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Latin American Telecentres: The Community Networking Pilot Project

1999-03-01

[Photo: Telecentre "promoter" explains the location of e-mail stations.]

The Internet is coming to indigenous peoples in the Amazon rainforest.

The Community Networking Pilot Project in Ecuador is bringing telecentres equipped with computers and radio modems to three isolated communities in northeastern Ecuador — villages where the local environment has been damaged by oil exploration and production — as part of a broader effort to help indigenous peoples protect their culture and their lands.

Sponsors of this initiative include the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), the Ecuadorian Ministry of External Affairs, and Dienste in Ubersee (DIU). Ecuanex (a member of APC) launched the project in 1997, and Frente de Defensa de la Amazonia (Front for the Defense of the Amazon) is the regional organizer.

Telecentre benefits

According to Robert Roggiero, the project coordinator and Executive Director of Ecuanex, the Internet is a faster and less expensive mode of communication for remote rainforest villages than traditional communication services, such as mail and telephones. He says telecentres can help to improve social and economic opportunities in isolated areas, facilitate communication between indigenous peoples and organizations, and raise awareness of their concerns to mainstream society. Many villagers would also like access to on-line information about their crops and fisheries.

So far, the project team has installed computer equipment in the three participating villages and has taught several local indigenous "promoters" — chosen for their level of education and willingness to help their village — how to use the technology. The local promoters are now passing their new knowledge on to other members of their communities.

Roadblocks

Due to technical difficulties, the training phase took longer than expected, because many of the promoters could not read or write when the project began. Other initial roadblocks included a lack of technological expertise and culturally inappropriate training materials.

"We need more time to train these people to work for themselves," concludes Roggiero. He adds that the project's ultimate sustainability depends on financing and training capabilities — it is hoped that the local promoters will someday take over and make the project self-sustaining.

Kelly Cryderman is a journalism and political science student at Carleton University. (Photo: Ecuanex)

Resource Persons:

Roberto Roggerio, Chair, INTERCOM Nodo Ecuanex, Av. Orellana 1791 y Av. 10 de Agosto, Edificio Francisco de Orellana, 6to piso, Casilla 17-12-566, Ecuador; Tel: (593-2) 523-527; Fax: (593-2) 227-014; E-mail: intercom@ecuanex.net.ec

Maureen James, Association for Progressive Communications, Fundraising and Project Development, 226 Geoffrey Street, Toronto, Ontario, M6R 1P8, Canada; Tel: (416) 516-8138; Fax: (416) 596-1374; E-mail: maureen@web.apc.org

Links to explore ...

Sidebar: Training the Internet Promoters

Improving Access to Telecommunications in South Africa, by Alan Martin

"Little Engines That Did": Case Histories from the Global Telecentre Movement, by Richard Fuchs

Moving Asia from Grassroots to Cyberspace, by Catherine Wheeler

The Acacia Initiative: Connecting African Communities, by Michael Smith

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