Show and Tell – Building Telecentres That Matter

Recent turmoil in the global economy has brought with it aftershocks to several development activities. Resources for health, education and poverty eradication are constantly being re-assessed. ICT for development is back on the chopping board. Once again, questions are asked of telecentres: do they contribute to development and how? Should scarce resources be allocated?

If asked, I would say – as sure as sunset. Telecentres are a major engine for development. Sad part, many will not take my word for it. And yes, many to think telecentres are a luxury. I can understand that too. In their defense, the connection between telecentres and development is not obvious. Read, has not been made that natural. Telecentre proponents have yet to make a solid case in plain language that those who matter understand. In several countries, rural communities, private sector, government and others have not placed telecentres (and ICT for community development initiatives) as response to key questions of our time.

I believe this must change or telecentres will struggle bit time. I talk to old friends across Africa, Asia and MENA and the common theme is the challenges of putting telecentres on the development agenda today. The situation will not get better until telecentre practitioners approach their trade differently.

To start with, I submit that telecentres need to be built around a community’s needs. It is back to the basics – getting early planning right. Literally starting from a needs assessment where community’s development activities, challenges and opportunities are identified. This has to be matched with understanding of ways skills are developed and information is accessed as well as associated challenges. “Cooker-cutter” type telecentre services have had their day in the sun. We all know that such services have led to telecentres that attract very little interest because – simply they often do not meet the needs of the community.

Let’s try this out in plain English. For a farming community – we would need to identify the crops, farming practices, pests and disease, harvest seasons, post harvest issues and marketing. The telecentre would then seek to position itself to finding solutions to issues around the farming community.

There would be several ways too. Say, working with local farmers (there is always the best of them all), extension support services, civil society organizations and unions. The telecentre would help farmers to access information they need and develop skills. If the telecentre provides answers to issues of the time, there will be loyalty from the community. Money will come to the community and directly to the telecentre. Development partners will notice because the telecentre will document and share stories of concrete changes in the farmers’ output. Remember that the telecentre provides information on pests and diseases, post harvest management, improving farming practices (controlling erosion and loss of soil fertility).

The story of impact will show and be told. It will include things such as …the telecentre doesn’t have to pay for all this information or expertise because it can connect with various experts whose job is indeed to impact on farming practices in the community. That the experts are always lurking in the community – looking for opportunities for outreach and impact. It would add that the local government provided additional resources to help the telecentre deliver services because the connection to community’s development objectives was crystal clear. In fact, the local government found out that supporting the telecentre was good for the next elections since the farmers frequently use the services.

Telecentres will find it more profitable to work with others – a.k.a. telecentre networks. Needs surveys, identifying community partners and building value-added partnerships are better done with peers. I believe that consolidating the community of practice, pooling resources and working together will make Show and Tell bigger and louder.

An interesting read about connection to community needs: http://www.pdf-finder.com/Sustainable-Telecentres?-Two-Cases-from-India-by.html

Show and Tell – Running Telecentres That Matter

Recent turmoil in the global economy has brought with it aftershocks to several development activities. Resources for health, education and poverty eradication are constantly being re-assessed. ICT for development is back on the chopping board. Once again, questions are asked of telecentres: do they contribute to development and how? Should scarce resources be allocated?

If asked, I would say – as sure as sunset. Telecentres are a major engine for development. Sad part, many will not take my word for it. And yes, many to think telecentres are a luxury. I can understand that too. In their defense, the connection between telecentres and development is not obvious. Read, has not been made that natural. Telecentre proponents have yet to make a solid case in plain language that those who matter understand. In several countries, rural communities, private sector, government and others have not placed telecentres (and ICT for community development initiatives) as response to key questions of our time.

I believe this must change or telecentres will struggle bit time. I talk to old friends across Africa, Asia and MENA and the common theme is the challenges of putting telecentres on the development agenda today. The situation will not get better until telecentre practitioners approach their trade differently.

To start with, I submit that telecentres need to be built around a community’s needs. It is back to the basics – getting early planning right. Literally starting from a needs assessment where community’s development activities, challenges and opportunities are identified. This has to be matched with understanding of ways skills are developed and information is accessed as well as associated challenges. “Cooker-cutter” type telecentre services have had their day in the sun. We all know that such services have led to telecentres that attract very little interest because – simply they often do not meet the needs of the community.

Let’s try this out in plain English. For a farming community – we would need to identify the crops, farming practices, pests and disease, harvest seas http://www.flickr.com/photos/marksurman/148160517/in/photostream/#/photos/marksurman/148160517/in/photostream/lightbox/ons, post harvest issues and marketing. The telecentre would then seek to position itself to finding solutions to issues around the farming community.

