NEWS / EVENTS
ICT Projects in Winrock International, Nepal
Winrock seeks to develop projects and rural energy services that result in sufficient end use applications to result in affordability of renewable energy technologies and improvement in livelihoods. Winrock, as part of its energy and information and communication technology (ICT) activities, is working to enhance the use of ICTs to improve and increase economic and social productivity for rural development.
Through Winrock's
ICT- Innovations project, Winrock worked to enhance the use of information and communication technology (ICT) activities for rural development.
The core of this activity was to enable communication in remote Nepal in places currently lacking any means of communication and information technologies. Localities with access to telephone lines already possess a basic form of communication; the only hope for communities living in rugged localities beyond the reach of telephone land-lines, and wireless telephone systems is satellite based connectivity. The impacts of such access to the internet are projected to provide multiple forms of communication including telephone calls, emails, face-to-face interaction, and access to numerous sources of information for local development.
The project has succeeded in establishing a VSAT based internet telecenter in rural Nepal, as well as a dial-up one. This project has also facilitated the advent of automated lactose-testing at a rural milk-collection cooperative. The activity included capacity and content development activities to enable rural communities to use ICT services for improved communication, knowledge enhancement, income generation, and access government services.
Please see fact sheet on page 2 for additional information.
On the strength of this project, USAID Nepal has granted the
Information and Communication Technology Global Development Alliance (ICT GDA) project. The project is being implemented in partnership with Mercantile Communications. The alliance is currently ongoing, and is expected to result in cost effective and sustainable deployment of ICT telecenters and related services in rural Nepal. The alliance supports the establishment of ICT telecenters as commercial and community based ventures to improve rural connectivity and the socio-economic conditions in rural areas. Besides, the alliance will provide support to maintain, update and improve the knowledge base of the target communities and the services being offered by the government as well as the non-governmental (NGO) and the business communities. US $9,196 was carried over from the Innovations ICT project as a guarantee fund to facilitate loans at the Clean Energy Development Bank (CEDB) for the establishment of more rural telecenters through the ICT-GDA.
The primary goal of ICT GDA is to enable the target communities in semi urban and rural locations to establish and use the ICT telecenters to improve rural connectivity, increase income and access service facilities. The alliance will support the establishment of ICT telecenters in 18 different locations. The installation in 15 of these locations will be in existing public service centers such as community or health centers, schools, or local government premises. The remaining 3 telecenters will be entirely commercial ventures established by private entrepreneurs. While most of the telecenters will be based on VSATs for connectivity, this project is among the first in Nepal to incorporate some wi-fi networks as well, creating local clusters of connectivity in remote places.
Access to this information and its effective utilization is anticipated to result in increased economic activities, rural inclusion into the development mainstream, and increase visibility of government services. Please see fact sheet on page 4 for additional information.
Establishment of Pilot Internet Telecenter for Agriculture and Forestry Produce Marketing
Winrock International Internal Innovations Grant
Project Duration: January 2005-September 2006
Program Description
Through this project, Winrock worked to enhance the use of information and communication technology (ICT) activities for rural development. The project has succeeded in establishing a VSAT based internet telecenter in rural Nepal as originally stipulated in the project proposal, as well as a dial-up one. This project also included capacity and content development activities to enable rural communities to use ICT services for improved communication, knowledge enhancement, income generation, and access government services.
Activities
This activity has initiated exciting cross-collaborations within the Agriculture and Clean Energy units within Winrock. Access to market links and government services are very important aspects of improving the rural mainstreaming in the country's development efforts. A major thrust of this project has been to establish ICT telecenters to improve marketing potential, and income of small farmers, traders and entrepreneurs. The e-commerce orientation and training for farmers in collaboration with the SIMI project has initiated a deeper value chain that holds immense possibilities for agro-based rural societies.
Partnerships outside of Winrock have also been very successful. Partnerships have sought to improve, update and sustain the knowledge base required for the above purposes through portal and product developments. Room to Read's library network has expanded into the rural Nepali countryside. Their contribution of ten computers for the telecenter at Syafrubesi has eased financial burden on the operators substantially. The establishment of the dial-up telecenter at the Milk Co-op, likewise, opens up multiple avenues for ICT implementation.
