Quick Guide: Telecentres in International Institutions and Donor Agencies

Telecentres, Internet cafes, community multimedia centres, village computing:There are many names for similar initiatives that seek to provideshared public access tocomputers, the Internet andrelated technologies to serve a variety of often inter-related developmental objectives. Various versions of 'telecentre models' can be found in most countries, although questions of long-term sustainability are becoming increasingly acute for many initatives in this area.

'Telecentres'have received a great deal of support and attention from international donor organizations and NGOs in the past decade;IDRC (especially through its support of thetelecentre.org initiative) and UNESCO are two of the leading organizations quite active in this area:

IDRC & telecentre.org

  • telecentre.org
    A quick useful starting point to learn more about a family of initiatives in this area.
  • From the Ground Up : The Evolution of the Telecentre Movement
    A valuable retrospective of how we got to where we are today.
  • Making the Connection: Scaling Telecenters for Development
    A great resource. (with AED & Microsoft)
  • telecentre.org resource library
  • IDRC - Telecentres
  • Assessing Community Telecentres- Guidelines for Researchers
  • Telecentre Leaders Forum (TLF) Workshops (WSIS)
  • Telecentre Evaluation: A Global Perspective

UNESCO

  • Community Multimedia Centres
    The best place to start to learn more about UNESCO's work in this area.
  • From Access to Engagement: Community Access Centres
    A 'photo study'.
  • UNESCO MCT sites in Africa
  • Evaluation Report on UNESCO's Community Multimedia Centre Initiative
  • Ten Steps for Establishing Multipurpose Community Telecentres
  • International Community Telecentre Resources
  • The Community TelecentreCookbookfor Africa
  • A Guide to Community Multimedia Centres
  • Strengthening Community Learning Centres through Linkages and Networks: A Synthesis of Six Country Reports
  • Forging innovations: Community Multimedia Centres in Nepal

Telecentre-related workin other prominent international organizations and NGOs

from ADB:

  • ADB has offered a Distance Learning Course on Community Information Services

from AED:

  • Making the Connection: Scaling Telecenters for Development (withMicrosoft & telecentre.org)

from APC:

  • Telecentres - Training Materials
  • Gender Analysis of Telecentre Evaluation Methodology

from APDIP:

  • e-Note 21: Identifying 'Killer' e-Governance Applications for Telecentres
  • e-Note 19:Telecentre Technology
  • e-Note 14: Telecentre 2.0 – beyond piloting telecentres
  • e-Note 15: Telecentre sustainability – financing ICTs for the poor
  • Apdip also maintains a collection of resources on telecentres.

from COL:

  • Telecentres: Case studies and key issues
  • Using Telecentres in Support of Distance Education

from CTA:

  • Access to ICTs in Rural Areas - The African Telecentre Experience

from CTCnet:

  • CTC Start-Up Manual
  • CTCNet Guide: Access to Action
  • CTC Resource Center

from FAO:

  • Telecenter Sustainability - Myths and Opportunities

from Grameen Foundation:

  • Village Computing: A State of the Field. Reflections on the Village Computing Consultation.

from IDB:

  • Telecenters for Socioeconomic and Rural Development in Latin American and the Caribbean

from ITU:

  • MODULES FOR TRAINING TELECENTRE STAFFS - An Interim Report with Sample Modules
  • New Technologies for Rural Applications
  • Preliminary Evaluation of Telecentre Pilot Projects

from UNDP:

  • Telecottage handbook: How to establish and run a successful telecentre

from UNESCAP:

  • Guidebookon Developing Community e-Centres in Rural Areas: Based on the Malaysian experience

from UNPANB:

  • Themes and Issues in Telecentre Sustainability

from USAID:

  • Powering ICT: An Energy Solutions Toolkit for ICT Projects

from the World Bank:

  • Sustainable Telecenters: A Guide for Government Policy
  • School Telecenters

General telecentre resources

from iTrainOnline:

  • Telecentre Resource List from iTrainOnline

from the Development Gateway:

  • Community Telecenters: Assuring Impact & Sustainability

from Telecentre.org:

  • telecentre.org resource library

from the World Bank:

  • School Telecenters

Othertelecentre initiatives of note

  • Mission 2007 ("Every Village a Knowledge Center")
  • n-Logue Village Kiosk
  • Telecenters of the Americas Partership (TAP)
  • UgaBytes

Additional resources

  • Comparing Approaches: Telecentre Evaluation Experiences in Asia and Latin America
  • Connecting Island Communities: The Emerging Telecentre Movement in the Pacific
  • Indian Telecentre Forum 2006
  • Gender and Telecentres: What Have We Learned?
  • Lessons from the Field: ICTs in Telecenters
  • Wikipedia entry for 'telecentre'

By M. Trucano. Published August 2007.