underprivileged groups in society, ethnic harmony and tolerance in society and trafficking of women. Themes change according to ongoing needs assessment, consultation with stakeholders and audience research, and are incorporated in the radio drama storylines and scripts. 200 episodes have been completed to date.
Contact: Silk Road Radio Soap Project Coordinator, Tel.: 44 1223 364711/353302 (U.K.)/(998 71) 120-71-16 (Uzbekistan)

Family Place
http://www.familyplace.com.my/
FamilyPlace is an initiative for parents by parents using ICT to bridge families and build communities. It was started in 1998 by a husband-and-wife team, KV Soon and Chong Wai Leng, who had wanted to start a virtual community for parents to network and learn from one another. In 1999, FamilyPlace successfully obtained the DAGS grant from the NITC and then, in 2001, was nominated as a finalist for the Pikom/Computimes Best Community Website Award. FamilyPlace has successfully created both virtual, as well as real community through its many initiatives, continuing to work alongside a non-profit organisation with community-education as its first priority. It is self-sustaining through revenues from its parent-education programmes as well as various children’s programmes.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Phone: 03 5636 7562

JIVA Community Learning and Information Centres - http://www.learningchannel.org/cgi-bin/index.cgi?root=1470&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ejiva%2Eorg%2Fprograms%2Fdescription%2Easp%3Fprogram%5Fid%3D4 Demonstrating how ICTs can be used effectively in rural settings to achieve a turnaround in the local economy, Jiva has set up a model Community Learning and Information Centre (CLIC) in Haryana, India. CLIC is designed to facilitate information-access, as well as to offer income generating opportunities to the village people. Activities include tailor-made software for the unlettered users, computer workshops, and video-making skills which can be used by the village youth to earn a living. Project success may be largely due to the development of Programme-performance Indicators, the detailed programme-assessment methodology used to determine impact and recording success stories. By December 2005, Jiva aims to have established 5 CLICs that will provide opportunities to 25,000 people in rural India.
Contact: Jiva Institute, Jiva Marg, Sector-21B, Faridabad- HY, India- 121001. Tel: 91-129-5431198, 5429640, Fax: 91-129-5295547, 5296174 

Infothela Mobile Telecentre
http://www.iitk.ac.in/MLAsia/infothela.htm
The Infothela was designed to deliver information and spread knowledge at the village level where fruits of modern technology have not reached yet. The unit is basically a pedal driven vehicle just like a common cycle rickshaw but with a personal computer on board which will be connected to Internet using wireless technology. An added pedal generator is designed to recharge the battery pack which powers the computer while the vehicle moves from village to village. The unit serves a variety of purposes including education or entertainment applications, and providing agricultural, weather and government information. It is also designed to accommodate diagnostic equipments like blood pressure testing machine, blood sugar testing machine, and some other primary health diagnostic and testing equipments. Designed as a self-sustaining project, the thela will generate a self-employment avenue for urban and village populations. 
Contact: Media Lab Asia, Samruddhi Venture Park, Central MIDC Road, Andheri (East), Mumbai 400093, India

Amader Gram (Our village)
http://www.amadergram.gq.nu/ 
Amader Gram is a model project of integrated rural development through capacity building of the disadvantaged community people, conservation of bio-diversity and sustainable use/mobilisation of natural resources and environmentally sound income generation activities. Since 1996, Amader Gram has helped to improve the lives of the disadvantaged poor people and children in 20 villages under 2 Upazila (Sub-District) of Bagerhat (Rampal) and Khulna (Paikgacha) districts in Bangladesh.

VillageLeap.com Cambodia
http://www.villageleap.com/
Established with international funding, VillageLeap.com is the result of a permanent Internet connection to a primary school in the village of Robib, in remote north central Cambodia. In addition to providing computer education and Web access to a school of 400 students, the Internet project is supporting the creation of a small woven-silk industry in the village, which plans to sell products on the Internet through VillageLeap.com. The project aims to show the tremendous untapped potential of such a village to use ICTs to market hand-made products, to access information, to communicate internationally and to enjoy better healthcare via the Internet.
Contact: P.O. Box 27, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Phone: 81-3-3486-4337, Fax: 81-3-3486-6789