Outcomes by Project End:
One Rural VSAT based Telecenter Established
Based on demand from the high school, a VSAT based internet telecenter and a computer learning center has been established in Shree Shyame Wangfel Secondary High School, Syafrubesi Bazaar in Rasuwa district. The school has 12 computers with 8/32 connectivity. The school is presently providing computer classes to around 300 secondary level students. Besides, the internet service is also provided to outsiders, of which tourists comprises a large portion. The income earned from the services will be used to improve the ICT services and school facilities further. WI will conduct capacity building trainings, content development and awareness/orientation support to sustain the ICT services here through the ongoing ICT-GDA project.
The school is being managed by the local community through a school management committee since 2003 as per the government plans of handing over management responsibilities to the local community. The income earned is anticipated to be used to provide school scholarship to disadvantaged students.
Automated Milk Collection System and Telecenter Services Established
Winrock also facilitated the establishment of an automated milk collection system and supported telecenter establishment in Shree Devdaha Milk Cooperative in Rupandehi district. There numerous milk collection centers throughout rural Nepal serving smallholder dairy farmers. Farmers are paid according to the fat and lactose in each lot of milk. Devdaha Milk Cooperative seeks to precipitate this manual process by purchasing the new automated testing equipment from India. This technology gives results of the test in minutes as opposed to the four days traditionally needed for manual testing. As farmers would only obtain payment following the test results, the new technology benefits farmers, enabling daily payment for their transactions. Consumers are also benefited due to better hygiene conditions.
A dial-up telecenter has been set up in affiliation to the co-op.
Training package for telecenter managers and operators
A training program was conducted in Pokhara from 15-16 January 2006 with Nepal-SIMI and Agriculture Enterprise Center to provide information services to small farmers and traders in SIMI pocket areas. 25 small farmers and traders were introduced to use of the internet to access agriculture market prices, and advertise produce on the web. 60% of the participants continue to use the internet to access market prices through Agri-price.com and B2B. All participants have created individual mail accounts and are more aware of the opportunities and uses of using email and the internet for information on various aspects of farming.
Nepal Herbs and Herbal Products Website
Winrock International has supported Nepal Herbs and Herbal Products Association (NEHHPA) in developing a portal that provides comprehensive information about agriculture and forestry marketing services to rural farmers in Nepal. The portal focus is on providing detailed information about Nepal and local herbs, essential oils and related products to small farmers and traders, as well as communicating information on specialty NTFPs to international markets and brand Nepal NTFPs. The site is expected to utilize and contribute to existing market information offerings, such as the daily market prices of more than 150 agricultural and forestry based commodities in 18 major markets within Nepal posted by the Agri Enterprise Center (AEC).
Linking Institutional Development and Social Responsibilty throughTelecenters: the Information and Communication Technology Global Development Alliance (ICT GDA)
Partners: Mercantile Communications
Winrock International
Project Duration: July 2006-September 2007; No-cost extension till March 2008
Program Description
This project works to enhance the use of information and communication technology (ICT) activities for rural development an effective vehicle to promote peace and reduce the conflict arising in rural areas of Nepal as a means to stimulate new economic activities. Project interventions include installing hardware to establish ICT telecenters in rural areas; as well as carrying out trainings, awareness and business development support activities that assist the rural population to use ICT telecenters for income generation, government and business access, and knowledge sharing.
Objectives
The primary goal of ICT GDA is to enable the target communities in semi urban and rural locations to establish and use the ICT telecenters to improve rural connectivity, increase income and access service facilities. Specific objectives include establishment of ICT telecenters to improve rural connectivity through use of telephony, internet, email and related services; improve marketing potential and income of the small farmers, traders and entrepreneurs; improve, update and sustain the knowledge base required for the above purposes through portal and product developments; and enable rural communities to utilize ICT telecenter facilities to obtain various services with developments in e-governance, e-commerce and e-services.
Telecenter services will include a mixture of on-line as well as off-line services including telemedicine and computer-learning in rural schools.
This project conducts the following activities to meet the above objectives:
- Starting up, Telecenter Selection and Sustainability
- Partnership Building with the Principle Stakeholders
- Telecenter Selection and Revenue Generation
- Criteria for Telecenter Selection
- Capacity Building , Mobilization and Information Dissemination
- Community Interactions and Orientation.
