Tài liệu rural informatization in china pptx

Better rural information infrastructure can provide market information, ‘communication channels, and financial resources to farmers and rural enterprises, enabling these Key players in t

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2 Development of China's Rural Information Infrastructure

Fixed Line Telephony,

43 Rural Informatization Initiatives and Organizational Model

Key Rural Iyformutizniow Actors and InftaWeS se eseersereeieeeee TT Organizational Models for Rural iformatiaton sms

4 Lessons from International Experiences

Government- and Donor-<driven Initiatives and Sustainability 2 Private Sector Participation,

‘The Appeal of the Franchise Model

Hybrid Organizational Models

5 Challenges for Rural Informatization in China

‘Weak Coordination across Ministries and Integration at the Provincial Level on 30

‘Unsustainable Business Models and Over-reliance on Government Financing 32

Raise Public Awareness and Build Capacity serene OB

Appendix 2 Analysis of Fighteen Pilot Projects in China

Appendix 3 Impact Eval

nformatization Pilots

Appendix 4, A Framework for Evaluation of Eighteen Pilot Projets

ion: Rationale, Definitions and Framework for Rural

Tables

‘Table 21 Information Infrastructure Coverage in China, 2007,

‘Table 31 Rural hyormatizaton Initiatives by Central Ministries and Agencies

‘Table 32 Rural hyformatization Problems and Attempted Solutions

Table AIL, A Framework to Evaluate Project Impact

Table A.3.2 Indicators to Assess Project Impact sumone

Figures

Figure 2.1 Ownership of Television in Urban and Rural Households, 1990-2006

Figure 2.2 Internet Penetration in Urban and Rural China, 2005-07

Figure 23 Personal Compuiter Ownership in Urban and Rural Households, 1999-

2006

Figure 2.4 Place of Internet Access, 2007

Figure 3.1 Key Elements of Rual Inormatization Pilot Initiatives

Figure 5.1 Population and Investment Segmentation in China

Figure A.3.1 Developing Performance and Impact Indicators

Boxes

Box 2.1 Central Government Strategies for Rural Informatization, 2001 to Present sn Box 3.1 Government Mode!

Box 32 Telecommunications Provider Model

Box 33 Professional Association/Cooperative Model

Box 3.4 Franchise/Entrepreneurial Model

`

Box 41, Public Programs of Access Centers in Chile -

Box 42 E-Choupal: An Evolving Infrastructure for Rural Transformation : Box 43, CDE: A Social Franchise Targeting Disadvantaged Urban Youth

Box 44 Gyandoot Program in India

"

15

im SP

The Government of China continues to advance te informatization process as part ofits strategy to reduce rural poverty and improve the living conditions of farmers Finding sustainable models that can be scaled will be critical for China to achieve

‘equitable development across regions, and to reduce the rural-urban divide

The Government of China and the World Bank share a long history of collaboration It is my hope that this working paper will serve to deepen the understanding of the role of informatization in meeting China's economic and social needs, particularly with regards to improving livelihoods and creating opportunities for the rural population We also hope that the experience and lessons discussed here will be useful to other countries,

| would like to express our most sincere thanks to the Advisory Committe for State Information in China for its dedicated support throughout the preparation ofthis study

‘Mohsen A Khalil Director, Global Information and Communication

‘Technologies Department The World Bank Group

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

hina's recent economic growth has expanded industrialization and urbanization,

‘upgraded consumption, increased social mobility, and initiated a shift from an economy based on agriculture to one based on industry and service Still, more than half of China's people sil live in rural areas—where average income per capita is less

than a third of the urban average!, a gap that is among, the largest in the word Reducing these differences i critical to building a harmonious, inclusive society

In its 11th Five-Year Plan (covering 2006-2011), China has adopted 2 new development paradigm that emphasizes the building of » Harmonious Society (he xe she lau) with more balanced development across regions The new development paradigm adopts a “scientific view of the development process” that emphasizes sustainable growth and “peoplecentered.” Accordingly, the government has substantially increased its commitment 40 pro-pooe, proxrural programs This new approach is reflected in numerous official statements and many new progtams ftroduced in recent years

‘The government is exploring new ways of reducing rueal poverty and improving the living conditions of farmers Until recently China's poverty alleviation efforts had focused on tackling absolute poverty, but with attention now being turned toward relative poverty reduction and narrowing the rural-urban income divide, injormatiston’—defined as the transformation of an economy and society driven by information and communications technology (ICT) =Is increasingly being explored as

4 way of helping poor people

Rural populations have dramatiealyinereased thee demand for new technologies, polices, and market information, and obtaining useful information ina timely manner has become critical to the rural economy and society With the arival of the information age, the market economy in ruta areas has been growing, and competition

in the expanding economy necessitates access to information—especially in agriculture, which is particulary reliant on information ICT is being perceived as an eflective tool for disseminating information resources widely and costeectively

‘This report draws from background research conducted by the Advisory

‘Committe for State lnformatization, and attempts to provide an overview of China’s rural ICT development primarily in the past 15 years The report first describes the status of China's rural informatizaton infrastructure Ie then reviews exiting rural ICT initiatives in China and summarizes them by organizational models Intemational examples are included t draw lessons from Finally, the challenges of ural infonatization ate examined, and policy recommendations identified to address them.

Notes

"China wrban-rral income gap continues to widen

-mupin zeuters.com/articlelasiaCompany AndMarketsjigINPEKI715020080124

2 The term “inormatsaton” was coined by Simon Nora and Alain Minc in thee publication Lnjormatisation dea soit: Rapport M le Président dea République which was wanslated in English in 1980 as The Computerization of Society: A repr! tothe President of France However, in an ail published in 1987—"The Informatistion of Society” in Evolution ofan lnformation Soil,

‘edited by AE Cavell (London: ASLIB)~Minc preferred to use informatisaion and not

‘computerization This publication uses the Americanized spelling “informatization” and italcizes all genera usages ava borrowed “foreign” word,

‘mounting area of concem, encouraging the development of numerous policies and initiatives to promote rural informatization and better equip all citizens for participation

in the new global order

Key development objectives of rural iformatizaton in China include;

Catching up with more advanced regions Informatization could facilitate contacts and exchanges between China's central and westem regions and mone developed regions, allowing farmers and agro-businesses obtain technologies and market information that enable them to make full use oftheir