Sustainable Access in Rural India http://edevelopment.media.mit.edu/SARI/mainsari.html
The SARI (Sustainable Access in Rural India) Project is dedicated to demonstrating that the creation and deployment of information and communication services and technologies in poor rural areas leads to improvements in health, empowerment, learning, and economic development amongst the poorest and most disadvantaged communities. The initial pilot phase will provide Internet access and applications through roughly 1000 connections in 350 villages in the Madurai District of the southeastern Indian State of Tamil Nadu.
Contact: MIT Media Lab, Harvard Center for International Development, IIT Madras, I-Gyan Foundation

Leveraging ICT Through Market Centres for Tribal Communities http://www.apdip.net/ictrnd/satpura.asp
The project was implemented in a remote tribal and rural area of Central India. About 70 per cent of the population in the project area lives below the poverty line. The project provides email and Internet facilities as well as computers to about 40 villages. Approximately 0.5 million villagers were exposed to the facilities. The project is centred on a weekly market that is visited by around 13,000 villagers.

Multipurpose Community Telecenter (MCT) Project
http://www.mcst.gov.mv
The Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology in the Maldives is in the process of establishing community based telecentres in every inhabited island to help bridge the digital divide, to facilitate e-government, empowering the islanders to take the opportunities available through ICT connectivity. The MCT concept involves the creation of telecentres in a community based location, where a variety of ICT services such as telephones, fax, voice mail, Internet (including e-mail) TV and radio for information and recreation will be provided. The IT Policy formulation project has also components to formulate business models to ensure the sustainability of the Telecenters, along with digitising hands-on, instructive documents as an initial information package.
Contact: Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology, 5th Floor, Bank Of Maldives Building, Boduthakurufaanu Magu, Malé 20-05, Republic of Maldives. Tel: +960 331696, Fax: +960 331694

SMASY
http://www.wview.com.my/smasy.
With approximately 1.2 million Malaysians currently having little or no access to ICTs, Worldview Foundation started the sm@sy project in 1999 to bring IT to remote areas of the country, helping people develop new skills and knowledge needed to survive. In the first phase of the project, sm@sy provided interactive touch-screen information kiosks villagers can use to connect to the Internet using pre-paid smart cards. In the second phase, sm@sy set up its own LAN-networked computer centre with 10 PCs, a printer, a scanner and Internet access. sm@sy has also designed awareness and capacity-building programmes to heighten the community's receptiveness to IT and enhance their ability to use it. Ever since sm@sy was set up in the Kampung Raja Musa, the local community has incorporated technology into many aspects of their daily lives.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Phone: 03 8656 1996

UNITeS Niue
http://www.unites.org
Proving even the most remote places are getting online, UNITeS has assigned an IT Training Specialist (IUNV) to the Information Services Office in Niue, a small island territory to the east of Tonga. The specialist is assisting local staff in developing software and government databases, to provide training in programming and web site creation and maintenance at the government IT training centre.
Contact: United Nations Volunteers, Martin Luther King Str. 8, Germany D-53175 Bonn, Tel:(49-228) 815 2229

Integration of Local Radio with the Internet through Multipurpose Community Telecentres in Indonesia
http://www.unites.org/html/projects/indonesia.htm
This site describes the project combining the use of radio and the Internet in strengthening civic education, dialog and transparency aimed at rooting a sound democratic basis and good governance in rural Indonesian communities along with the implementation of the new Autonomy Laws in Indonesia.

Distance learning and research project in Sasamungga
http://www.peoplefirst.net.sb/General/Distance_Learning.htm
The People First Network (PFnet) of the Rural Development Volunteers Association in partnership with USP Centre have launched a project which will help USP to deliver distance learning courses to remote areas using email. As a spin-off of the PFnet programme, in partnership with the University of the South Pacific Centre, Honiara, a computer facility has been set up and one of the existing rural email connections utilised to pilot a distance learning facility in Sasamungga Community High School, and also to conduct research into the impact of the PFnet email station, operating since October 2001. Outputs of the project are expected to lead to better access to distance learning courses in rural areas and better delivery and supervision of the students by the USP administrators and tutors.
Contact: People First Network (PFnet), Rural Development Volunteers Association, Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development, PO Box G35 Honiara, Solomon Islands. Tel: (677) 26560, Fax: (677) 26458

Telecentres: How Did We Lose the Plot?
http://www.developmentgateway.org/node/133831/sdm/docview?docid=440944
“Telecentres are a 19th century industrial response to a social and communications problem.” This article from the Development Gateway highlights the issues behind telecentre projects being less successful than they could have been. Invaluable evidence is provided here for future project planners, as specific problems and mistakes are identified, along with case studies of what went wrong and how. Finally, links to best practice models are included for a thorough picture of the workings of a successful and sustainable telecentre.

