BWAFWANO COMMUNITY TELECENTER - ZAMBIA 

Bwafwano Community Telecenter is a telecentre providing training support services to local population around the area. Though not yet connected to the internet, the centre is currently supporting the local communities in training of youth and women in ICTs and general secretarial services. The main clients are mainly women club members from Bwafwano women clubs, district population, government extension staff and travelling public.

The centre was created as a result of the activities of the Bwafwano Central Board. The centre was supported by ZAA-ICT and obtained a grant from the Netherlands Embassy in Lusaka for the centre’s equipment.

• Type of telecentre: non-governmental
• Status: in operation
• Contact person: Ms Joyce Mukando
• Contact details (email): This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
• Address: Mporokoso Bwafwano Central Board, 72 Chishima Road, Mporokoso
• Postal address: P.O Box 470011, Mporokoso
• Province: Northern Province
• Country: Zambia
• Geographical setting: rural

TELECENTRE OPERATION 

1. Socio-economic Context 

1. Coverage: Mporokoso District level
2. Project: Integration of ICTs into Mporokoso Bwafwano Central Board: Bwafwano Telecentre + 4 satellites in district
   • Start of project: 2008
   • Funding by: own resources/Int. NGOs/Netherlands Embassy Zambia
   • Pilot initiative
3. Languages spoken in district: Bemba, Namwanga, Lungu, Mambwe,Tabwa, Bisa and English

2. Institutional Context 

1. Ownership of telecentre: Governance/Management by NGO
2. Participation
   • Community participation in the planning/implementation of telecentres: Yes
   • Women participation: Yes
3. Human Resource Management (HRM) – Paid staff: Yes
4. Telecentre has staff to assist the users to access information (Infomediaries): Yes

3. Financial Context 

1. Telecentre is financially self-sustainable: Yes
2. Telecentre has a financial sustainability plan: Yes
3. Costs: Average setup costs for one telecentre (in USD): 20,000
4. Costs: estimate of average monthly operational costs in (USD)(power, salaries, communication, maintenance etc): 4,000
5. Income: Average number of users at main telecentre per month: 800
6. Sources of revenue: Membership fees, Business services, Training fees, Consultancies, Repair fees, Income from events organized.

4. Facilities 

1. Telecentre at specific location in local community:
   • Main Telecentre: Bwafwano Central Board
   • Satellite centres: school or clinic
2. Special housing facilities e.g. conference room): Yes (in Main Telecentre)
3. Special security measures: Yes
4. Access arrangements
   • for women specific: Yes
   • for disabled people: Yes
   • for Illiterate people: Yes.

5. Technology 

1. Connectivity: Mobile phone (Prepaid)
2. ICT applications used: Email; Internet; Computer applications; mobile phone voice calls/text messaging
3. Renewable energy solutions applied (e.g. solar energy): No

6. Services 

1. Specific focus of services of telecentre (or initial focus of telecentre project)
   • Access to (Local) Government services: Yes
   • Agriculture (e.g market prices): Yes
   • Health: Yes
   • Tourism: Yes
   • Learning: Yes
   • Mobile phone services: Yes
   • Training services: Yes
2. Services provided at telecentre in order of importance:
   • Word processing
   • Photocopying
   • Printing
   • Faxing
   • Internet access
   • Scanning
   • Training - short computer courses
   • Library
   • Main line phone services
   • Market prices
3. Services provided at telecentre in order of revenues:
   • Word processing
   • Photocopying
   • Printing
   • Training - short computer courses
   • Internet access
   • Faxing
   • Scanning
   • Main line phone services
   • Market prices
4. Main training services provided at your telecentre:
   • Literacy training;
   • Formal education programme;
   • Basic computer/ICT skills;
   • Computer Network;
   • Web design;
   • Telecenter management;
   • Entrepreneurship (SME) development;
   • Agricultural skills;
   • Fishing skills;
   • Environment Education;
   • Nutrition and Health Education;
   • Training on craft works, painting, drawing;