‘comparative advantages in developing new products and increasing trade,

‘market share, and ultimately incomes Furthermore, leading, agto-businesses

in developed regions can show small and low-value industries in less advanced regions how to improve their management and technological skills and market competitiveness, reducing regional gaps

Integrating and modernizing the rural market economy Most rural enterpri rural China are small and private, Given their isolation and weak financial foundation, the market economy in rural areas remains underdeveloped Better rural information infrastructure can provide market information,

‘communication channels, and financial resources to farmers and rural enterprises, enabling these Key players in the rural economy to enter markets and increase their diversification and competitiveness, Such infrastructure can

đo so by facilitating better farming techniques, helping to choose crops 10 plant in response to market information, improving production and resource management (for example, through geographic information systems), and reducing marketing costs ancl exploitation by intermediaries,

Strengthening delivery of social and public seroices Goveenment information support systems should aim to capture timely, accurate, comprehensive data

3

‘on local economies and social activities One approach to improving public service delivery is to integrate information on rural economies, science and technology, education, health, social protection, and other areas, The resulting

‘common infrastructure and databases can then be shared across ministries and regions in support of rural service delivery

Augmenting income and nonagricultural employment through diversification and increased productivity With information, farmers are better equipped to make important decisions and lear about diversified employment opportunites,

‘With the growing dependence on the services sector, rural economies could benefit from diversifying into providing local ICT-enabled extension services Increasing the quality and relevance of information and the human capacity of the rural population Access to relevant information can transform economic

‘opportunities and improve livelihoods for rural households especially the

‘poor population and young people, Rural informatization not only dinect affects economic development, but it also brings in modem ideas and forward: looking mindsets ftom more advanced regions This can pave the way for transformative ideas and beliefs, increasing rural, social, and cultural capacities in rural aveas

1 Enabling participation im formulating agricultural policies and strategies National evelopment strategies and policies try to involve key stakeholders and the broader public But itis not easy to involve organizations that represent the rural poor In recent years, ICT has been used to engage thousands of rural people in developing countries to deliberate policies The spread of ICT in rural areas makes this type of participatory approach more feasible for dialogue on agricultural policy

‘The Chinese goverment has been promoting rural informatization since the mid 1970s, This process has fallen into three stages During the fist stage, from the mid 1970s to the early 1990s, the initial concept of agricultural informatization emerged from the planned economy’s requitements for agricultural statistics In the 1980s computers began to be introduced, but it was not until the early 1990s that informatizaton grew During the second stage, from the early 1990s to 2000, computerization of agricultural data was introduced and several systems were developed as part of efforts

to establish and improve the socialist market economic system In 1992 the Ministry of Agriculture issued a plan to strengthen the rural economy's information system In addition to promoting rural economic development, construction began on an

‘agricultural information system, Networks developed rapidly and agriculture entered

4 fast track for informatization, with scattered information becoming more networked

In 1994 a new department was set up through the institutional reform of the Ministry

of Agriculture, and every province created an information department for agriculture, uring the third stage, since 2001, the government has attached even more

‘importance to informatizaton, taking it to a new level, as Box 21 Rapid progress has been made in improving services (from simple one-way delivery of government information or services to two-way, interactive delivery), content (from the production fof basic statistics to comprehensive information on production, markets, and technology), and service models (from simple, traditional service models delivered by

Rural fomatizatin in Ching 5

individual goverment departments to innovative partnerships cutting, across departments, the private sector, and civil society) With opening, markets, nascent efforts are being made to expedite informatization, supported by partnerships and _gteater investments by the government, telecommunications companies, and the domestic private sector

Box 2.1 Central Government Strategies for Rural Informatization, 2001 to Present

ln 200' implementation began on the 10th Five-Year Plan of Action for ural markt information Services, In 2003 “Tal economic Information release calendar” was inoduced as the malo

‘system for disseminating agrcutural information, supported by two national conferences These intiaves had postive impacts inside and outside tho agrculval system, leading toa surge Ih {he provision of information systems

In 2006 the 1%th National Economic and Social Development Five-Year Plan propased to integrate agrculture-related information resources, strengthen the rural scanome information

‘appleation sysiom constuction, promole agriculure service organization and mechanism innovation, encourage and guide farmers to develop diferent types of specialized cooperative

‘economic organizations and improve the organization of agricutue.”

‘The elated deployment of agriculture informatizaton in the State Informatzaton Development Strategy, 2006-2020 (issued in 2008 by General Offee of the CPC Cental Commitee and

‘General Office of the State Counc) aims “to use the pubic network wih a vanely of access mathods and affordable prices for farmers, improve rural network coverage, inlograteagrcutral information resources, standardize and completa the publi information intermediary services, bull the urbar-ural information sence system in a concerted manner, provide farmers with

‘appropiate information applications such as market, science and technology, education, healthcare, ec and advocate a reasonable and orderly flow of surplus rural labor”

ln 2007 the Ministy of Agrcuture proposed the Overall Framework for National Agriculture and Rural Informatizaian Constructon, 2007-2015, The svategic goal ofthis framework i to gtealy improve agricultural and rural integrated information infrastructure; enhance moder agicufure

‘ural public services, and socal management uly develop information sorvico organizations ai {he township and vilag lovels; and gradually complete a sustainable developmont mechanism for agricultural and rural nformatzatin—aich would fll the development need of modem 3g0eulure an the construction of new socialist countyside

Sources: My of Aaa We se

‘tong egdet007 2063887 oy

With the increasing priority accorded to infirmatization by the Chinese

‘government, numerous initiatives by the government and by telecom providers have resulted in a steady increase in the coverage of information infrastructre— including fixed line telephony, mobile telephony, radio and television, and the Internet as seen in Table 24 Such initiatives provide an adequate foundation for informatization, especially in rural areas,

‘Table 2.1 Information infrastructure Coverage in China, 2007

Year

Fisod ine telephony |" vllages covered |» 905 pereantof adminiabve | 2007 (LAReview | Minish sper) Industry: Rural of Intrmation

Tobia |» China Hobie’ uralinfommaton | liltad n 2008 | China Daly onine

(lophony | network to improve soos to £860 milion farmers

Radio and | > 117,000-bindadrinaatve | Endof June | Slate Adminstration of leison | villages covered those with 2006 (it Review | Rade, Fm ard Teevsion

{elecommunicaions) + 100,000 bina vitags wih more

‘han 50 hovsehoié covered, + 15,000"back thathad ones, bt ot eco to blind” (wiages ce) ages tepaed

Tntsnet | + 97 percent of ownstips and + 92 percent of townships and towne ‘ilages nave inet overage 20087 cnlne Inausty, China Daly iis of ntormation

have broadband coverage + ovement Silage Internet secsesy 2010, aims to provide every + Inatves underway or oor pts to rach every village and —

Fixed Line Telephony

‘The Ministry of Information Industry has been active in encouraging the spread of fixed line telephony under its initiative to extend telephone coverage to every village Undler this project, in 2007 the six main telecommunications providers shared

‘obligations based on geographic divisions and extended telephone services to 3,759

‘administrative villages that previously had no access, Today 995 percent of

‘administrative villages have fixed ine coverage

450 million RMB (equivalent of USS66 million) to optimize the functions of the

"network, which offers better services to 800 million farmers across China,

Rural fomatizatin in Ching 7

Radio and Television

Efforts to extend radio and television coverage have been led by the State

‘Administration of Radio, Film, and Television, which in 2002 launched a project to

‘extend telecommunications to every village as part of the 10th Five Year Plan By June

2006 investment in covering, administrative villages totaled about 3.64 billion RMB (U8$532 million), This project has reached about 117,000 administrative villages with lectricity but no telecommunications—known as "blind” villages—and repaired services in 15,000 “back to the blind” villages (those had had telecommunication services once, but later lost the services) providing nearly 100 million farmers with access to radio and television As a result rural ownership of personal televisions has steadily increased, reaching 89 percent of houscholds in 2006 (Figure 2.1),

China’s Internet market is migrating from narrowband to broadband access China

‘Telecom and China Netcom, the two main fixed-line operators, have laid out plans for extending broadband access under an initiative to reach every household with fiber

‘optics and started to replace copper cables China Netcom will invest 15 billion RMB (USS22 Billion) to replace the copper cables with fiber optics in the new network, Which will Iaunch in 2008 and is expected to be completed in three to five years (Sina 2007),

In2008 China Netcom planned to implement this initiative in the medium-size and large cities of 10 selected provinces (regions, metropolitans) in northern China, the

‘company’s territory Henan, Shandong, Tianjin have already begun implementing a pilot project to reach every village with fiber optics

‘The number of broadband users in China has grown rapidly in recent years,

‘According to data from the China Internet Network Information Center, the country

‘has 210 million Internet users by the end of 2007—lagging the United States by just 5 rillion, At that time 78 percent of China's Internet users were broadband users (CNNIC 2008)

Sil, significant differences remain between urban and rural Internet development

By the end of 2007 there were 137 million urban Tnternet users in China, accounting for

27 percent of the urban population By contrast, the 53 million rural Internet users accounted for ust 7 percent of the rural population (Figure 22)

Internet access depends on ownership of personal computers (PCs) In 2000 about

10 percent of urban Chinese households owned a PC, compared with less than 05 percent of rural households By 2005 that gap had widened (Figure 2.3) Access charges are one of the main reasons for lack of Intemet access (CNNIC 2008) Intemet access costs average 900 RMB a year per household Given that China's per capita income is still very low—especially in rural areas, at about 3,600 RMB a year—rural household access to the Internet is unlikely to expand anytime soon,

Rural fomatizatin in Ching °

About 54 percent of rural Internet users access it from Internet cafes—a very high share relative to the national average of users accessing the Internet from Internet cafes (@39 percent) Lower rural incomes! explain the lower possession of home computers

in rural areas (Figure 24)

‘There i also a large gap in connection times, with rural users averaging 137 hours,

‘2 week compared with 20 hours a week for urban users Because of their shorter connection times, risal Internet users focus on basie applications such as e-mail and instant messaging, and tend not to make full use of more advanced and integrated applications such as Internet news and e-services (including online banking, shopping, and stock exchanges) That disparity may widen the information gap between urban and rural areas even though basic voice infrastructure in rural areas has improved over the past decade Thus, analyzing the public access business model in rural areas is crucial in terms of Internet development and deployment,

CHAPTER 3

Rural Informatization Initiatives

and Organizational Models

GP itn ith’ goverment space ot big te soda countryside, a growing range of actors have become involved in rural informatistion, These activities have involved an array of organizational models—and,

to succeed, should draw on the wide range of related international experiences

Key Rural Informatization Actors and Initiatives

Goverment agencies

Many goverment ministries and agencies at all levels (from central to local) are involved in rural informatization projects and are pursuing similar goals But these efforts are pursued under each organization's individual mandate and with litle apparent coordination (Table 3.1) Every ministry has initiated its own informatization program, such as the Ministry of Agriculture's Golden Agriculture Project and the Ministry of Culture's National Cultural Information Resources Sharing Project Other key players include the Ministries of Commerce, Education, Information Industry, and Science and Technology {see Appendix 1) Agencies with primary policy and

‘coordination functions have also engaged in national and provincial pilot projects, luding the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, National Development Reform Commission, State Administration of Radio, Tilm, and

‘Television, State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, and Ministry of Finance

‘Table 3.1 Rural Informatization Initiatives by Central Ministries and Agencies

‘Genta Commies ofthe | Chinas canvalavaiege | Modem Distance Leeming of | 2003- Gommunst Pary of | body, wthmembers sowcted | NabonalPary Cadresin | 2006

“Cha (CCCPC) by elocian The commitees | Rural Areas Project

ran focus is improving Sgrewtralproductty and Treressng he ncone of

‘emer,

Table 3.1 (continued)

Minato Arcature | Fist player faunch val | Tiwobin One (Talaphone, | 2005

Infomatzaton projets to | Television, and Compute) Improve the agticaural and | Agree ntoraton

‘ralintgratedwtrmaton | Services Poet"

"ao, and adopt aati Invomatizatonto suppor | Salen Agricul Projet | 2007

‘modem agrcutire, ras! | Oveal Framework of 2007 uslesrves,andaccl | National Agreuture and Rus

‘management Infomatzation, 207-2085, and let projects" | MngtyeCommeee | Rmponsbelofomualng | Thousands of vilages and | 2m5 evelopment sratgis,

‘gaselines and polices of

<domeste ana foregn rade,

‘nvosiment nd interatona

‘anomie cooperation

‘ounships Project Xifa Project (Commercia!_—_| 2008 Infomation sanleessựdem

‘nance and taxation:

peRepes

‘macroeconomic poicy

‘making provides poley

‘vice on macroeconomic feito ‘Facures on ulding network inrastuctue, expancing {elocammunicatons coverage

‘rural areas and promoting, Information technology Spplcations in agate

‘aonai Gutraletomation | 2002 Resources Sharing Project (in cslaborglon win Neesty of Cu)

Distance teaming prjectin | 2093 ral primary and secondary

chao ncolaboralon with inary of Eaveaton)

‘Exend Telephone Coverage | 2004

to Every Vilage Projet 2005 Rural Comprehensive 2006 Aare ntermatzation

Secs Plot Project,

“Taenntingy Mins of Sdence and ‘roves solace and tecnslogy information for

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Table 3.1 (continued)

Navona ‘acroosoromie management | Piet Projea for Rural ‘Under Development | agency under the State Information evelopment Retorm Commasion | formulates poides for Counc wich studies and

‘sconomic and sci evelopment, mains a Salone of esoname 40gegl2s and gues the

‘ver ecangmie sstom

‘estuctuing”

Sa Tncharge of requatng the | Eviond Broadcasting (TV, and | 2008-2010

‘amination Redo,FIm, and | administering of | trosacsetng nustyand radio spectrum | Vilage Project" | Radio) Coverage oevery | (phase 2), Televison forbrosdeastng

Sate Council | Adelberative and coordnaing | Pll Projector Rural Under

Lacing Group | organ laskod with organizing | Iformatzaton in 1,000 Vitages | development

‘fice of Povery | vestgation and subsequent

‘Alewaton and” | researc, formulating

Development | gudetnes,potises ‘or aeveiping the econemy in and plans

backward areas: coordinating the efor fo tacks the key 'esues mieng Tom .3eveopmenllnRatves, supersng, inspecting evelopment projects end facitating the exchange of lessons ecauted

9 Rdpdltvursg govcniRgb]2I080391.102991 hơn

-Rfinglih moleom go enmisson htm

LÄ hdp,/hvww mo cdu chfonglehjnlnetr Em,

fe hupswie mot goenlenglshenglish hit

haps mit goer calc

providers! to share universal access obligations based on geographic divisions These

‘operators inereasingly view rural informa

reach saturation,

ton asa strategic move, as urban markets

Private information technology firs

Maltinational corporations like Intel and Microsoft also play a role in rural iiormatization—particularly in promoting innovation and research and development (R&D) in partnership with domestic public and private actors Intel, for example, is interested in building business in rural China It has two rural projects a joint venture

to build a “farmer PC” and a partnership to provide computers and Internet access through rural chain stores,

“The farmer PC, adapted to meet the low costs and simple needs of farmers, i built locally in a joint venture with tivo local companies Research on former needs is

‘conducted in partnership with the Ministry of Information Industry The rural chain store project is done in partnership with local providers and delivers ICT, training, and information services to farmers through standardized stores in several provinces (aliscussed further in the next section), In adlition, Microsoft has supported not only the creation of 30 community technology learning centers, working with nongovemmental organizations (NGOs) and sometimes local governments in 14 provinces and conducting outreach to disadvantaged groups, also rural computing initiatives In Xinjiang, Microsoft provided digital literacy content and training in libraries

nd Internet Cafes across the area Although these pilots are relatively small they have the potential of providing opportunities for R&D and access to global best practices

[Nongovernmental organizations and professional cooperatives

NGOs take bottom-up approaches to rural informatizatim, typically targeting the poorest rural areas, For example, the Poverty Alleviation and Development Association of China launched the Village Net Project in December 2006, and has already set up three pilot projects in Yang-ga0 County of Shanxi Province, a typical underdeveloped agricultural production area; Wu-yi-shan City of Fujian Province,

‘which has represented the county-level city with featured economy; and Pengcjie Town

in Tai-zhou City of Zhejiang Province, which is the representative of more developed

‘Organizational Models for Rural Informatization

A growing number of pilot projects have emerged in recent years under the direction

of the actors noted above—wor

engaged in rural ICT development efforts—to address the problems of rural iiformatization in China using innovative service offerings ancl business models Key slements of the business models for these pilot projects are described in Table 32 See

‘also Figure 3

Jing individually or in partnership with other members

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‘Table 3.2, Rural Informatization Problems and Attempted Solutions

oor eisai an ina aera aFICT | Shave usage an swin zane pola aah aa

xem ‘elecentarefor axarpe hformaten salons at sere lege numbars poor users alow or po acess cost

ined susanaBily of undng ord Dieses funding, wit a mx of government, pate

‘alco on goverment supper Seco, loom cae, eb ter soueas

Low IGT penevaton| Varied conreciviyoptonso ser rtoronoes adress las ile reads and

‘Use! nal nirmaton ned [eo se "for o deel and igre dora and erntonl

‘oral nia or fama eduraion | Inamaton resources, meeuenfemaoneehenns

TẾT Anh and neath care gence) hanna and nzroese te conectsppy

Poor mailonance of ICT olslre, măng } Sete operation mansgerant and mainlonace

tar usaiaaty

Fab ‘ommuntyaccestance-for orampl, bough nermaton inate a oe

‘gon ad ang of wfomatin states to fom

‘al formation see nwa on exon oweage of ofan apn nature fomake tlomgs mace rena

Figure 3.1 Key Elements of Rural Informatization Pilot

ADSL Broadband Sataite

"SHS, voice (al conten

*Telecomicomputing bunle

Prva actor PPPs r Infrmation Services Vendor ~L8eahjlueargoneralod

ewes Nite naw anaye (fo comer \ tr oe

Sean Eitan

‘Operation Enhepyeneus

‘Government stat Pelesscnelcoopersives

These rural iaformatization pilots range from fully government-initiated and - Financed initiatives to those involving partnerships with schools, cultural centers, and rural cooperatives A sample of 18 pilots spanning, provinces across China has been analyzed in some depth (Appendix 2), within a framework that encompasses the lements mentioned above, The discussion that follows provides an overview of the various organizational models for these projects

Box 3.1 Government Model

Business Model Breakdown Example: Ningxia Provincial Government

4 Funding: Ningxa’s provincial government pans to fish

‘+ Capa: Fully government fnanced_ | bulking information service stations in its 2,332

2 Operating: Government-subsdized | administatve vilages by August 008 Key

‘eae access, with feos levied for | features of Nigwa's rural informatization|

same entertainment services ‘onstruction include the sharing and integration Connectivity: Basle Intemet, wth some_| of resources Ningsa has established a unified pjecls offering cal center advisory | provincial platform that combines into one