Community Telecenters: Assuring Impact & Sustainability
http://www.developmentgateway.org/ict/telecenters
This highlight section from the Development Gateway website focuses on community telecentres, in particular, on their sustainability and effectiveness. An interview with Motoo Kusakabe is provided here, in which he describes some of the workshops on rural connectivity, poverty, and entrepreneurship that he helped organize while serving as Vice President of the World Bank. Also included are several research papers and articles discussing case studies that may serve as examples of best practice, both in development impact and in financial sustainability. Finally, a number of links provide access to the myriad of resources on community telecentres available on the Internet, making this, in all, an invaluable resource for all those involved in the planning and running of telecentres.

Virtual Villages - A CNN Special
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2000/virtualvillages/  
A fresh new look at virtual villages, this graphically pleasing and highly informative site is a CNN Special, rich with information how four villages are using ICTs in innovative ways to educate their communities. Profiles in Bangladesh, India, the Dominican Republic and South Africa are provided, including statistical information, video reports, links and interviews with the project implementers. The site also includes highly readable essays, entitled "The Digital Divide," "Communicating Innovation" and "World2Market.com”. 

Empowerment through the Internet: Opportunities and Challenges for Indigenous Peoples
http://www.techknowlogia.org/TKL_active_pages2/CurrentArticles/main.asp?IssueNumber=12&FileType=HTML&ArticleID=300 This article describes experiences of various countries throughout the Hemisphere which are using the Internet to successfully establish effective linkages to further indigenous peoples’ development and promote indigenous rights.

International Community Telecentre Resources Website http://portal.unesco.org/ci/ev.php?URL_ID=3870&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201&reload=1048164893

Aiming to facilitate the development of community telecentres worldwide, this site presents information, experiences and resources related to practical telecentre implementation and management. The site includes an events archive, information on telecentre networks, resource organisations, projects and initiatives, international portals, technology guidelines, learning resources, best practices, Telecentre Stories and Research.

How Can We Use ICTs to Empower the Rural in the Developing World through Enhanced Access to Relevant Information
http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla68/papers/074-095e.pdf
This paper rejects the oft-made assertation that money in development is better spent on basic services such as food, water, electricity etc, than on ICTs, stating that instead ICT can form an integral component of development projects, as demonstrated by the award-winning Information Village project of the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation, India. The factors that led to the success of this project are analysed, bearing in mind the importance of meeting the needs of local communities.

UNITeS Resources Relating to Communities
http://www.unites.org/Html/Resource/knowledge/dmenu02.htm
The United Nations Information Technology Service (UNITeS) is a global volunteer initiative that allows volunteers from any country to give their skills and time to extend the opportunities of the digital revolution to developing countries. This webpage lists resources relating to community technology centres and working with communities. These include E-Government resources, marketing resources, as well as resources for moderating, translation and community networking.

Telecentres: Case Studies and Key Issues
http://www.col.org/Telecentres/telecentre_intro.htm
This report opens with a global overview of the multipurpose community telecentre movement and discusses the key issues of ownership, management, operational models and sustainability. There follows a series of case studies of telecentres drawn from Europe, North and South America, Africa, Asia and Australia. The final chapters draw on the experiences, insights and findings of some of the world’s leading experts in telecentres in regard to evaluation, teleworking, training telecentre managers and staff, and selecting and using technology. 

