EMSP-BasicInternet Exchange May2021
| Wiki for ITS | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
EMSP-BasicInternet Exchange May2021
| Title | EMSP-BasicInternet_Exchange_May2021 |
|---|---|
| Place | Zoom.us |
| Date, Time | 2021/05/28, 1200-1300 CEST |
| Contact Person | Lucas Yao |
| Participants | Josef.Noll, Lucas Yao, Amadou Waziri, Frederic Kanga, Michel Touré, Cedric Kassi |
| related to Project | BasicInternet |
| Keywords |
| this page was created by Special:FormEdit/Meeting, and can be edited by Special:FormEdit/Meeting/EMSP-BasicInternet Exchange May2021 |
| Category:Meeting |
Purpose
Information exchange between Ecole multinationale supérieure des postes (EMSP, http://emsp.int) and Basic Internet Foundation on digital transformation and connectivity. Special focus was on a) connecting schools and b) establishing InfoSpots in the local communities.
Participants
- Josef Noll - Basic Internet Foundation
- Lucas Yao - EMSP
- Amadou Waziri - EMSP
- Frederic Kanga - EMSP
- Michel Toure - EMSP
- Cedric Kassi - independent
We agreed on the continuation of the collaboration, based on
- questions to these minutes
- follow-up meeting to clarify a common way-ahead
Background
EMSP, the association with 8 french-speaking countries, is a facilitator for digital transformation. As one of the means, EMSP has joined the DTC initiative. In the information exchange, we discussed the Basic Internet infrastructure to establish Wifi information spots ("InfoSpots") in remote villages, or even as an opportunity for the digital transformation of postal services.
Connecting remote villages
The vision of the Basic Internet Foundationis to empower every single human being through the free access to information on the Internet.
In order to bring the vision to reality, the Foundation has established a cost-effective solution (BasicInternet:Solutions) in creating Wifi information spots ("InfoSpots") in remote villages. Examples are listed on DigI:Villages, addressing especially:
- Esilalei, Arusha District, our first installation, using a solar-powered (120W package) bringing light and connectivity to the community centre
- Migoli, Iringa District - connecting the Nyerere High School and from there the Community Office and the Dispensary,
- Izazi, Iringa, District - see also our Blog on It takes 90 min to connect a village
- Selela, Arusha District - connecting the marketplace to the mobile tower is more than 20 km away
Low OPEX
Our main focus was to provide free access to information on the Internet and having operational expenditures (OPEX) of less than 20 USD/month. We achieved the solution through introducing the Freemium Model for Access.
Starting from 10 connected Villages as part of the DigI project, we
- connected 10 schools in Mar2021 in Tanzania, see School_Connectivity_TZ,
- negotiate the scale-up to 500 schools in TZ,
- building a competence centre for connectivity with AHERI in Kenya
Reports and Documentations
- Our communities: http://Villages.BasicInternet.no
- World-wide University cooperation: http://UniversityCollaboration.BasicInternet.org
Documentation is available on Reports, including
- Models for sustainable connectivity of schools: Media:Impact_SchoolConnectivity.pdf
- Meeting documentation from the meeting with the Ministry of Communication and ICT (MCIT) in TZ: School_Connectivity_Report_MCIT
Outlook: The National Knowledge Portal (http://NationalKnowledgePortal.net), with the focus on
- Trusted harbour for information on education, health, agriculture, governmental issues, ...
- Data governance and Public-Private Partnership
- Regulations for the free access to the national knowledge portal
DTC achievements
From DTC newsletter #3 on DICT (Philipines): https://academy.itu.int/main-activities/digital-transformation-centres-initiative/dtc-news
DICT launched the Technology Empowerment for Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship, and Economic Development (Tech4ED) Project in 2016 - long before the Covid 19 pandemic - to boost digital literacy and digital skills. Tech4ED centres are physical centres through which DICT provides access to online government services to citizens living in far-flung communities. Currently, there are 4 330 Tech4ED centers established nationwide with 161 185 users.
In order to fulfil the DICT commitment to putting up community-based centres, the ICT Literacy and Capacity Development Bureau (ILCDB) and Project Management Group (PMG) have been tasked with improving the current Tech4ED Project focusing on boosting digital literacy, digital governance and management, and cybersecurity education of the citizens. These community centres will become a network of centres where digital skills — basic, intermediate, advanced digital skills — are developed and acquired, ensuring that citizens are able to participate in an evolving digital society and contribute to the broader goal of building an inclusive digital society.
In Zimbabwe, Gilford Hapanyengwi from African University is involved in discussions with Potraz and how to utilise the Community Access Centres in Zimbabwe
