INDIAN TELECENTRE FORUM 2006

23-25 August 2006
New Delhi, India


Telecentresfor Community
Development in Rural Bangladesh
Presenter: Prof. LutforRahman
Association for Advancement of Information Technology (AAIT)
Dhaka, Bangladesh

How to define telecentre?Telecentreis a tool to create good paying jobs that change life style of concerned peopleTelecentre:a community resourcecentrethat provides various services concerned with ICT


Introduction of AAIT :



Association for Advancement of Information Technology (AAIT)
NGO established in 1996 in cooperation of Commonwealth Science Council (CSC) and Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH), Tanzania, East Africa
The purpose of the initiative is to reach benefit of technology to people living inIslands and Highlands in BangladeshTelecentreis becoming a new hope for the community people of rural Bangladesh



Three initiatives to make the project sustainable:

· Empowering women scientists, technologists, researchers, decision makers and medical professionals with ICT -1996
· Establishing “Indigenous Science and Technology at Ikrail(ISTI) ResourceCentre”in a River Island -2000
· Establishing an ICT based University in rural atmosphere of Bangladesh -2001


Problems identified from technical point of view


· Bangladesh lack economic resources and indigenous techno-

· Scientific capabilities to deploy modern technology infrastructures

· Shortage of skilled and experienced scientists and technologists
· Shortages of Teaching, Learning materials and Modern equipment
· Shortage of medical doctors, nurses and other health related experts

· Inefficiency in matching technology for solving specific problems





Problems


•People are afraid of technology at all levels
•Policy makers are more interested in importing
technologists rather than creating local experts
•Lack of confidence of decision makers over local
techno-scientific talents and experts


Possible Solutions


Empowering senior decision makers with ICT skills


Empowering medical professionals with ICT to introduce telemedicine where distance is the main factor


Introducing ICT courses at different levels of education to develop awareness about the benefit telecentres


Establishing ICT based universities and institutes in rural areas
Establishing ICT based knowledgecentreand Remote Area Network such as ISTI


Telecentresare emerging as a symbol of new hope for community people Tele-services and teleworkingsare also becoming effective to common people in various ways


Participants in the programsParticipants’qualifications spanned life sciences, physical sciences, social sciences and engineering drawn from NGOs, private sectors, individuals, Government and semi government organizations, universities and institutions


Regional courses for Women Medical Professionals

The courses were designed in the context of Bangladesh for senior medical professionals engaged in the fields of Nutrition, Psychology, Anatomy, Microbiology, Bio-Chemistry, Bio-technology, Gynecology and related fieldsPurposeExtension of modern health benefits to the remotest population through ICT.


ISTI ResourceCentreISTI (Indigenous Science and Technology atIkrail) ResourceCentrewas established in cooperation of the trained professionals to implement the concept of telemedicine and tele-education in a remote river island as a pilot project.Lives of many serious patients of the region are now saved due to applications of ICT. Life style of people have started changing from traditional/indigenous to modern ways.
Establishing an ICT based university in 2001:
Recognizing the importance of ICT, an initiative was taken for establishing an ICT based university
in a remote village as a Challenge in cooperation of two NGOs: AAIT & TMSS.


Purposes


· To reach benefit to rural people particularly girls of the region through empowering them with relevant technology


· To give them wide scope of using ICT as a competitive weapon


· To use ICT as a vehicle for improving quality of life of local people


Tele-services and teleworkingare also becoming effective to common people

Telecentresare emerging as a symbol of new hope for community development in rural Bangladesh

Lessons

To solve real world problems, information as well as rudimentary thinking skills is also important`
Each country must learn form the body of knowledge that is growing worldwide.

Success
It is too early to determine key success factors and sustainability, but lessons that are relevant to other developing countries have started to emerge: