This is a slightly more detailed and cleaned up description of Jamal's SD-AN project.
------------------------------------- Art "NWICO" McGee [amcgee@netcom.com]
-------------------------------------
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 18 Feb 94 22:35:32 GMT
From: Jamal Al-Noor
------------------------------------------------------
The following is a message being posted by Sustained
Development- Africa Network (SD-AN). We are a newly
established charity here in the UK and are seeking for
information, advice and suggestions.
-------------------------------------------------------
This is in respect to a component of our strategy and proposal to
utilise and harness this medium and technology to make easy availability
to the vast resources of information and instant contact to the various
communities in Sub-Saharan Africa where we intend to operate.
Our own exposure to this medium has been only a few weeks and we realise
the potential and power if harnessed can be of benefit to many a
country, communities and individuals in the Developing World in the
struggle and misery of survival.
We are in the process of familiarising and learning more about this
medium. There is a lot that we need to understand and learn in order to
prepare a working proposal and budget to determine the cost
effectiveness, and practicality of this form of communication in
respects to the areas of operation on the sub-Saharan African continent.
When SD-AN was originally established, we were dealing with more
conventional means of disseminating information but this is proving
sometimes to be very costly, slow and ineffective especially in
situations where urgency is of importance. This has a lot to do with the
existing infrastructure of communications and the remoteness of many of
the targeted communities. A lot of thought was been given to looking for
alternative means, and during this search we were made aware of the
existence of the INTERNET. Having secured an account we began to
explore.
We came across an article written by David Rothman titled "Electronic
Peace Corps". This document helped us understand some of the
possibilities.
This document can be obtained from David Rothman if anyone wishes.
Highly recommended reading material. His email address is
Our contact with David Rothman has been fruitful and he put us in touch
with Art MaGee who posted our original correspondence. This posting
generated quite a lot of positive feed back from a number of people
sending us information.
There is a lot of goodwill on the NET and our gratitude goes to all who
responded. If we are to learn and be able to bring to realisation our
project, where better to seek for that advice and information then on
the NET. Thus this detailed document that you are reading now.
The purpose of this document is to explain about the establishment of
SD-AN, its objectives, its project proposal regarding incorporating this
medium into the overall strategy of disseminating and making available
easy access to information and communication, and finally the type of
information and assistance being sought.
Please be free to forward and distribute this document widely.
Apologies for any cross-posting if not indented.
ABOUT SUSTAINED DEVELOPMENT - AFRICA NETWORK (SD-AN)
----------------------------------------------------
Sustained Development - Africa Network (SD-AN) was legally established
in September 1993, though the idea and the purpose for which it should
be set-up originally began some 5 years ago while I was a farmer in
Uganda.
SD-AN's main objectives and guiding principles are:
a) To relieve in any part of the world, persons suffering
from poverty, sickness and distress including sickness or
any mental or physical disability and whether arising from
any public calamity or otherwise.
b) To advance the education of the public concerning the
causes of and the ways of relieving poverty, sickness,
disease, mental and physical disability.
c) To advance for public benefit the education of the
inhabitants of impoverished countries.
d) To preserve and restore for the public benefit the Earth's
natural environment and ecology.
These objects entitle us to be registered as a charity organisation, as
all the services we intend to provide are on a not-for-profit basis to
the various communities that we shall be extending assistance to.
SD-AN's application for charitable status has been successful and we
have been registered as a charity in the UK by the Charity
Commissioners, who are the relevant body here. Our charity number is
1031259.
Currently sources of funding and donations are being sought and secured
for the various projects. Actual implementation on the field will
commence early 1995.
The Philosophy
--------------
SD-AN believes in the essential dignity of people and their capacity to
overcome problems and pressures which can crush or exploit them.
People, even those who are poor, illiterate and unemployed are
intelligent. They are capable of defining their own needs and given the
opportunity, they can and will solve their own problems.
Local people who have often lived with the problems at issue for
decades, even generations know where a problem's root lie and can
differentiate symptoms and root causes.
Recognising that technology is indispensable in a struggle against the
miseries of underdevelopment, SD-AN advocates the promotion and
utilisation of appropriate (or intermediate) technologies and principles
to address many a developing country's problems.
