Community Multimedia Centres To Open in Bahir Dar and Lalibela in Ethiopia
15-06-2004 (Addis Ababa)
Two community multimedia centres (CMC) mainly for community ICT training are being inaugurated this week in Ethiopia. The CMC at the Mulualem Cultural Centre in Bahir Dar opens today and the CMC in the public library in Lalibela opens on Friday. Both CMCs are supported by UNESCO and UNDP.
Earlier, CMCs were opened by UNESCO and UNDP in Addis Ababa at the Christian Relief and Development Association (CRDA) and in Modjo and Assebot, administered by the NGO Hope for the Destitutes in Ethiopia (HoDE).
These UNESCO and UNDP initiative together with the efforts of the British Council, which established telecentres in Axum, Debre Birhan, Gondar and Wolisso, shows the commitment of international organizations to improve access to information, even in remote areas.
The nine centres serve as models for how communities can benefit from ICTs for development. They provide access to information on CD-ROM and on the Internet, offer networking possibilities with other communities within Ethiopia and abroad, and contribute to the work of community development initiatives, for example e.g. women groups, youth clubs and HIV/AIDS awareness groups. Especially access for out of school youth it is a promising experience to improve ICT literacy. Beside access to information, the production of local content on CD-ROMs and on the Internet contributes to and actuve participation of the community in the information society.
As UNESCOs experiences in Cameroon, Mozambique, Senegal and other African countries shows CMCs can even more contribute for development at the community level when access to Internet is extended through a community radio facility. The radio broadcast in local languages can help overcome the language barrier as most of the Internet content is in English or other languages which are not the mother tongue of the addressed communities. CMC with a community radio can reach many more people than without the radio facility says UNESCO project manager Günther Cyranek.
UNESCO will also provide a suitcase radio for training at the Ethiopian Mass Media Training Institute (EMMTI) so that trained staff is available as soon as licenses for community radios in CMCs are agreed upon by the respective authorities, says Cyranek.
These UNESCO and UNDP initiative together with the efforts of the British Council, which established telecentres in Axum, Debre Birhan, Gondar and Wolisso, shows the commitment of international organizations to improve access to information, even in remote areas.
The nine centres serve as models for how communities can benefit from ICTs for development. They provide access to information on CD-ROM and on the Internet, offer networking possibilities with other communities within Ethiopia and abroad, and contribute to the work of community development initiatives, for example e.g. women groups, youth clubs and HIV/AIDS awareness groups. Especially access for out of school youth it is a promising experience to improve ICT literacy. Beside access to information, the production of local content on CD-ROMs and on the Internet contributes to and actuve participation of the community in the information society.
As UNESCOs experiences in Cameroon, Mozambique, Senegal and other African countries shows CMCs can even more contribute for development at the community level when access to Internet is extended through a community radio facility. The radio broadcast in local languages can help overcome the language barrier as most of the Internet content is in English or other languages which are not the mother tongue of the addressed communities. CMC with a community radio can reach many more people than without the radio facility says UNESCO project manager Günther Cyranek.
UNESCO will also provide a suitcase radio for training at the Ethiopian Mass Media Training Institute (EMMTI) so that trained staff is available as soon as licenses for community radios in CMCs are agreed upon by the respective authorities, says Cyranek.
Related themes/countries
· Ethiopia: News Archives 2004
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- Günther Cyranek, UNESCO Addis Ababa Office
- Matteo Landi, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
- UNESCO Addis Ababa
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