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A problem shared is a problem halved: knowledge sharing between rural telecentres in Burkina Faso
| Source: | Wendpanga Malick Sawadogo |
| Country: | Burkina Faso [BF] |
Many community telecentres in Burkina Faso have similar problems: poor Internet connectivity; frequent power-cuts, a lack of locally relevant content, and no access to outside technical support because of their remote location. These problems are further aggravated by the huge discrepancies in technical skills among the different telecentre managers. So why not meet up regularly through a single online platform to share experiences, technical know-how and resources?
A few weeks ago in May 2007 such an online platform was created in Burkina Faso: the "Groupe Cybercentres Communautaires du Burkina Faso”. It now links more than 40 individuals online and supports the exchange of knowledge and experiences between community telecentres in Burkina Faso. The platform is the outcome of a partnership between Burkina NTIC (Burkina Faso’s national ICT4D (ICT for development) knowledge sharing network), telecentre.org and IICD. It is managed on a day-to-day basis by Wendpanga Malick Sawadogo, with regular assistance provided by Sylvestre Ouédraogo of the Burkina NTIC network.
This online platform for managers of community telecentres has been integrated into the broader national network of Burkina NTIC. Burkina NTIC provides a national ICT4D forum for all those either interested in, or otherwise involved in, ICT for development in Burkina Faso and has a broad range of members from civil society organisations and public sector bodies to private companies. It also has a dynamic, state-of-the-art website at www.burkina-ntic.org which will soon incorporate Web 2.0 tools such as RSS and blog options and runs a number of dgroups (www.dgroups.org). Cross-fertilising exchanges have already taken place between members of the telecentre network and the TIC-EDUC network – a network that unites teachers working with ICT in education in Burkina Faso.
The "Groupe Cybercentres Communautaires du Burkina Faso” does not plan to restrict its meetings to cyberspace. The idea is to complement the online discussions with face-to-face meetings in the future. This will give the telecentre managers the chance to follow training courses together and develop joint action plans. Before any of this can happen, however, an inventory of individual skills and common problems shared by the telecentres will have to be prepared. By combining their strengths and pooling their intellectual resources in this way, the telecentre managers will be better equipped to serve their individual communities.
By Wendpanga Malick Sawadogo