Drishtee: Connecting Indian Villages
http://www.iicd.org/base/story_read?id=4956
Drishtee is an organizational platform for developing IT enabled services to rural and semi-urban populations through the usage of state-of-the-art software. The services it enables include access to government programmes and benefits, market related information, and private information exchanges and transactions. Using a tiered franchise and partnership model, Drishtee is capable of enabling the creation of approximately 50,000 Information Kiosks all over India within a span of six years. These kiosks would potentially serve a market of 500 million people. In less than two years, Drishtee has demonstrated its concept in over 90 kiosks across five Indian states.

People First Net Brings Hope to Solomon Islands
http://www.iicd.org/base/story_read?id=4806
The People First Network was initiated by a UNDP/UNOPS participatory development and institutional strengthening project. It is now organised and run as a project of the Rural Development Volunteers Association, a non-profit association set up and affiliated to the Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development. This article explains the motivations that were driving the project and shows its results in bringing hope to the Solomon Islands.


Special Needs and the Disadvantaged

Computers in Homes (New Zealand)
http://www.computersinhomes.org.nz/index.htm
This is an award winning project (the 2001 Stockholm Challenge Award) which aims to narrow the digital divide in less-advantaged New Zealand communities. The programme is an initiative of the 2020 Communications Trust, with financial support from the Ministry of Education, volunteer support from tertiary institutions and community groups, plus paid support technicians. Participating families pay $50 and sign an agreement which commits parents to attend five training sessions, call the designated technician if their computer develops faults, make family rules about use of the computer and the Internet, supervise use of the computer and teach a family member or neighbour the IT skills they have learned.
Contact: PO Box 1762, Wellington, New Zealand, Phone: 04-463 5123, Fax: 04-463 5199.

Openmind Projects: IT in Isan, Thailand http://openmindprojects.nu/webIT/welcome.htm
To contribute to the bridging of the digital divide between rich and poor nations, the Openmind Project aims to test and evaluate IT learning models in the 3rd world with a view to designing a cost effective project model facilitating computer and e-learning. Starting up in the northeast of Thailand, Isan, a poor region bordering to Laos, simple and cheap computer learning centres have been created, housing a few, mainly second hand computers, in villages, temples and orphanages. Computer guides are local or foreign ICT volunteers who show how to use Microsoft Office programmes and demonstrate Web and graphic design, for the more advanced learners. Emphasis is on stimulating and facilitating the understanding of computers to motivate children to learn by themselves.

Hole-In-The-Wall Training Systems
http://www.indiachi.com/leadstory.htm
Reaching out to the urban poor in India and providing them with an exposure to ICT, the National Institute for Information Technology Limited has set up its Hole-In-The-Wall Training Systems throughout New Delhi and Mysore. In early 1999, NIIT set up continuous video tape monitoring of a computer that they had set up in a slum area in New Delhi. The video showed that young boys and girls from the settlement became highly proficient at using various features of the computer regardless of lack of proficiency in English, and without any instruction. Due to its success, the model is being replicated across the country.
Contact: National Institute for Information Technology Limited, Corporate Centre, 8, Balaji Estate, Sudarshan Munjal Marg Kalkaji, New Delhi 110019, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 620 3409 Fax No: 91 11 620 3499, 620 3333

Disability World - Access and Technology section (September-October 2002)
http://www.disabilityworld.org/09-10_02/index.shtml#access
Detailing issues concerning recent advances to allow the disabled to access information, thus facilitating their education, this is the technology section of the September-October 2002 issue of Disability World. Articles to be found here include “Bionic in our future? Mainstreaming our bodies? Is this what we are looking for?” , “Universal Literature Made Accessible to Blind Readers”, and “Japan: Myriad of Developments for Mobile Phone Users”. Disability World is dedicated to advancing an exchange of information and research about the international independent living movement of people with disabilities.