There would be several ways too. Say, working with local farmers (there is always the best of them all), extension support services, civil society organizations and unions. The telecentre would help farmers to access information they need and develop skills. If the telecentre provides answers to issues of the time, there will be loyalty from the community. Money will come to the community and directly to the telecentre. Development partners will notice because the telecentre will document and share stories of concrete changes in the farmers’ output. Remember that the telecentre provides information on pests and diseases, post harvest management, improving farming practices (controlling erosion and loss of soil fertility).

The story of impact will show and be told. It will include things such as …the telecentre doesn’t have to pay for all this information or expertise because it can connect with various experts whose job is indeed to impact on farming practices in the community. That the experts are always lurking in the community – looking for opportunities for outreach and impact. It would add that the local government provided additional resources to help the telecentre deliver services because the connection to community’s development objectives was crystal clear. In fact, the local government found out that supporting the telecentre was good for the next elections since the farmers frequently use the services.

Telecentres will find it more profitable to work with others – a.k.a. telecentre networks. Needs surveys, identifying community partners and building value-added partnerships are better done with peers. I believe that consolidating the community of practice, pooling resources and working together will make Show and Tell bigger and louder.

An interesting read about connection to community needs: http://www.pdf-finder.com/Sustainable-Telecentres?-Two-Cases-from-India-by.html

Tools for planning collaborative events with impact

If you ever need to mobilise minds, pool ideas or engage an audience as you plan a presentation, Google moderator http://www.google.com/moderator/ might be what you need. Like most things Google, it is a free applet. It promotes the concept of learning together. We believe that this is a key component of most productive events. It all starts at the planning stage and the way organizers can engage the audience before, during and after the event. It helps organisers to stay away from talking to issues that do not interest the audiences.

Google moderator provides enormous opportunities for running collaborative events with impact. It allows you to set up a question, describe it, attach a video and invite people – openly on the internet or by invitation only (accessible by a directly provided link). Those who visit the page may share new ideas, contribute to existing thoughts or cast a vote. No one can vote more than once, clever eh?

Google moderator also helps in synthesising thoughts to create a pattern. The initiator of the discussion maintains control while providing space to audience (target group) to be heard. So, go on. Make your events truly collaborative. Engage your audience in deciding the talking points at your next event.

Learning from Kids

Next time anyone describes your approach to doing things as "childish", take pride. It means you are ambitious, creative and brave. Yes, I know. Being "childish" used to mean silly and devoid of imagination. Not anymore. We know a lot better now why.

I believe this has been a very unfair way to characterize the kids' way of doing things. You can say its egoistic on the part of adults. For I would not describe my kids as anything less than innovate and seeking to the push boundaries of knowledge - all the time. Impossible is nothing to them. It is perhaps true about your, his and her kids.

Adora Svitak - a prodigy kid with enormous profile for her boldness on reading and writing says as much. At seven she had written and created thousands of blogs. Adora invites adults to stop constraining kids thinking with limitless "not possible comments" but instead adopt the kids' fearless, creative approach to doing things. Adora is a huge ambassador for literacy. Read more about this paradigm shift at: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/lang/eng/adora_svitak.html

When you thought there is nothing to learn from kids. Approach any encounter with kids as a learning opportunity.

Learning is challenging conditions

What environment do kids in your community learn from? As you are still at it, take a look at this photo. It’s an aerial view of an elementary school in Monrovia, Liberia. I took it on one my interaction with Liberian educators and students.

In case the photo does not show it well. Three classes are using a hall less than 30 x 60 meters at the same time. They are separated by cupboards but because the partitions don’t connect to the ceiling or create a wall to wall effect, the noise level in the hall is striking. I spent at least 30 minutes within the hall, moving between classrooms and wondering how kids were able to filter their teachers’ instructions from those of the class behind the partition. Each class was learning something different and at some point requiring group response – a.k.a. chorus answers. I noticed that teachers had to strike a balance between speaking loud enough for their students to hear while not interrupting the next class. Well, despite such difficult learning conditions, students were very enthusiastic and excited to learn. They enjoyed learning and constantly asked questions. I was humbled.

In fact, I left the school wondering how different learning outcomes would have been if only the students had a better learning environment. Bravo to the teachers for all the work.

Open telecentres - better view

This is even a better angle to understand the "open telecentres" in Monrovia. I am sure it responds well to the reader who asked me how popular this model is around Monrovia. The photo also shows the variety of technologies and possible services - helps us to appreciate the location and organization of these telecentres.

open telecentres in Liberia

A few weeks ago, I retold the story of an open, mobile telecentre in Monrovia. Yes, the one which moved when it rained heavily. I have since found several other locations with this brand. Makes me think: "telecentres Liberian style". Frankly, if you were to remove the cost of infrastructure (walls, roof, doors etc) telecentre services for all by year -- (fill in your choice) should be achievable a few years early. With internet access via GSM, clients should be able to surf too! Food for thought within the telecentre.org community.