Services and SMS services targeted at | agricultural information services, telereducation farmers as well ‘Services, National Cultural Information

Content supply: Generated and Resources, cig! libraries, rural television

fsggregated by goverment agencies, | networks, and other network service

Projects offers range of information | applications To avoid redundant investments, services targeted at ural consumers, ithe service terminals are integrated in the Usvally rural farmers, a well as distance | new rural information service stations,

sducalon ofernge

Management and operations: Stations | Ningxia addresses funding and economios of fre usvally staffed with one oro full | scale issues by using government guidance and time or part-time sistant, Socity participation, and by replacing subsidies Community acceptance: Rural ‘wth awards Since September 2007 the

Information agents are recruited and | province's rural informatization services have tranod to encourage use of CT feleases more than 10,000 pieces of

reeaurcas (tne Minesty of Agrieuture | information on supply and demand for

has trained 200,000 such agents) agricultural products, And the network has

Feedback and evaluation: No feedback | mada more than 80 milion RMB in oaline sales revaluation of agrcultural products, offered 3,000 sessions (of ntemet fms for farmers, and 2,500 sessions

Of internet tralning fr Pary members

+ Public good, evelopment focus ‘opportunities

+ Reaches the poor and targets the 1+ Wieak incentives for quay service and broadest swath af rural consumers ccountabiity No menitoeng and

+ Invests in community acceptance and valuation

capac bulging “+ Duplication among departments

Market cstoions from subsidies

ưa lươenalzgiolnChng 7

‘Telecommunications provider model

‘This model aims to develop new users of telecommunication services in less saturated rural areas Every Chinese telecommunications firm has initiated programs

to construct rural public access points that, in many cases, include information and service offerings This model involves government partnerships in terms of financing and general support, because in some cases the locations of village information service stations are determined by local governments, telecommanication companies, and village committees—using existing buildings of village committees and other public places as much as possible

Box 3.2 Telecommunications Provider Model

Business Model Breakdown Examples:

1 Funding! ‘+ China Telecom piloted projects in Anu

‘+ Capital Telecom cari Jiangxi, and Zhejiang provinces and has + Operaing: Canierfnanoed launched a natonwi informatizaion

‘operating casts; ree broadband demonstration project to Bud 1000,

focess rom local governments: fee- | townshipevel and 10,000 vilage-evel based entertainment eorvices information demonstration plots

2 Connectivity: Basie Intorat, ADSL ‘+ China Unicom has crested new

3 Content supply: Provided by tlocom | « China Mabile has set up agrcutral carer aecty orn some cases though Information and communication service hte information services vendor Stations and wil futher enhance rural Carters cooperate with other in tho Information network I has invested 350 information sanice chain to develop milion RMB to bald the rra formation Felovant information websites fr farmers hetwork, and by 2009 pans o invest Connect with experts, and soon “another 450 millon RNIB o nereaeo the

4 Management and operations! Stat at funeons and operation-supporting aby these service stations are also ‘ofthe platform an improve services for telecommunications business agents, and | China's 600 mallon farmers

recaive fees or otter incentives from

telecom providers

5 Community acceptance: Safad service

Pains to help new and non-users; raining

+ Expands telacom services in underserved | » Smaller development empact—limited

+ Government partnership, with subsidy | « Limited communty ‘only for Fee broadband access ‘vatation mechanism buy-in and no

Professional association/cooperative model

‘This model aims to improve rural production and the rural supply chain for agricultural commodities Given their small scale and high vulnerability, farmer households face many difficulties in producing and marketing their products Thus it

is inevitable for scattered farmers under the market economic system to organize themselves to f ce market risks together: An important organizational form is a farmers’ professional cooperative or association, which plays an active role in

agricultural and rural informatization Some professional cooperatives are now equipped with computers and offer Internet services, Farmers who pay a membership fee get access tothe Internet and receive information services and technical taining Box 3.3 Professional Association/Cooperative Mode!

Business Model Breakdown

4 Funding:

+ Capital: Government subsidy

+ Operating: Membership fee, shares

ofprfis

2 Connectivity: Basic Intemet, SMS and

3 Content supply: Devaloped anc

maintained by asoeation sta, targeting

Specie member intarmaton neads

4 Management and operations:

Professional assocation management

5 Community acceptance: Nche target

Budence of cooperative farmers; raining

flo afferes,

16 Feedback and evaluation: Service

‘enhancements based on user feedback

‘Stengths

+ High potent impact on targeted users

(cooperate farmers); community

centered

+ Operators have a strong incentive to

maintain and improve services because

they are dependent on member fees

+ Mobilizes local resources and local

Example: Panggezhuang Watermelon Professional Gooperative, Daxing District, Bejing

‘The Panggezhuang Watermelon Production

‘and Marketing Cooperative was setup as early

‘81997, but now utlees modern ICT to

farmer households to produce

n according fo orders The

‘operative relies on an intemal management Information system, product tacking system, {and production and implementation system 10

‘ore efficiently plant and produce the necessary quant of watermelon Naso has a

‘Computer classroom through which kofers

‘greutural raining The cooperative has also

‘explored effective ways of increasing reduction, such as through agricultural messages and diaries, qualty racking, and 50

‘on, Tha cooperative plays an important role in leading farmers to the market and increasing their revenue

ưa lươenalzgiolnChng „

Franchise/entrepreneurial model

‘This model promotes standardizes

and encourages entrepreneurship among rural citizens Local entrepreneurs can eslablish information center franchises or “farmer shops” with investment support from local governments, private firms, andior telecom providers, equipping them with computers, printers, copiers, scanners, and other technology that enables residents to

Business Model Breakdown

4 Funding! ‘+ Capital: Government subsidy forthe

slandardzaton of farmer shops and

forthe purchase of computers and

brondoand access, Telecom

providers, ual ered cooperatives,

‘nd local agrcutural associations

‘often provide combinad leans to

farmers to cover tha costs of

computers

+ Operating: Commercial fees, store

sales

2 Connectivity: ADSL brosdband or

{elecam bundie that inclades hardware

breadband, and sttware systems,

3 Content supply: From packaged telecom

‘bundle maintained by information services

vendor

4 Management and operations: Franchise

Community acceptance: Stated service

paints also ofer training Telecom bundle

ben has a folevison aut through

nhc information and entertainment

programs are broadcast lo vlagers

6 Feedback and evaluation: Limtes

feedback and evaluation

Strengths

+ Exploits economies of scope and scale—

has a network effec, with one-farmer

sore encouraging several more,

{gonerating a rural information nctwork at

the grassrons love

‘bstacls elated to costs, connections, Computer Meracy, and lack of content and pplication, Iniol and Sichuan Telecom fencoutaged manufacturers to develop low-cost {computer thal could sil meet farmers’ needs

