A briefing note on Interactive Comminity Network Nodes. An exciting new project that we are embarking upon with the Western Cape Government aimed at getting mass adoption of digital services in poor communities.

1. Interactive Community Access Network
Node (ICANN)
Bridging the digital divide – access. content and skills
Discussion Document
Produced for the Western Cape Government (WCG), South Africa
Nirvesh Sooful
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
African Ideas

2. African Ideas – who we are
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Strategic consultancy helping Governments to accelerate the benefits of ICT enabled
change through transformation of the public sector and the wider economy. Operates
primarily in the ICT4D space.
Key projects
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Western Cape Broadband – Strategy & Digitisation Readiness Advisory Service
Western Cape Municipal ICT roadmap
Municipal Shared Service Solution (Cloud based)
ICAN Centres (Digital Inclusion)
WIFI Mesh (Rural – Saldanha, Urban – Khayelitsha & Mitchells Plain)
Rethinking Libraries (Libraries of the future)
Community spaces of the future
E-enabling Education (utilising broadband)
“dropping a stone, or even a drop of water, in a pond causes ripples to
emanate from the source, getting bigger and bigger the further away from
the source they get.
This is a powerful example of small changes causing large and farreaching effects”
At African Ideas, we specialise in working with our clients to identify these „big
lever‟ projects – the projects which, when embarked upon, will set the
necessary ripples in motion to drive change and transformation throughout an
eco-system. In this way we aim to have a profound effect on the society in
which we operate.
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

3. ICT-related knowledge, skills and competences (e-Skills)
is important
• The development of the knowledge-based and innovation-driven
economies and a society is not possible without having highly ICTskilled (e-skilled) knowledge workers and digitally literate (e-literate)
citizens (as consumers, clients, participants, friends, families and
communities).
• ICT-related knowledge, skills and competences are critical for the
growth of “new age” economies that indispensably require innovation
and aggregation of resources, to achieve global competitiveness.
• In the South African context, e-skills are broadly defined as the ability
of people to use and create all forms of Information and
Communication Technologies (ICT) in order to
– achieve equitable prosperity and global competitiveness in general, and
– to improve their life opportunities in:
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(i) personal and educational space,
(ii) work environments,
(iii) community interactions and
(iv) participation in government processes.”
• 2012 National e-Skills Plan of Action (NeSPA)
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

4. Public Access is important
• Public access centres have been established worldwide to serve
disadvantaged communities, and many countries have deployed a plethora
of models in a bid to address digital divide issues.
• The Census 2011 indicates that the majority of South Africans do not have
access to the internet. Important findings from the recently released New
Wave Report provide a clear rationale for an expanded public access centre
programme. The findings in this report indicate that “for most of those
without access at home or work (about four out of five new users) our data
shows that Internet cafés, and (to a lesser extent) schools and colleges, are
often important point of access that may address some of these limitations of
the mobile Internet and enable users to widen the range of online services
that they use online”.
• A recently released report from the University of Washington Technology &
Social Change Group found that public access venues play a critical role in
extending the benefits of ICTs to large sections of the population, despite the
expansion of mobile telephone access.
• They also state that “public access enables change in personal, social,
economic, and other realms of life, by providing the technological and
human tools (basic or advanced) that open up the information society to
individuals”
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

5. Findings:
Connecting Communities: Gap
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International metric & Statistic SA data – +/- 1,500 to 2,700 Telecentres needed
National Target - Public ICT Access within a 2 km radius of anyone by 2019
– implies much more than 2700.
Not achievable, affordable or sustainable in PGWC context.
Therefore as phase 1, chose wards (386) as a starting point
• In the Metro, there are
44 (of the 110) wards
that do not have
libraries, so do not have
Smart Cape (public ICT
facilities)
• Other districts (and
municipalities reflected
left
• Gap across Western
Cape on wards = 44 +
189 = 233
• Represents 60% of all
wards
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

6. Connecting Communities
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This is a project to integrate and expand shared public access to ICT facilities to
all communities in the Western Cape. Public ICT access facilities (e.g.
telecentres, Smart Cape, Cape Access, etc.) are a very important tool to provide
poor people with access to technology. It is being used extensively in both
developing countries and developed countries.
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A phased approach will be adopted
• Phase 1 will ensure that there are public ICT facilities in every ward by 2014.
There are 388 wards in the Western Cape, 233 (60%) of which do not currently
have public ICT facilities.
• Phase 2 will extend the public access footprint
to every voting district by 2018. There are
currently 1576 voting districts in the Western
Cape.
• Phase 3 will evaluate the situation post-Phase
2, determine the gap with the national targets at
that stage and put in place a strategy to close
the gap.
Across all three phases, sustainability models for
the public access facilities (including entrepreneur
driven models) will be explored.
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

7. ICANN
• The WCG is driving the creation of an interactive community access network
(ICAN) as a network of spaces (community centres, public internet facilities,
schools, libraries, FET Colleges, Open Learning Centres, etc.) where the
community can leverage the online environment.
• Two new pilot centres (ICAN nodes) will be established as anchors of the
interactive community access network.
• These centres (ICANNs –
Interactive Community Access
Network Nodes) will be
established along the principles
of the Smart Community
Knowledge Production Centres
as articulated by the e-Skills
Institute.
• Leverage insights from existing
public access models, as well
as entrepreneur models
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

