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On Monday 12 November, participants in the “Access: the local challenge” workshop, addressed access issues and considered what can be done locally to mitigate costs and connectivity challenges.
On Monday 12 November, participants
in the “Access: the local challenge” workshop, addressed access
issues and considered what can be done locally to mitigate costs and
connectivity challenges.
The aim of the workshop was to share best practices that
demonstrate the value and importance of Internet Exchange Points (IXPs),
national infrastructure, regional cooperation and trans-border traffic,
enabling environments, demand for local and multilingual content, and
individual and institutional capacity building with an emphasis on their
replication and transfer so that participants could take away concrete examples
back to their home countries.
Panellist Sylvia Cadena, of WiLAC,
talked about wireless technology in the Latin American and Caribbean region
(LAC). She recommended the sharing of resources and increased capacity
building. She said that wireless technology needs an enabling framework — not
just telecom, but also electricity provisions.
Valerie D’Costa, of InfoDev, said if we did not think
of connectivity in terms of computers, thousands of new mobile users could get
connected. She encouraged people to look at the access issue from the
perspective of the user, asking to what extent is substantive relevant content
being created for the people? In a village that has a computer, cellphone, etc,
what does it change? She asked. What are the impacts on development,
improvement of life and reduction of poverty? She said we need to measure that
and she emphasized the broader picture, not just access as connectivity to the
internet.
A person from the Center for Policy and Democracy questioned why progress has
been so uneven. They believe that for the last decade there has been a model
for ICT development: attributes: competition, interconnection, universal
service (fourth pillar – privatisation). They don’t think this approach has
worked and hasn’t been implemented fully enough. They also noted that
government has a role to play. It should be active in reinforcing competition,
public access, and training.
Panellist Rajnesh Singh, of the Pacific Islands Chapter of
the Internet Society (PICISOC), believes that
wireless technology does not go far enough and is too expensive. As well, he
said in the Pacific Islands, for instance, cyclones are a real problem. They
are in a remote location and rebuilding is tough. Infrastructure costs are
high.
Rajnesh also talked about monopoly issues (regulatory) and policy based issues,
e.g. every country wants to make an ICT policy. They are trying to replicate
what is done in a more developed country. There is little place to implement the
policy. Donor agencies need to focus on implementation.
The audience also participated with comments. There was some discussion about
countries working with national champions in order to improve rural and local
access. And another person mentioned the need to consider accessibility for
rural populations, as well as for women, blind people, etc.