‘These computers provided all needed functions as well as bul ADSL pots, malt- software platforms, and use-fiehdly features Farmers could post advertisements, tack

‘market information, and search for information

‘about issues such as plan growing and pest Control The al-n-one package fom Sichuan

‘Telacom cost chain store aumers a one-time feof 200 RMB and a monthly fee of BO RME

‘vera three-year contract term In adciton, Sichuan Telecom intoduced a leasing

‘company fo subsidize computer terminal, which was a great help in gating the projact Sarid, In ess than a yoar Sichuan Telecom has installed mare than 5,000 computers

May requir startup subsides

Private sector model informatization experiance centers

‘This model aims to develop the rural ICT market while fulfilling corporate and social responsibility requirements To support these goals, some domestic enterprises actively participate in agricultural informatizaton pilots A typical initiative is the informatization experience center set up in Guangdong in 2003, when the province launched a five-year informa

on project in its mountain areas The government invested 35 million RMB a year to promote the infrmatization development of 51 mountain counties From the start the project relied on the market-based model of public-private cooperation and used the informzation experience centers as vehicles

to attract strong enterprises to participate in this project together The project has attracted enterprises such as China Telecom, Lenovo, and TCL Today 60 percent of the

‘nformatization experience centers in Guangdong’ towns and villages use the public: private cooperation model

Box 3.5 Private Sector Model

[Business Model Breakdown (Example: Lenovo's informatization

+ Capital: Private In 2007 Lenovo signed an agreement with the + Operating: Paral government liformation industry Department of Guangdong subsidy in some caees fr broadband [province to bull up 300 county- and town-iee!

‘costs store sales and after-sales ual nformatzaion experience cents and Senices of computer products ‘stations, rain 80,000 rural information

l2 connectivity: Sasi ntemet lassistans and farmers over the next three

IS Content supply: Various rural information years, enhance the information knowledge of servces—not limited to spectc conten losal farmers, and popularize rural

/4 Management and operations:

Professional store management informatization appicatons Lenovo wil design, fevelop, and preduce computer terminals and

's Community acceptance: Free [products to satis rural demands, setup

Informatzaton taining services may be eorfesponding applications, and afer services

‘fered to mprove acceptance, to farmers In addon wil bulé 300

\6 Feedback and evaluation: No apparent nformatization experience centers in

feedback or evaluation, ‘Guangdong that offer one-stop information

|senvces, Lenovo wil also open 500 shops of ts ‘own in Guangdong to publicize and provide [services and oof Waning, experience, and lather services to farmers togethr with the frovince's information Industry Department Finally, Lenovo wil strengthen the commercial networks of vilages and smal owns, italy bling about 500 sales agents In Guangsong and thon delivering ator sale sonicos to 40,000-20,000 administrative vilages

+ Improved accountabitty '= Weak Inks to other government services

|; Demonstration eects ‘and databases

[> innovate new services and businesses _|+ Limited reach to the poorest ual people + Facitates moving to value added services | and regions

sch as e-commerce and mietinance _|+ Sole focus on commercial services

Lessons from

International Experiences

hared access points have become the dominant model for providing ICT services to poor rural people in developing countries, Efforts to create shared access centers are {evolving into an international movement—one of particular importance and relevance

to the conditions in developing countries There have been some successes at the pilot level but many failures in scaling up these centers, broadening, their impact, and achieving sustainability

‘Many countries, developing and developed, are facing common challenges with shared access points and experimenting with multiple business models in search of long-term impact and sustainability, particularly in poor and rural areas For example,

‘Canada developed public access points early on, reflecting its extensive rural areas and commitment to avoid a digital divide Brazil, India, and many other developing

‘countries with large rural populations and diverse territories have also pursued rmultiparpose programs to deliver both government and private services over the Internet and shared public access points China can lear much from these efforts In turn, China's experiences can be captured and shared with the intemational Government- and Donor-driven Initiatives and Sustainabi

Intemational experiences indicate that sustainability remains a key concern in shared access initiatives, particularly for govemment-led models Most public centers that were launched in the First wave of government and donor-driven initiatives have not been financially sustainable without ongoing government or external funding This many not be a problem if public support is affordable and justifiable in terms of development priorities, and if institutional and social sustainability are secured, These shared access centers can be viewed as a public good—like education, health, and water and transportation systems—and may have legitimate claim for continuous {government or donor support (see Box 4.1)

2

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Box 4.1 Public Programs of Access Centors in Chile

‘hie ica vast land of great goouraphical diversity Most of Chile's I6 mon phabiante luan ca: Ika the capital Santago, but a sgnvicant peoenlage Ive n remota rural regions wth ito access to

‘Me oulsde wor Inthe pat 10 yout, twee diferent pubic progams have been implemented A network of 70-80 youth telecanters was established lnfocentrs (nfocans") run by mere-

‘hieprenaurs wore etalshed twoughou the ecu Those thal ae sl ning often belong 0 he

‘Society netwerks suchas the Asoctacion do Teloontas Aciros de Che (ATACH), demonstaing the importance of networking among leecenter operators The fast goverment projet, "200 Bao” lý

“259 gơng to be mplmentea traugh ATACH,

'BbloRe<es funda in pant by a grant fom the Bll and Natinds Gates Foundation (rom 2002 1 2008)

‘and in part by Chile's municpal governments, pemaps the mos! suocossul of he three The main

‘bjecive ofthis projects Yo ge Che's residents 70 percent of whom did ot Know howto Use 2

‘computer n 2002-the tchnology access and sis they hood To succood inthe new digital wor

In ust afew years, BBloRedee has made remarkable progress toward tha vision Between 2002 and

2005, the projec elabished more han 370 internet access pols wih more than 2.00 pudie access

‘computor n munipalibvrias and provided computer lteracy taining fo more than 200,000 peopl During the fst yoar of operation atone, Hoary use neeased 58 percent among adits and 28 pereani

‘among chr’ The users fl thal hey had greater accoss to Ushi lfermaton that mproved thế aly ives, Mosiimporanty, the projet has enabled readenls of emote communes Yo Gonnect 2nd