8. ICANNs
• They will be open spaces for learning, innovation and knowledge production.
• A key issue for these centres is the exploration of the social
entrepreneurship model.
• In this model government partners with local entrepreneurs to establish and
maintain public access centres.
• In this way business opportunities are created and the maintenance and
sustainability of the infrastructure is delegated to the entrepreneur.
• The objective of the pilot will be to design and test a model/framework aimed
at establishing stakeholder partnerships (establishing an ecosystem) with a
view of enhance and accelerating the delivery of e-skills initiatives in
communities i.e. get to mass scale.
• The medium term intention is that the ICAN will reach every ward in the
Western Cape and that existing facilities (Cape Access, Smart Cape,
Thusong Centres, FET Colleges, schools, etc.) will be integrated into the
ICAN.
Innovation
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Empowerment
Action
Solutions

9. What is an ICANN?
Innovation
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10. ICAN Community & Commercial Services zone
The ICAN Community and Commercial Services zone is
the core of the centre. It provides all of the support and
shared services to the other zones. At a minimum, it
consists of:
• Public ICT Access Facilities (minimum of 10
computers)
• Community space (with free wifi access). This will
include open seating and could incorporate a coffee
shop/ food court type of environment. This must allow
for a “bring your own device” (BYOD) model. This
space will also have TV facilities. Note: as far as
possible, the centre must promote the use of nonpropriety technology and utilise open standards.
• Services - Faxing, printing, lamination, binding,
Copying, Certification, etc.
• Facilities for other Commercial Services – ICT sales
and support, Courier (Postnet type of services),
Community Telephone, Airtime Sales, web sites for
local businesses, CV development, Digital photography
and Videoing, etc.
• A longer term objective would be the support of
mechanisms related to buying and selling electronically
(supported by a logistics solution provider) to open up
market opportunities for communities (both physical
and digital services).
• Management services – staffing, security, logistics, etc.
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

11. ICAN Study zone
The ICAN Study zone is specifically equipped to
support learners and members of the community
who are studying. It is intended to be a quieter,
more study oriented space. It is also intended that
this is a supervised zone and that a linkage with the
schools in the area would be established. This
zone is also necessary to prevent the school
learners from overwhelming the facilities once
school ends (as is currently being experienced). It
consists of:
• Kids homework/ tuition area - Desks & other
Communal homework space
• Research PCs (minimum 10)
• Informal seating (beanbags, etc)
• Digital Library (electronic collections). Note that
this is intended to be a virtual collection that
would serve the entire centre, and eventually,
the entire ICAN. For the pilot, this would be a
demonstration of the concept utilising resources
that are freely available. Discussions would
need to be had with Library Services about
incorporating paid-for electronic collections.
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

12. ICAN Learn zone
The ICAN Learn Zone is intended to support
various community learning initiatives. It is
essentially a training centre incorporated within the
ICAN centre, It will be shared between school
learners and the rest of the community. It will
consist of:
• Classroom based Training facilities (2 x training
rooms/ virtual classrooms, 20 computers each)
• Computer based training (CBT) facilities for elearning (individual facilities) – 10 dedicated ELearning workstations
• Testing and accreditation centre – 2 computers
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
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13. ICAN Create zone
The ICAN Create zone is a space for community
innovation, local knowledge creation and
entrepreneurship. It will consist of
• Local Content creation lab - Recording facilities,
sound, multimedia, video production, etc. – 6
specialised workstations (at least 1 sound
studio).
• Innovation space (touch, human interaction
technologies, motion enabled computing, etc.)
• Workshop space (with video conferencing).
Note that video conferencing must be integrated
throughout the facility. The workshop space just
needs to have the facility for group based video
conference facilities. Also note that the intention
is not to make a high end, professional video
conference facility available – it is rather to use
a low cost, freely available solution like Skype or
Google Hangouts. A high end video conference
facility could be a commercial opportunity
should the market need arise.
• Incubation space (with fee based WIFI)
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

14. ICAN Play zone
The ICAN Play zone is a gaming lab. Research is
starting to indicate that the right type of video
games and interactive media can have a positive
impact on self-efficacy which
increases resilience, optimism, and motivation.
The ICAN Centres are about digitisation – it is
about getting mass adoption of technology to
improve people’s lives. It is also about access,
content and skills. It is focussed on driving
adoption of broadband enabled solutions at
community level.
Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

15. Possible site – community centre in Cape Town
Township
Innovation
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Empowerment
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16. Possible site
Existing Smart
Cape and small
gaming lab (not
full building)
10
metres x
24metres
Double
Volume
small
hall
Side Entrance not being used
Innovation
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Empowerment
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17. Possible site
Innovation
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18. Innovation
Development
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

19. Safmarine Container Sports Centre
Innovation
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Empowerment
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20. Ground Floor (half) - Study
Zone & Public Internet Access Possible
site
Mezzanine (half aprox 10 x 10
metres i.e.100 sqm) –
Workshop/ meeting space
Outside + Containers –
Community Plaza &
Commercial Zone
Coffee shop, commercial
services, incubation space, elearning pods, data centre, etc.
Mezzanine (half aprox 10 x 10
metres i.e.100 sqm) – Create
Zone
Learn Zone (training centre)
Ground Floor (half) – Play
Zone Development
Innovation
Empowerment
Action
Solutions

21. Interactive Community Access Network
Node (ICANN)
Bridging the digital divide – access. content and skills
Thank You & Discussion
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Contact Details: nirvesh@africanideas.co.za, www.slideshare.net/nsooful