Appropriate or intermediate technologies are a partial answer to the
developing countries problems of food and energy shortages, alienation,
poverty, lack of foreign exchange, etc.
This technology should be superior to the primitive forms of the past,
yet it should be simpler, cheaper and all but independent of the energy
requirements of the rich.
Also appropriate technology (A.T.) has special appeal probably in part
because it addresses a number of problems at once.
The emphasises on self-reliance and local production for local needs is
an important step. At the same time, the lack of a well developed
infrastructure and the shortage of highly trained manpower to
efficiently run large industrial organisations becomes much less
important when production is decentralised.
Role Of Information and Communications:
---------------------------------------
The following passage stated by Schummacher eloquently sums up the main
reason for the establishment of SD-AN.
"...valuable know-how as well as excellent equipment
fitting into the constraints and limitations of poverty
and suitable for genuine developments, exists all over the
world - in the rich as well as in the poor countries. But it
is scattered, inaccessible to those in need, when it is most
needed. Countless men and women in the field are trying to
solve problems for which solutions have already been found
somewhere else: are embarking on experiments which have already
been shown to be unfruitful; are trying to find methods of
working and items of equipment which may be available, but
they do not where. At this level of know-how and technology
there is almost total lack of effective international
communication."
- E.F. Schummacher.
Appropriate Technology
Journal, 1976.
Today there is in existence a mass of tested technology for the small-
scale peasant farmer. This represents an important resource of human
knowledge. The farm technology itself is laden with opportunities for
improving the returns of land, water, labour and other crucial
resources. The careful farmer, with help, can have many options.
Upto 80% or more of the population in most developing countries live in
rural villages. Many of the people in urban areas fled the stifling lack
of opportunities that tend to characterise rural areas. Thus successful
rural appropriate technologies might concern some substantial portion of
the population.
But to most of the people in rural areas, access to this wealth of
information is never or not readily or easily available.
SD-AN believes that if an active level of participation in problem
identification and solutions by the members of the poor communities is
highly desirable than this requires that they have:
a) access to this information in a form in which it
can be of practical use:
b) the ability to initiate communications in search of
relevant experience and information from other
communities, including information on the successful
technologies that have been developed nearby, within
the region and around the world.
c) support from those with more advanced scientific and
technical skills, through technical assistance centres
that responds to requests.
Provision and access to, upto date information is a vital component if
we are to have long term, meaningful and positive results.
We like yourself are of the belief that information and knowledge should
be shared and made widely accessible. The true wealth of any nation are
its people.
A first hand experience:
---------------------
Let me illustrate an experience I had when I was a farmer in Uganda. I
was looking for information on practices of agro-forestry. What species
of tree would be most suitable, planting rate, their growth rates,
diseases, by-products etc. Due to lack of sufficient and up to date
information in the country, it was suggested to me to contact an
organisation in London (ITDG) which dealt with numerous such requests
from all over the Developing world.
I sent off my request and about 10 weeks later I received a letter
accompanied with a couple of photocopied pages from a manual regarding
some of the information I sought. They also recommended I get in touch
with The National Research Council a body set-up by The Board of Science
& Technology for International Development in America for more detailed
information.
I did this and another 4 weeks lapsed, and they sent me a catalogue of
the publications they had for sale. Well, I sent for it and it proved to
be invaluable. I agree it was at a subsidised cost for me as I was in a
Third World country but the point is the amount of time that it took to
obtain this information and also I could afford to fork out the sum of
US $15 for the manual plus all the other costs of communication.
This is not so for the majority who would like to do so and thereby
improve their lives with the same knowledge I obtained regarding agro-
forestry.
This was my experience time and again as I experimented with different
crops and agro-based industrial products. The potential and uses of this
medium will be of greater benefit to local scientists, medical
researchers and health workers, agricultural extension officers,
engineers, A.T. practitioners, etc. This is applicable to everything
associated with the struggle to survive in many developing countries.