‘ommuncata wits the use wore

How Chileans say BbioRodes has aoctd thom

“Thay have goat access to computers aie Internet now sa Computers and intemet access

‘a hep them sei day ves 108

“They are mor informed than

Computers wit improve the ‘oe

“qua of for ai Chöeans,

‘The fallout of information lecheoosy ø Chile's publ za7es vas ọi w4hout le chelengos, Due lo the extreme geographical lezalen of some lores, he proect had to install esate Inmet 88neclone n ong hư ofthe lbvanes Perhaps the biggest challenge was the huge discrepancy 0 onectvity costs among various communis Unfortunatly, the poorest communis often had the highest costs, Tn challenge was overcome withthe eration of national Digital Equly Fund to

“subsidize the cost of Intemet connectors im poorer con:munties

‘There was also understandable fear among many Chileans about using technology forthe fist tine

‘The ibsoRedes project overcame the far wih creative communications and culreach programs The project aloo focused on dalvering ighualy traning Talning materials were povided 1 al Hraios

‘nd Help Desk to prove tectnicl suppor to ra saf V2 3!ol-ree teephong hoine e-mai instant massaging wes established The project also developed gues and Web ste courses fr Users

‘ho wanted fo lem al their ow pace The Heo computer ang resources have boon ivalible Beneflanes Incsed ears wha ware her 80s and fnished the fie computor course through this project

Sarting in 2006, BibioRedes bacamo an eslabished government program, which means its budge is

‘nirely tnanced with goverment und Varous Chiean muniealies have been motivated by the

“xhlevemenk of the BibloRedes project tbraies ae enovating, moving to new bulge, ond hing new iếf _i entcendntsto ara in more o make atonal investments inthe puble ibrar Nésny patena.ĐồloRedes aiso has received funding rom private mations and enlerpees To at cụt Speake projects

Sou Mpseanncten a ors Bia Hinds Gales Foundation, 2008, uo enti

The challenge with the public goods approach is that there are no implicit

‘mechanisms connecting the supply and quality of services to community demand; and itis often used as an excuse for poor management and planning, Without financial incentives to perform well, management of public access centers can become

‘unresponsive to community needs, Subsidized centers may also create market distortions and prevent commercial enterprises from entering the field Furthermore, beyond the initial capital investment, there are significant ongoing operational costs to maintain public internet access, inchiding connectivity, maintenance, training, and periodic hardware and software upgrades Thus many countries have recently opted for increased private sector participation in development of shared access centers Private Sector Participation

Innovative mechanisms can encourage private sector participation and improve the sustainability of access initiatives For example, governments can raise money to develop public access centers by creating universal access funds that channel a percentage of income from telecommunications operators Some Latin American governments have narrowed the access gap by providing “smart subsidies” to privately owned telecenters using this approach, Because the level of demand for telocenter services in rural and disadvantaged communities is often lower than that required for financial sustainability, smart subsidies aim to cover the difference while still encouraging private investment, competition, and entrepreneurship in service provision

Under this scenario the government specifies minimum service requirements for

‘certain period and allocates the subsidy to the lowest bidder, Actual disbursement of the subsidy is linked to predefined performance indicators, Smaet subsidies have been demonstrated as a cost-effective way of encouraging provision of basic ICT services in disadvantaged communities For example, Canada’s community access program helped establish 8,000 telecenters by mobilizing civil society and awarding, grants to telecenter initiatives led by NGOs that agreed to provide certain levels of service and to match grant funding with local resources (Proenza 2002),

Private sector models for rural ICT development can benefit from government involvement—especially in terms of building the capacity of the public access centers, many of which lack customer service and marketing experience suited to the needs of poor rural people The state can also provide cost sharing, relevant content, channel its services through the centers, and stimulate the development of Intemet content providers The centers in the Akshaya project in Kerala each took on approximately 1,000 learners and collected the equivalent of USS3.26 per earner for providing a basic computer course developed by the state's IT mission, The local government covered part of the cost (US$2.79), as did the learners (USS0.47) In about a year, the private fentrepreneurs had recovered their initial investment Subsequently e-Government services have been contributing to part of the revenues for private operator

Sl, public access centers should be free to change their service packages beyond the minimum agreed requirements for smart subsidies, But the commercial model has its downside: i often focuses on commercial services and tends to have limited social and development impacts ICT education and vocational training, e-health, and similar services may have low commercial appeal for entrepreneurs in poor regions One of

ưa lươenalzgiolnChng “

the biggest challenges for the commercial model is lo find an ownership and management structure with the benefits of both worlds—the social impact and

“development focus ofthe government or NGO, and the flexibility and financial viability

‘The Appeal of the Franchise Model

Franchise approaches appear most promising for augmenting the sustainability of the

‘governments and NGO-led model, as well as the development impact of the

‘commercial model In this approach the umbrella organization or support institution (feanchiser) may be a public or private organization of a public-private partnership

‘The franchiser’s role is to set standards for technology and services Franchisees private companies or community organizations operating public access centers—

‘comply with those standards as part oftheir leensing agreements with the franchiser Support from the franchiser can take many forms, including training, content, and service development, technical support, special telecommunications access rates, and revenue sharing arrangements for provision of e-government and e-business services For public-led franchise programs, this support may bein the form of smart subsidies

‘The Committee for Democratization of Information Technology, a Brazilian NGO, has pioneered a social franchise approach to provide access to ICT and develop marketable skills and community leaders among poor urban youth The committee

‘obtains financing from partnerships with the government and the private sector—works with communities to develop information technology and citizenship

schools that are managed by community members and focuses on ICT themes important to the community The committee provides schools with necessary startup resources, but schools must generate resources to sustain their activities through fees

“This is essentially a social franchise model that targets disadvantaged urban youth, and has proven to be replicable

E-Choupal is an interesting example of a privateted franchise model that has

‘created a vast network of rural kiosks reaching 3.5 millon farmers in 31,000 villages in six Indian states, It provides access to agricultural information, aggregates demand for farm inputs, helps sell produce from farmers’ doorsteps, and reduces transaction costs and wasteful intermediation to farmers, among other achievements (Box 4.2)

Box 42 E-Choupal: An Evolving Infrastructure for Rural Transfermation

‘Agicuture accounts forthe ivethoeds of 6 percent of nda’s population and 23 percent of GDP,

‘and moat of the county's poor people lve in rural areas Any cmedy to opportunity asymmetries must provide farmers wth both knowledge of opportunites and abites to pursue them The e-

