Community Radio and Network Providers Join Force to Grow the Internet
Last month, 40 community radio and network providers from all across Asia-Pacific journeyed by road from Bengaluru, India’s tech capital, to IruWay, a rural research lab about 80km away.
As the traffic and indiscriminate honking outside the megacity faded, Internet signal also weakened, and at some point, there was no connection at all – something that could make Internet-dependent city dwellers queasy. But the 40 participants traveling to attend the Community Network Exchange Asia-Pacific 2019 (CNX APAC) were undeterred. They have built or run radio or Internet networks for unconnected communities in many countries, including Bangladesh, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, the Philippines and Thailand.
The event gathered the two groups, community radio and network providers. It was a bid to get communities that have community radio stations in place to also set up community networks – so that villages unserved by mobile network operators or Internet service providers can access the Internet and the benefits it offers.
Community radio stations play an important role in providing information to rural communities throughout the world. They have expertise in setting up the infrastructure as well as creating local content, both of which are crucial to the success of community networks. It is why the Continue reading
