Govt to boost partnership on rural ICT development
Govt to boost partnership on rural ICT development
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
In a world that is increasingly connected, even rural farmers can
make use of the Internet to broaden their access to global
markets.
Suhar, a 28-year-old bean farmer from Bojonegoro, East Java,
has enjoyed increased orders as a result of posting his product
profile on the Internet. He did this when a community learning
center, equipped with computers and Internet, was set up in his
village.
Because of the tangible benefits that rural populations
derive from information and communication technology (ICT), the
government is planning to build up to 100 more telecenters next
year.
"We hope to build 50 more telecenters, and upgrade some 50
villages under the USO (universal service obligation) program,
with Internet connections next year," Partnerships for E-
Prosperity for the Poor (PE-PP) national project manager Zulfikar
M. Rachman said on the sidelines of a national ICT seminar on
Wednesday.
A Telecenter is an information and community development
center using Internet connections as a basis. Local communities
can enjoy access to information in a center equipped with
computers, printers and scanners.
The National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) has run
the PE-PP program with the assistance of the United Nations
Development Program (UNDP) since 2004.
The UNDP has granted US$1 million for a five-year program that
is expected to boost ICT penetration throughout the country.
According to data from the International Telecommunications
Union (ITU), the telephone penetration rate in Indonesia stands
at 8 percent on average for both fixed lines and cellular phones,
while the computer penetration rate is about 4 percent.
Currently, six telecenters have been set up in villages in
East Java, Central Java, South East Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi,
Gorontalo and Papua.
PE-PP also signed an agreement at Wednesday's seminar with
telecommunications infrastructure developer PT Pasifik Satelit
Nusantara (PSN) to develop more of the centers.
Each center will require Rp 100 million (about $10,000) to Rp
150 million for hardware, and another Rp 300 million for a year
of community development assistance.
The assistance aims to optimize the use of information as well
as creating local community-participatory programs that utilize
the telecenters.
Separately, Microsoft Indonesia has since 2003 worked together
with non-governmental organizations to develop a similar program
by setting up Community Training and Learning Centers (CLTCs).
As of today, there are 28 CLTCs nationwide, giving 80,000
rural villagers access to the Internet as well as providing basic
computer training for 14,000 people.
The program is part of Microsoft's global initiative to
provide ICT access to rural communities.
The company said that it would focus on giving ICT access to
farmers next year, by setting up eight to 10 more CLTCs.