Prakruthi Computer Training Centre http://www7.brinkster.com/hope/ngodetail.asp?Id=41&st=KA
Providing free computer education to slum children in certain areas of Bangalore, the Prakruthi Welfare Foundation is running a Computer Education Centre, currently teaching some 250 children from the nearby slums of Karianapalaya, Saitpalaya, Venkateshpura. A special coaching class for school dropouts and children who are employed in nearby hotels is also being conducted.
Contact: 79, Kariyanapalaya, Lingarajapuram, Bangalore 560084 INDIA. Tel No/ Fax No: 91-80-5469550

The Seelampur Project: Putting ICTs in the Hands of Slum Women
http://www.datamationindia.com
Targeted towards the poor and semi-literate Muslim women of East Delhi's slums, this project directly links the use of ICTs to the alleviation of poverty, offering ICT based training in life-skills, empowerment and the usage of ICTs in vocations such as tailoring, quilt-making and food preservation. Datamation, the project implementers, are in the process of developing 50 multimedia CDs focusing on skills enhancement, women's empowerment, and life skills to reach women who can not come to the Community ICT Centre. These CDs will be shown via the existing cable network, for which local cable operators are providing free telecast time.
Contact: Mr. Chetan Sharma, Executive Director, Datamation Consultants Pvt. Ltd., 361, Patparganj Indl. Area, New Delhi 110 092, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 2167230, 91 11 2167973, Fax No: 91 11 2166602, 91 11 2453010

The Intel Computer Clubhouse Project with KATHA
http://www.katha.org/KathaIT/Iccha%20Ghar.html
Slum children and women from New Delhi are learning how to use a computer as a means for peer learning and for economic and social advancement in the Intel Computer Clubhouse at Katha. A learning centre has been set up for adults in the community, along with two Labs for the 1200 pupil-school, where the community, including illiterate women train in and use IT. An innovative programme for those living in Bhumiheen, Navjivan and Jawahar Camps in Govindpuri, New Delhi, this project works in partnership with Katha’s Challenge 2010 Project for self-determination and addressing the economic and social needs of slum children and women through the use of ICTs. Katha is a non-profit organization that seeks to promote literacy, break down gender, cultural and social divides, and promote life-long learning. 
Contact: Katha Sarvodaya, A-3 Sarvodaya Enclave, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi 110 017, INDIA. Tel No: 91 11 6524511, 91 11 6524350. Fax No: 91 11 6514373

E-Pek@k: Helping the Deaf Bridge the Digital Divide
http://www.epekak.net.my/
At present, about 18,000 aurally impaired people are registered with the Social Welfare Department of Malaysia. The limited means of communication available to them can be both frustrating and crippling, especially when it comes to finding employment. Being visually-based, ICTs can provide the aurally impaired with a platform for their voice to be heard, to be able to network with peers, access online services and obtain moral support. e-Pek@k facilitates these usages, currently benefiting the deaf and hard of hearing from three NGOs and six special schools for the deaf, many of whom have even learnt to build and maintain their own websites.
Contact: DAGS Secretariat, MIMOS Berhad Technology Park, Malaysia, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Phone: +603 – 89965000, Fax: +603 - 8996 0255

Connectivity

The Latest in Rural Learning Centres - South Asia Foundation 

http://www.worldspace.org/asiapac.html
In a major new initiative harnessing the latest technology for rural community development, WorldSpace Foundation (WSF), an NGO devoted to improving information access for the disadvantaged via satellite-linked radios, has joined with the South Asia Foundation (SAF), a secular, nonprofit and non-political youth movement of regional cooperation among the SAARC countries. Founded by UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Madanjeet Singh, SAF has seven trustees who are currently the chairs of the Rainbow Partnership from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The proposed project with South Asia Foundation will involve 500 communities throughout the seven SAARC countries. In all of these locations, SAF will build solar-powered community information centres, which WSF will equip with satellite receivers and multimedia adapters, so that each centre will have access to educational information from their region produced by SAF, as well as WSF's social development and education programs from around the world. The project is currently in the pilot phase with test transmissions being carried out between the WSF Multi-Media Service and simputers.
Contact: Worldspace Foundation, 2400 N Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037, USA.  Telephone: +1-202-861-2261, Facsimile: +1-202-861-6407.