7. Content (Development) 

1. Type of Content that is provided:
   • Agricultural practices;
   • Market prices;
   • Health information;
   • AIDS/HIV information;
   • Water and Sanitation information;
   • Social welfare;
   • Tourism information;
   • (Local)Government information;
2. Languages of content: English and (local language) Bemba
3. Format of content:
   • Text (printed): Yes
   • Electronic text format (Word/pdf files): Yes
   • Posters: Yes
   • Presentations/extension: Yes
   • Video clips: Yes
   • Audio clips: Yes
   • Radio programmes: No
   • Drama: Yes
   • Sensitization meetings: Yes

Collaboration with information providers: 

1. Ministry of Agriculture
2. Ministry of Health – local hospital
3. Office of the District AIDS Coordinating Advisor (DACA)
4. Ministry of Community Development and Social Welfare
5. Nongovernmental coordinating council (NGOCC) and other local NGO’s
6. Zambia Association for Advancement of ICTs.

The liberalization of the African economies has boosted considerably the telecommunication sector. This includes an exponential growth of mobile services. In addition, the interoperability of Telecoms devices with other ICTs especially the Internet, has opened up new avenues for information and communication in remote rural areas.

With more than 250 million subscribers today in Africa, subscriptions to mobile phones have risen from just five per cent - 5% - in 2003 to well over 30 per cent today. The high ratio of mobile cellular subscriptions to fixed telephone lines and the high mobile cellular growth rate, suggest that Africa has taken the lead in the shift from fixed to mobile telephony. Despite the relative high cost of telecommunication (it is estimated that from 10 to 17% of the monthly revenue of many Africans is devoted to mobile calls compare to 5% in most developed countries), many observers consider today that mobile phones will be (are) the “death knell” of telecentres.

However, most of the research that looks at the use of mobile phones in developing countries focuses on the supply side. The literature lacks qualitative research that looks in detail at different sub-sectors of the economy, and assesses how individuals interact with other entrepreneurs now that new methods are available for obtaining information

[Thomas Molony, 2008]

 Moreover, for an increased number of analysts, mobile phones should be considered as a value adding channel for teleservice operators and rural communities as they take information directly into homes [Pete Cranston, 2010]. In many African countries, development actors have started looking at ways of integrating mobile devices in telecentre activities. An example, is the MoMeals project launched by Ugabytes with the support of CTA, to assist farmers accessing expert market information, farm input sellers, farm output buyers, and information on improved farm technologies and farming facilities.

 In this workspace, we would like to invite you to discuss the followings:

• Describe cases where policies have influenced notably the cost of mobile devices and increased mobile utilization. Use figures and references as much as possible.

• Give cases where Telecentres used mobile devices to provide alternative services: reference, advisory services, agricultural e-diagnostic, e-transactions etc.;

• Give cases on where Mobile devices are being used by rural communities in African countries or elsewhere for trade, knowledge sharing, extension etc. What are the possible linkages with Telecentre?

Websites

CTA Observatory on Mobile devices

Connect Africa

Association for Progressive Communications (APC)

Mobile device - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Telecentre.org

Quick access to Documents

IDRC. 2006.2. The Future of Africa is Mobile. Url: http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-93967-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html (accédé le 25/06/2010)

CTA. 2009. Mobile Device Discussion Paper Url: http://observatory2009.cta.int/pdf/Mobile-Devices-Discussion-Paper.pdf

Molony, Thomas.2008. Running out of credit: the limitations of mobile telephony in a Tanzanian agricultural marketing system. (Abstract) Url: http://1humano.com/mediawiki/images/4/40/RunningOutOfCredit.pdf

Donner,  Jonathan; Marcela Escobari.2009. A review of the research on mobile use by micro and small enterprises (MSEs). Url: http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1812533 (accede le 25/06/2010)