- Training of ICT Focal Points
- Telecenter Operators and Owner/Manager Training
- Portal, Product Development and Information Update
- Technology Management and Standardization
- The Proposed VSAT Technology
- Energy Supply Options
- Financial Support to the Telecenters
- Financing through a Guarantee Fund
- Community Grant Fund
- Additional Support to be provided to the Telecenters
- Demonstration Effect, Input to Policy Advocacy and Regulatory Framework
- Demonstration Effect and Scaling up
- Support to Policy and Regulatory Change
Activities
ICT telecenters are being established in various locations in semi urban and rural locations to improve rural connectivity, increase income and access service facilities. Some telecenters are semi-commercial housed in existing public service centers such as community or health centers, schools, or local government premises. Others are entirely commercial ventures established by private entrepreneurs, but continue to provide information services in a commercially sustainable manner. Access to this information and its effective utilization is anticipated to result in increased economic activities, rural inclusion into the development mainstream, and increase visibility of government services.
In order to provide services in such needy areas, the project has therefore forged strong collaborations with organizations already active in local development. These organizations support not only the start-up cost of telecenter establishment, but also ensure sustainabity of services as an organizational activity in itself. This reduces the cost burden on operators to sustain services upon service-charges alone, increasing long-term viability. Furthermore, because these locally active organizations take on the telecenters an an additional profile, expansion of internet coverage area, and products offered as services can be expected to be continuous. The project has secured multi-sectoral and multi stakeholder partnerships with several organizations.
Current Updates:
- Partnerships have been forged with the national level Poverty Alleviation Fund; Nepal Wireless Project; Annapurna Conservation Area Project; High Level Commission for Information Technology at the Ministry of Environment; some local government bodies; rural based computer institutes; library networks; and the Computer Association of Nepal.
- The project promotes intra-district clusters of connectivity through local organizations. Such clusters are anticipated to reduce the cost burden of bandwidth-costs on any single points alone. This will enable cost-effective connectivity in certain points in the cluster as community services, on the basis of revenue generated from other points in tourist or market centers.
- Demonstration of one such cluster has been created in the district of Solukhumbu, incorporating telecenters that serve both community and tourists. The point of connectivity has been established through VSAT at a community hospital in Phaplu, Solukhumbu.
- A wireless extension of internet from Phaplu in Solukhumbu to the nearby village of Salleri, also in Solukhumbu. This stretch is funded by the ICT-GDA project in entirety.
- Another wireless extension of connectivity has been extended to the village of Junbesi, also in Solukhumbu. Junbesi is a stopover village along the tourist trail to the Everest Region. The ICT-GDA has supported part of this extension; the remaining three quarters of the total cost of extension will be shared out between several parties active in the locale.
- Connectivity through VSAT has been established in Jufal of Dolpo district. Connectivity was originally planned for the district headquarters, Dunai; the mountainous terrain impeded satellite signals there, necessitating relocation of equipment to Jufal, where the airstrip is located. The bulk of telecenter service is in Dunai.
- A telecenter has been established in the walled city of Lo Manthang in Upper Mustang. This activity is in partnership with the Annapurna Area Conservation Project, an NGO long active in the environmental project of the area.
- One telecenter each are to be established in the insurgency afflicted districts of Accham and Bhajyang. These sites are to be established in partnership with the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF), and access to information and communication in these places is expected to bring about direct impacts upon the local communities. PAF plans to fund extension of connectivity to other areas through Wi-Fi, creating local clusters.
- The project includes one school with VSAT connectivity in Rasuwa district. Support to this school was conducted in conjunction with the Room to Read library network, who donated computers for the school.
- This project is one of two representatives of the INGO sector in the national Rural Telecenter Coordination Committee (RTCC) at the High Level Commission of Information Technology (HLCIT). HLCIT is a body in the Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology (MoEST). RTCC is a panel of representatives from the government, INGO, NGO, internet provider, and software developer sectors.
The project has been active in this role, providing feedback for interlinking telecenter services with other factors in the value chain, including access to energy.
- The project has advocated for, and contributed to the successful revision of VSAT related government policies both independently, as well as in the capacity of a RTCC member.
- In tune to universal need of a platform for rural users to gain access to web-based services, the project has commissioned Nepal's first Rural Information Gateway portal. This portal will be in Nepali as well as in English, and will contain cross-sector links to information and services provided to rural communities. This activity is expected to bring about direct impacts on all telecenter users throughout Nepal, and is to be conducted with co-funding with the HLCIT.