It has been calculated that when the technical centre data bank is
thousands of miles overseas the cost per request is easily anything from
US$100 to US$300. This is equal to the annual GNP in many countries
Another negative effect of this, is that it can serve only a very
limited audience.
Our aims:
---------
As you may have gathered, currently availability of information in some
countries is very difficult. Most public libraries are non-existent or
contain very old and
out dated material.
Books and manuals if found in the local book shops are very expensive
and out of reach of the very people that need the information. There is
also a problem of illiteracy and language.
But all these are surmountable problems with existing technology, a
little imagination, some money and goodwill from volunteers.
Since discovering the INTERNET some weeks ago, we started working on the
possibility of incorporating and adapting this medium to enable us to
achieve our objectives.
Our intention was to set up a regional HQ in Nairobi, Kenya which will
be in turn linked to the other cities of neighbouring countries such as
Kampala, Dar-es-salam, Bujumbura, Kigali, Khartoum, Addis Ababa. Our
initial area of operation is the E.African region and surrounding
countries. By the 10th year of operation we hope to have expanded and
covered most of Sub-Saharan Africa. Time and availability of resources
will tell.
Each centre in these countries will in turn be linked to other centres
around the respective countries.
The centres would be open to all i.e. farmers, artisans, crafts man,
students, local NGO's, PVO's, etc. They would act as many public
libraries function here. On site would be data bases, books and manuals
with a wide subject content relevant to the type of information that
will normally be sought.
If the requested information is not available at the local centres, this
request will be automatically forwarded to the centre in Nairobi and if
it is still not found, every day a batch will be forwarded to London and
hopefully by the next day the answers are being e-mailed back to the
respective centre.
There has to be a mixture of both high and low technolgy at work if we
are to able to make available, diseminate information widely.
Note:
-----
We shall be undertaking a study to determine the possibility of
utilising this medium and harnessing the power and potential of the
Internet.
It is unlikely in the near future that many households or businesses in
Africa can afford a computer and especially not the population that is
in need of the information necessary to improve upon what knowledge they
already possess.
Centres, such as the ones we are proposing will be the only way of
making this information available.
As with anything, we must work out the sums and show that this system
may be a cost effective way of mass dissemination of information. If we
are able to operate this scheme and people are benefiting positively
then probably others can be encouraged to replicate this type of
services elsewhere on the African continent and other areas of the
developing world.
OUR REQUEST TO ALL THE NETTERS:
-------------------------------
In order that we are able to undertake this study we need as much
information as possible. Some of our questions may be naive but bear
with us. If there is anything we are omitting or should consider its
because of ignorance. Please be free to highlight and explain these.
Below is a list of some of the information being sought:
a) Current situation and status:
- information about the existing set-up regarding INTERNET
connections in the various countries on the African continent.
- What is the set-up regionally & internally in the country
- How reliable are the connections.
- information about the hardware and software currently being
used to this end.
- the difficulties being experienced (technically or otherwise)
e.g. Power supply, erratic telephone connections, government
regulations, lack of expertise, financial, etc.
- What is being done to overcome these.
- the current users (Who is utilising this medium)
e.g. University, Commerce, Government, NGO's, etc.
- Are there private networks established in the country?
If so, what's the set-up and how are they participating
and addressing many of the common problems
- Contact addresses of people currently involved in the
various countries and the world at large actively working
on similar projects.
b) Potential and possibilities:
- Explain these in light of current situation and the
various efforts underway.
- What is currently feasible with the existing technology
in place.
- What is possible with probably a little adaptation,
imagination and available resources.
c) What role can we play:
- Make suggestions and offer insight.
Final Note:
-----------
All letters offering advice, suggestions, information, constructive
criticism, dangers of possible pitfalls, limitations, and possibilities
are welcome.
Finally we like to take this opportunity to thank in advance everyone
who took time to read this and respond to our plea as it might not be
possible to send each a note of acknowledgement. Special thanks go to
David Rothman and Arthur MaGee in all they done in getting us this far.
Regards from Jamal.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ Jamal Al-noor +
+ + "Many recieve advise, but only
+ Internet : shenzi1.dircon.co.uk + the wise profit from it"
+ CompuServe : 100102,657 + - Syrus
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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