[UgaBYTES] Are telecentres simply big dreams of science?

[Betty Iyamuremye]

It’s a hot afternoon as I approach Nakaseke sub-county headquarters in
Nakaseke District, Uganda. This is the location of a telecentre that has
come to play a very vital role in the lives of the local community.

“You are most welcome”, a gentleman reading a newspapers grins as he
ushers me into the big building. Inside are several clean and neatly
arranged computers. A door to the right is illuminated with a label: ‘ON
AIR’, implying that broadcasting is done in there.

My urge to enter the studio is interrupted when my colleague suggests that
we go to the business centre that is on the left, instead. Apparently she
had sighted James Senabulya, the programme manager and IT trainer at the
centre.

Nakaseke Multipurpose Community Telecentre is part of a series of pilot
initiatives to introduce, test, disseminate, and assess the impact and
viability of multipurpose community telecentres (MCT) in Africa.
Senabulya says this telecentre is within the framework of the Africa
Information Society Initiative (AISI) and in line with the Buenos Aires
Action Plan (BAAP) Programme No. 9 on Integrated Rural Development.

In late 1990s, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), UNESCO
and IDRC agreed to join efforts with national and local organisations to
plan and support pilot telecentres.

The phrase ‘telecentre’ is usually associated with rows of computers and
telephones assembled in an area for communal use. However, a telecentre is
usually more than that. At Nakaseke telecentre, there are 16 community
satellite telecentres (CSTs) in all parishes of Kasangombe and Nakaseke
sub-counties. These centres are run by elected parish media committees
with voluntary resident administrative assistants who provide miniature
telecentre activities.

These were established to take MCT services nearer to remote areas as well
as operate as feedback mechanism on information and communication needs of
these communities.

But are these telecentres simply big dreams of science without real
practical use for the ordinary men and women in the villages?

Well, to Ruth Nakanwagi, this telecentre is a dream come true. Nakanwagi
is an instructor at Adventist Development Relief Agency (ADRA), a
non-governmental organisation under Functional Adult Literacy (FAL).

“As an instructor, I have utilized facilities at this telecentre but most
importantly, the community radio,” Nakanwagi says.

In March 2008, this telecentre received a World Space Satellite Radio
(WSSR) from UNESCO that has not only helped the programme manager to boost
content but also helped the community to access information on
agricultural practices, HIV/AIDS, sanitation issues, gender related
issues, and environment among others.

WSSR broadcasts 50 channels from which Nakaseke FM (102.9) is able to tap
international news, days’ events, etc. We re-broadcast BBC news direct
from WSSR, Senabulya says. He adds that since there is no other English
programme on this radio, BBC news has enormous listenership. “For those
who do not know English, we translate information into Luganda so as to
assist the illiterate,” he adds.
It is not only the ITC that has found favour in the hearts of the Nakaseke
community but the book library is very much loved too especially by
students in surrounding schools.

“I visit this library on a daily basis. After school, I always fix time to
come here at least for an hour so that I read a book. I love reading
stories,” says Nankanjja Daphine, a primary five pupil at Nakaseke Public
School. Adding: “I make sure I am at home by 6:00 pm, and so, I usually
optimally utilize the little time I have while at the centre.”

In addition to books on diverse subjects, the library also has 11 radio
cassette recorders along with audio-cassettes on general topics like world
peace, conflict, culture and tradition; all recorded in the local language
and are double decked to allow local content production and dubbing.

The users at the business unit which comprise of the telephone and
secretarial services dominate the centre during morning hours and
according to Senabulya, telephone services is currently the biggest income
earner for the centre.
Having acquired a new Amper licea 2000 machine, the telecentre has managed
to have a stronger internet and telephone connection. Other facilities at
the business unit include fax, education videos, and photocopiers among
others.

In the afternoons, computer and internet users visit the centre. The MCT
runs a computer-applications training program in both primary and
secondary schools, for students on holiday, at the Primary Teachers
College (PTC) nearby, and for the general public. Recently, a
primary-school focused mathematics computer based programme was
introduced.

“The centre is relatively cheap and convenient. After work, many people
are able to visit the centre for IT application.” says Senabulya.
He however says, electricity was the most challenging resource to sustain
but in 2005, IDRC donated a 24-panel solar energy equipment worth USHS 100
million. This he says has reduced powers cuts that used to disrupt
services at the centre.

In a bid to improve internet services at the centre, ministry of
information in partnership with MTN Uganda are soon extending wireless
internet connection to Nakaseke, targeting the telecentre as a server.
After implementation of this proposal that was made by ITU, the wireless
connection is expected to supply Nakaseke Hospital, Nakaseke sub county
offices, Nakaseke International College, Mazolid College and monastery.

Telecentres in Africa
In Africa and elsewhere, public facilities are needed for basic access,
and for value-added services that can contribute to the social and
economic welfare of the community.
With ICT taking a firm hold on the world, and support from organizations
such as UNESCO, ITU, IDRC and a number of other international development
agencies, the concept has quickly spread across Africa.


Sustainability is most challenging in telecentre movement. Without donor
funding, most telecentre have closed shop. Most times, telecentres always
fail to plan or run self-sustaining projects to survive. The challenges
should not only be addressed by the international funders but also the
users and local organisations.

Other model telecentres in Uganda include Kacwekano in Kabale, Nabweru in
Kampala district, Buwama in Mpigi district. There are, however, other
telecentres with usually a single phone line (possibly GSM cellular),
three-in-one scanner/printer/copier, a fax machine and a PC with a
printer, Internet such as Kubere Information Centre in Apac, Buganda
Telecentre among others.

Be as it may, Nakaseke telecentre is a one of the success story of the
telecentre movement in Africa and the world at large. How it pans out in
the coming years will point to the full entry of ordinary Africans into
the ICT era.