The authors begin defining three experiences of
shared access:
-
Cybercafé:
they are usually in the private sector and focus primarily on providing
customers with the use of computers and connections to the Internet and the
Worldwide Web. Their clients tend to be urban, educated, and economically
well off; they might offer training in computer and web use.
-
Telecenter:
typically, they offer a broad range of communication services related to the
needs of the community, some of which are free or subsidized by external
bodies such as governments or NGOs. Telecenters tend to be in the public
sector and focus on more isolated people (like villagers), and low income
and less educated people; they might offer training in computer and web use,
but also other kinds of training, including non-formal education and
distance learning in agriculture, health, basic education, entrepreneurship,
and other fields particularly related to community development. [Telecottage
in Hungary]
-
Information access point (IAP):
they fall between the cybercafé and telecenter approach. They have the
narrow focus on the Internet, but tend to have a public service mandate.
[SARI project in India, Community Access Program in Canada]
The authors, then, highlight global initiatives
grounded on the belief on the importance of ICTs in our age, such as the Okinawa
Charter (2000) on the Global Information Society signed by the G8 members, the
following Digital Opportunity Task Force (2001); the InfoDev initiative launched
by the World Bank.
The article then focus on the major organization
sponsoring the, so called, incubation phase of the telecentre movement:
UNESCO, ITU, USAID, IDRC and FAO.
In the next stage of telecenter development,
actors will need to continue beyond connectivity and physical infrastructure
concerns and concentrate on how to use ICT and telecenters effectively
for development.
The article sums up some of the sustainability
factors emerged from the Special Issue dedicated to Telecentre of the Journal of
Development Communication:
-
Concerted efforts to make telecenter content
relevant to local needs;
-
A commitment by policy-makers, and following
that commitment with funding and organisational support for multi-year
programmes;
-
Partnerships for translating national policy
into action through governmental and non-governmental bodies at the regional
and local levels, in particular they focus on the role which universities
could take;
-
Local champions (innovators) who can
mobilise others (early adopters, opinion leaders) to accept the vision of an
ICT telecenter programme;
-
The significant value of community
volunteers in operating telecentres;
-
Clustering or networking telecenters to
develop and share resources;
-
A systematic, persistent effort toward
community awareness about information and ICT as a valuable resource;
-
Research as a telecenter management tool;
-
Long term sustainability and business plans
that fit the culture of the community;
-
A strategic approach for gaining community
participation