Localizing Global Anti-Poverty Initiatives

Poverty is the most important challenge of this century and hits Africa the hardest. Through the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the international community committed to reduce the proportion of people worldwide between 1990 and 2015, who live on less than a $1 per day by one-half. While progress has been made in several countries, it is slow and appears largely reversible. For example, there are general fears that due to the recent global food crisis, increased cost of energy, severe drought and floods, at least 100 million more people will soon fall into the poverty bracket. Another challenge is the high disease burden which is leading to increased productivity loses and labor diversion in Africa. These will combine to eat away gains made in the past several decades. To this end, Africa needs to renew approaches to poverty eradication and particularly prioritize issues that increase the continent’s vulnerability such as relevant education and improving health outcomes.

Education for what..?

Africa’s educational system is at cross-roads. There is debate whether the current structure of education can produce cadres that the continent needs to adapt and become more competitive. While literature points to tremendous gains in enrolment through national and international efforts, the general gross enrolment ratio (GER) across Africa remains the lowest in the world. In many countries, the education system struggles with irrelevant curriculum, access equity, poor learning outcomes, weak link with world of work and inadequate financing . Relevance of education is viewed as one of the key factors behind high dropout rates at all levels in Africa.

Alongside fundamental reforms of formal educational systems, Africa needs to popularize functional adult literacy and technical vocational training. Models such as community colleges in Canada and Barefoot College in India might provide a new channel to engage rural women and men to learn practical skills that reduce their vulnerability to poverty. Essentially, it will produce a pool of expertly trained middle-level specialists that are equipped to support smallholder farmers in coping with increasing drought, loss of soil fertility and managing huge on-farm post harvest loses.

One centre, in Africa shows that indeed vocational education can be transformative in the battle against poverty. For more than 20 years, Centre Songhai in Benin has demonstrated how learner-centred vocational training can transform communities from threshold of food crisis to self sustenance. Songhai is a lot similar to Uganda’s Namutamba experimental project on education for rural development that was established in the 70s. Unfortunately, Namutamba never survived its pilot phase despite numerous positive reviews. The Songhai Centre has combined applied research and bio technology, efficient use of local resource with training to create probably the most exciting ecologically balanced and resourceful farm in Africa. The prospects for poverty eradication would be a lot better if Africa could replicate similar vocational education programs that empower vulnerable communities.

Poor health, low productivity

Poor health constrains productivity, undermines food security and poverty eradication initiatives. And because smallholder farmers produce the bulk of agricultural output in Africa, poor health to family members is a major diversion of labor and productivity whose shock is quickly felt across communities. African’s women are the most vulnerable to poor health impacts yet they contribute most of the labor used to produce food both for household consumption and for sale. The scale of Africa’s health challenges can be summarized as follows: with only 11% of the world’s population, the continent has the highest burden of disease, seven times higher than high income countries. South-East Asia and Africa bore 54% of the global burden of disease in 2004 . HIV/AIDS, diarrhea, malaria, neonatal infection are the core causes of the burden of disease. Even worse, climate change is now complicating efforts to control known diseases while aiding emergence of new vectors, some which had been controlled in the past.

Poverty eradication has got a lot to do with improving health outcomes in Africa. If unleashing the full potential of women is critical anti-poverty programming, health conditions that affect women need to be prioritized. It is possible to leverage new technologies in a wide range of eHealth applications that increase efficiency and effectiveness of the health services. Additionally, the continent needs to strengthen climate change adaptation capacities at community and national levels.

Africa can pull itself out of poverty. It is a statement millions of people in rural communities across the continent would like to hear more often. And the development community can provide credible hope by re-aligning approaches in a way that prioritize the most vulnerable people. This is possible by helping communities to adapt, cope and become more resilient to new global challenges faster and efficiently.

Telecentres – pushing the boundaries

You have already seen ice cream corns under an umbrella. I now present to you telecentre services under an umbrella. Yes, we have wheels too for mobile.

I found this innovative model in the suburbs of Monrovia, Liberia. The owner, Robert explained to me how it works. He provides a wide range of secretarial services - typesetting, scanning, ID cards, lamination etc. I asked Robert what happens on rainy afternoon - which is often, by Monrovia weather. You see the little kiosk on the right on the photo? Well, he runs in with the telecentre. Good that it’s also fitted with wheels for maximum mobility. Check out the power generator in the background. It is turned on demand only.

When it rained the next day, I went back to see Robert - in the middle of the heavy pour. The second photo is what I found. The Umbrella is covering the power generator the rest is sheltered somewhere else.

Next time you think of a telecentre - you can think outside the box