Local access and community networking

The “digital divide” in Colombia is particularly wide in rural communities, since service coverage, especially cellular mobile service, is concentrated in urban centres. In 2017, communities in the municipality of Buenos Aires began planning and developing their own communications network.

Welcome to the 14th monthly round-up of developments impacting your local access networks.

"Many women live in rural Africa and it's difficult for mobile operators to afford to extend to all of these areas. But if you can support community networks this means helping women too. So I would say that the first step for women's access is to support community networks."

Twelve community network organisations (four in Africa, four in Asia and four in Latin America) will be selected and granted funding towards activities that create and foster a peer learning community.

This interview explores the gender implications of setting up a community network in the remote areas of the Philippines – from tackling gender stereotypes to the distribution of labour to the benefits of access for a community that is ignored by telecommunications companies.

For the sixth edition of our spectrum series, we are sharing the story of Adriana Labardini Inzunza's journey to this remote Mexican community to witness the remarkable power of community-owned networks to connect the unconnected and empower indigenous communities.

Welcome to the 13th round-up of developments impacting your local access networks.

Several positions have been announced simultaneously for individuals and organisations to be part of the new “Connecting the unconnected: Supporting community networks and other community-based connectivity initiatives” project.