[UgaBYTES] Wireless Africa

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I like it.That is another good move.
How to replicate the service to we small small telecenters.
Thanks
Mark Farahani


--- On Sat, 11/22/08, Cleopa Timon Otieno <timonson at googlemail.com> wrote:

> From: Cleopa Timon Otieno <timonson at googlemail.com>
> Subject: [UgaBYTES] Wireless Africa
> To: ugabytes at lists.ugabytes.org
> Date: Saturday, November 22, 2008, 8:34 AM
> The just concluded IDRC funded Wireless Africa Project
> facilitated by Meraka
> Institute, CSIR introduced simple technological solutions
> Africa as
> continent needs at this time and age. Voice over IP and
> Wireless Internet
> Service Provider (VOIP in a box, and WISP in a box, mesh
> potato, Village
> Telco, Internet and Phone billing) Through WISP internet
> link can be shared
> amongst neighbors such as schools, organizations and
> institutions and have a
> billing system which enables the host to monitor, control
> and bill users.
> This was a technical and business workshop; to build
> technical capacity to
> extend existing networks through introduction of new
> technologies and use
> the business model skills acquired sustain it.  The
> workshop brought
> together over 13 African countries (refer to website), with
> two
> representatives each. Most technological solution use the
> open hardware and
> software to create robust equipment affordable to Africa
> and built with
> Africa in Mind. The technologies are simplified and often
> referred to as
> being in a 'BOX'. The amazing part, the equipments
> are low power too.
> 
> The future according to the facilitators Alberto
> Escudero-Pascual and Louise
> Berthilson founders  of IT46, a Swedish consultancy company
> with focus on
> information technology in developing regions is that the
> solutions should be
> a plug and play piece of equipment that any one can plug
> into an existing
> network (LAN or WAN) to give it more functionality.  The
> team wouldn't be
> complete without Sebastian Büttrich is a generalist in
> technology with a
> background in scientific programming and physics.
> Originally from Berlin,
> Germany, he worked with IconMedialab in Copenhagen from
> 1997 until 2002. He
> holds a Ph.D. in quantum physics from the Technical
> University of Berlin.
> His physics background includes fields like RF and
> microwave spectroscopy,
> photovoltaic systems, and advanced maths. He held a
> session. He is also a
> performing and recording musician. What a talent. He held a
> captivating
> session on Mesh Networking and internet Billing. Did you
> know that mesh
> networking through use of the very simple networking
> devices can extend your
> wide area network over 200km? It is possible.
> 
> The Wireless Africa consortia was present and was part of
> the very able
> facilitators.
> 
> The underpinning philosophy of the Wireless Africa
> initiative is to develop
> business models that support community owned networks
> whereby the
> infrastructure is owned and/or operated locally; local
> networking costs
> contained within the community and traffic is aggregated at
> the community
> level to save through bulk purchase of bandwidth.
> 
> Read more from http://www.wireless-africa.org
> 
> -- 
> Cleopa Timon Otieno
> Ugunja Community Resource Centre
> www.ugunja.org
> P.O.Box 330-40606
> Ugunja
> Kenya
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