The United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) will open
three technology access community centers (TACC) in the Governorate of
Sharkeya, Egypt, on 14 March.
This is the first in a series of pilot digital projects in Egypt and other
countries in the Arab States, Africa, Asia, and the Latin America and
Caribbean regions.
The TACCs–also knwon as telecenters–represent a platform for providing
Internet access to communities through electronic information and knowledge.
TACCs will also serve as training centers for civil society groups, the
private sector, low-income groups and individuals to familiarize them with
information technologies (IT) and to use IT for various development
applications.
Such applications may encompass long-distance education, telemedicine,
electronic commerce, assistance to small-businesses, new mechanisms for
popular participation, environmental management and women and youth
empowerment.
In addition, TACCs are also designed as hubs for electronic content
creation, especially in Arabic, responding to community needs and
interests.
“We must find ways to bring the information revolution to the underserviced
and unconnected people of the developing world. The population must begin to
enjoy the benefits, especially in remote and rural areas,” said Hans
d’Orville, director of UNDP’s IT for Development Program.
Each TACC will be equipped with a server and some 10 Pentium PCs, backed up
by the use of additional training computers in each location.