People First Network
http://www.peoplefirst.net.sb/Projects/projects_main.asp
The People First Network was initiated by UNDP/UNOPS participatory development and is strengthening the Solomon Islands Development Administration and Participatory Planning Programme. The Network (PFnet) is an email system based on robust, proven and sustainable technology that permits remote locations on islands across thousands of square kilometres to have access to the Internet and emails using a simple computer, short-wave radio, and solar power. PFnet aims to promote and facilitate equitable and sustainable rural development and peace building, by enabling better information sharing and knowledge building among and across the communities of the Solomon Islands.
Contact: People First Network (PFnet), Rural Development Volunteers Association, Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development, PO Box G35 Honiara, Solomon Islands. Tel: (677) 26560, Fax: (677) 26458 

Bicycles Bring Connectivity in Rural West Bengal http://www.comminit.com/ctrends2003/sld-7431.html Spreading the telecom revolution to the 700 million rural communities of India, a new project from the non-profit Grameen Sanchar Seva Organization (GRASSO) sees young men riding out on bicycles, carrying mobile phones equipped with CDMA Wireless Local Loop into 5,000 West Bengal villages. These men get to keep 25 percent of profits from all calls made while bringing telephone services to villages for the first time. The idea is to use telecom and IT to strengthen the distribution network of agricultural produce and make it more profitable. However, transport to carry produce to markets is also lacking, so GRASSO will help villagers start their own small businesses. Previously unemployed men will become owners of telephone booths, Internet kiosks and vehicles that will carry agricultural produce.
Contact: Grameen Sanchar Seva Organization (GRASSO), 336 SDF Building 2nd Floor, Saltec Complex, Block - GP, Sector 5. Salt Lake, Kolkata - 700091. Phone: 91-33-23577076

Multipurpose Community Telecenter (MCT) Project - The Maldives
http://www.mcst.gov.mv/
The Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology in the Maldives is in the process of establishing community based telecentres in every inhabited island to help bridge the digital divide, to facilitate e-government, empowering the islanders to take the opportunities available through ICT connectivity. The MCT concept involves the creation of telecentres in a community based location, where a variety of ICT services such as telephones, fax, voice mail, Internet (including e-mail) TV and radio for information and recreation will be provided. The IT Policy formulation project has also components to formulate business models to ensure the sustainability of the Telecenters, along with digitising hands-on, instructive documents as an initial information package. More comprehensive content development is envisaged as a follow-on project.
Contact: Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology, 5th Floor, Bank Of Maldives Building, Boduthakurufaanu Magu, Malé 20-05, Republic of Maldives. Tel: +960 331696, Fax: +960 331694

Assessment of Impact of Information Technology on Rural Areas of India
http://www.mssrf.org/informationvillage/assessment.htm
This project has established a hub-and-spoke model of data-cum-voice communication in a group of six villages in Pondicherry in South India. The village centres can communicate with each other as well as to the Internet. A hybrid of technologies is used-wired with wireless for communication and solar with mains for power supply. The hub provides connectivity to the Internet through dial-up telephone lines, and the staff there creates locally useful content. The village centres receive queries from the local residents and transmit information, collected from the hub, back to them. An important feature of this project is the strong sense of ownership that the village communities have developed towards the village centres. The other key feature is the active participation of rural women in the management of the village centre as well as in using it. 

Distance Learning and Research Project, Sasamungga
http://www.peoplefirst.net.sb/General/Distance_Learning.htm
The People First Network (PFnet) of the Rural Development Volunteers Association in partnership with USP Centre have launched a project which will help USP to deliver distance learning courses to remote areas using email. As a spin-off of the PFnet programme, in partnership with the University of the South Pacific Centre, Honiara, a computer facility has been set up and one of the existing rural email connections utilised to pilot a distance learning facility in Sasamungga Community High School and also to conduct research into the impacts of the PFnet email station, which has been operating since October 2001. Outputs of the project are expected to lead to better access to distance learning courses in rural areas and better delivery and supervision of the students by the USP administrators and tutors.
Contact: People First Network (PFnet), Rural Development Volunteers Association, Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development, PO Box G35 Honiara, Solomon Islands. Tel: (677) 26560, Fax: (677) 26458

Bridging the Information Technology Gap between Developed and Developing Countries through the Re-circulation of Used Computers
http://www.waitro.org/Projects/UsedComputers/teknotitser.htm
While in most industrialized countries, it is more or less a necessity to have connection to the Internet and e-mail in order to gain access to the newest information and knowledge, many developing countries lack the hardware for internet use to become a reality. The World Association of Industrial and Technological Research Organizations (WAITRO) has for several years helped institutes to procure the basic hardware that will make it possible to develop Internet services and establish training courses for Internet applications.