‘ChoupatInvative began by deploying ICT to roengineer procurement of soya~a fundamental

‘sour of Inia eet and food secu —trom rural nớia

Boloro o-Choupal was invoduced, most marking of produce wont through traders and

‘government mandated markollaces controled by brokers or commission agonts These agents Contrlled inbound fogises information on sale pring and timing, inspecion and grading processes, auction pracies, bagging and weighing, and, ultimately, payments and outbound logstes Every step in the markeing system involved inefiienses, neque, ard information

‘asymmetries between farmers, intermediaries, and buyer The market was created, manipulated,

‘and managed by te agents,

Box 42 (continued)

‘This setup led the Indian Tobacco Company (ITG}—a mullion-doliar firm with a aiversited presence in commodites, agribusiness, and agricultural vade—0 reengineer the ent value

‘hain by deploying e-Choupal The inilabve enabled the company to break agent’ stranglehold

‘over the process and communicate directly with farmers, extract value chain effeiences, Improve fiskmanagement, and leverage ICT to maintain international competitiveness

E-Choupals were create to act as e-commerce hubs and social gathering places Each has ust

‘one computer with an Inlomat connection and is located in selected wlages fo minimize travel

‘stancss for farmers and maximize trafc tothe center Each is overinatad bys local farmer recruited from the community served The Indian Tobacco Company selects each coordinator based on ier that engender vilage tust and tras him in basic business skils The

‘coordinator (lm) receives a commission for every transaction processed through tne focal & CChoupal At the same time, the eld commission agonts have been co-oped into the now systom

by allowing them to proft rom value-added logisteal services

‘Viral vrtial integration is sorved by continuous flows of information between e-Choupals and

te Indian Tobacco Company—iniiatad by the local coordinators The company keeps revenue flowing through e-Choupals by ineligenty sequencing purchases of produce and sales of

‘agricultural inputs year-round,

“The e-Choupal process has transformed the tradtional system, providing substantial gains to both farmers and the fem, Italows farmers to access nearby information outlets, as wel as

‘extemal pricing indicators and global ends, I aio inedueesofiiencles and Wansparencies i

‘weighing and transaction đưalons_ In addion, the indian Tobacco Company gains In sinlermediaion savings, quay con isk management and long-erm supplier relationships

‘this farmers

‘The e-Choupal model provides inaccessible vilages with windows fo the world, with broad social impact I provides access lo a system for large-scale, low-cost dissemination of knowledge ts

\website provides weather information atthe dstict vel and agricultural best pracices from

‘agricultural research centers and universes In adaiton, the ITC condues lab tesing and provides customized feedback to farmers on now to improve the qualiy and yield of the crops Moreover, children are using computers for schoolwork and vilagers are accessing global knonledge on agriculture

E-Choupal has enablad farmers to become sources of innovation, deriving products and services

‘hat the Indian Tabaces Company can use lo improve ther operations E-Ghoupal also provides

‘an altrative channel forthe distibution of goods and services in rural India—provdng an ICT infrastructure thatthe company can use to enhance customer knowledge, marke inteligence,

‘coss-seing, and business decision making The Indian Tobacco Company proposes to partner

‘wn financial inststons to Improve access to creat by moniofg oredt sks, reducing transaction and administrative costs in soriing rural markets, and tailing fancal products to

‘ural Ind

Future gonorations of e-Choupats ar expected to evolve into a two-way exchange of goods and

‘serces between rural fda and tha worl, One wava fs fo mova ta highersvalue cope uch a8

‘wea, where tha grade ofthe rain determines ts end use and price premium A sacond wave

‘wl cover parshabies and adress food safely concerns, because the Indian Tobacco Company

‘can set standards and ace quality and so commane waceabily premiums further wave would bring knowledge of customers and of the business, company-Jeployed infrastructure, and an

‘organization of processes and partners, 10 deliver valuo-addod sarvicos to rural India An

‘ambitious vision would extend to sourcing [T-anabled services from rural Inia—such as {slomedicin, eoatourem, and traditional cat,

Sauce: Adsl tom Prats 208, pp 310.357

ưa lươenalzgiolnChng a

‘Transnational franchise_models are also emerging to provide cross-country

‘experiences with franchises: OneRoof isa pioneering, model of such a franchise started in Mexico, with a focus on the needs of low-income individwals, Its a nonprofit organization that is moving toa business or for-profit enterprise to secure scale and self-sustainability (OneRoo?s role is to help local partners scale up good programs and achieve greater impact in changing how essential services are delivered to the word's rural poor people It develops and shares a delivery platform that provides rural communities with essential services, including ICT/Interet services, education, financial services, health, energy,

‘lean water, sanitation, agricultural technologies, and employment generation

‘OneRoof collaborates with local partners and local communities to search for the best

‘entrepreneurs in each village with the highest desire of improving the community's lives by the power of running a successful business In turn, their operators and

franchisees, who have met rigorous criteria for content, local quality, and business

integrity, are encouraged to lear from their clients and co-create services Thele service pricing strategies ae tailored to serve the poor They also broker to mobilize funding so that certain services can be paid from thied parties or subsidized

OneRoo!’s overall strategy for making public access centers self-reliant and financially sustainable is to provide a large varity of products and services Each of them should answer local demand at the right quality and price Within the areas under the OneRoof model, itis believed that there is plenty of room for new service development OneRoof works with companies in co-developing new market

‘opportunites in rural areas,

OneRoof does not rely on government handouts or subsidies, is covering

‘operational costs from fees for services, and has been able to scale up in Mexico It

‘currently has 10 stores open for business in India's Tamil Nadu state, and expected to fextend to other countries, It receives some donations from multinationals and foundations Although it is not yet tested everywhere, and still striving for financial sustainability, it sa promising model

‘Another more established transnational franchise example is the Comite para Democratizacio da Informatica (Committee for Democratization of Information

‘Technology, or CDI) in Brazil (see Box 4.3}, CDI is a nongovernmental, nonprofit

‘organization that has pioneered bringing ICT to underprivileged geoups in Brazil

‘Through its Information Technology and Citizenship (Escola de Informatica e Cidadania,

‘or EIC) schools—the first was established in 1995, CDI develops educational and vocational programs in Brazil and throughout the workd to integrate marginalized

‘groups, especially children and youth, into their communities The model has proven

to be replica

‘atleast under similar circumstances,