Abstract

There are about 16 000 telecentres throughout Brazil but most offer only the most basic of communication services and Internet access. Better trained operators could bring additional service and content to these telecentres. Recognizing this, the government established the Association of Telecentre Networks (ATN) in 2006. The ATM, in collaboration with the University of Brasilia, successfully piloted a course for telecentre operators. This grant will allow IDRC's telecentre.org to partner with ATM in the establishment of the telecentre.org-Brazilian National Academy. The Academy will consolidate ongoing training efforts and help raise the profile of telecentres as public spaces that provide services and skills for community development. These might include financial, education, health and employment services, as well as support to small local enterprises. The project team will also endeavor to identify ways of scaling up the training effort to cover the entire nation, mainly through the introduction of digital and distance education techniques. The experience gained in Brazil will help steer capacity-building work in Lusaphone countries in Africa, particularly Angola and Mozambique.

Recipient Institution(s)