Session
Organizer 1: Risper Arose, African Advanced Level Telecommunications Institute (AFRALTI)
Organizer 2: Carlos Francisco Baca Feldman, LocNet Initiative / Rhizomatica Communications
Organizer 3: Harira Abdulraman Wakili, 🔒
Speaker 1: Dr. Emma Otieno, Government, African Group
Speaker 2: Jane Roberts Coffin , Technical Community, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 3: Carlos Rey-Moreno, Civil Society, African Group
Risper Arose, Civil Society, African Group
Harira Abdulraman Wakili, Civil Society, African Group
Carlos Francisco Baca Feldman, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Roundtable
Duration (minutes): 90
Format description: The workshop's content, focusing on policy considerations, financing mechanisms, and best practices, is best suited for a collaborative and interactive environment like a roundtable. This format allows participants to learn from each other, share experiences, and work together to identify actionable solutions.The proposed time is 90 minutes which will allow for a focused exploration of key topics like policy, financing, and best practices. This timeframe is sufficient to ensure participants delve into each area while still leaving time to identify actionable solutions as well as Q&A.
What lessons can be learned from the experiences of telecom regulators in Africa and Latin America regarding innovative approaches to licensing for community-centered connectivity models and their impact on underserved communities? What are the key characteristics of new and innovative financing mechanisms investing in small-scale infrastructure that have successfully supported community-centered solutions, and how can these be replicated or scaled for broader impact? How can traditional commercial financial institutions be incentivized to overcome the inherent challenges of limited scale, perceived risk, and lower returns on investment when funding community-centered connectivity projects?
What will participants gain from attending this session? The workshop will serve as a platform for stakeholders to exchange knowledge, share experiences, and collaborate on advancing human rights and digital inclusion in the digital age.The participants will gain an understanding of the barriers to universal access in telecommunications infrastructure, particularly in developing countries, and explore the opportunities presented by community-centered connectivity solutions. They will also learn about new and innovative approaches to policy, regulation and financing that can support the emergence and scalability of community-centered connectivity models. Lastly they will interact with real-world case studies and best practices from Africa and Latin America, showcasing successful licensing approaches and the impact of community-centered connectivity on underserved communities.
Description:
In the digital age, ensuring universal access to telecommunications infrastructure remains a significant challenge, particularly in developing countries. Despite significant public and private investments, traditional approaches to telecommunications infrastructure have failed to achieve universal access goals even for basic voice connectivity for over two decades. Community-centered connectivity solutions are emerging as a powerful alternative. Driven by distinct investment priorities, these providers not only connect underserved communities, but they also foster social and economic development. They represent a vital part of the micro, small, and medium business (MSME) ecosystem - the backbone of developing economies - that has been largely overlooked by traditional, large-scale network operators. Yet, they face funding constraints and regulatory challenges that hinder their scalability and impact. Efforts to engage traditional commercial financial institutions that fund communications infrastructure have surfaced three intrinsic difficulties that need to be addressed: their limited scale, their high real and perceived levels of risk, and their lower returns on investment. To address these constraints, there is a strong need to create an enabling and flexible policy, regulatory, and financing environment that encourages the emergence of more innovative local and regional investment models for community-centred connectivity providers, which allows them to expand and operate cost-effectively. In this respect, to improve the balance between profit maximization and reaching universal access, the time has come to fully review where investments are made and how effective they are at addressing digital inclusion. This workshop will showcase innovative approaches to licensing for community-centered connectivity models and its impact by telecom regulators in Africa (Zimbabwe, Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya) and Latin America (Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and Brazil). Additionally, it will showcase new and innovative financing mechanisms investing in small scale infrastructure that are already supporting emerging and successfully supporting community centred solutions.
Identification of actionable policy and regulatory insights to support the emergence and scalability of community-centered connectivity solutions, leading to improved social and economic development outcomes. Dissemination of best practices and lessons learned from real-world case studies in Africa and Latin America, showcasing successful licensing approaches and the positive impact of community-centered connectivity on underserved communities. Collaboration and networking opportunities among policymakers, regulators, investors, and community organizations to drive collective action towards addressing the digital divide and promoting digital inclusion. Development of concrete recommendations for policymakers and stakeholders to create an enabling environment that encourages the emergence of innovative investment models and fosters inclusive connectivity initiatives.
Hybrid Format: We will utilize Zoom meeting platform that supports both onsite and online participation. This will enable communication, allowing remote attendees to join the discussion, ask questions, and interact with onsite speakers and participants in real-time. The moderators will actively engage remote attendees by addressing their questions, summarizing key points, and encouraging participation throughout the discussion.Dedicated Q&A session will be included after each presentation or panel discussion, allowing both onsite and online participants to ask questions and share insights. Questions from remote attendees will be prioritized and addressed by the speakers, ensuring that their voices are heard and integrated into the conversation.
Report
This workshop focused on the need to rethink Innovative Financing Mechanisms to Bridge the Digital Divide
The moderators were Risper Arose (onsite moderator) and Harira Wakili (online moderator). The workshop was hybrid.
Onsite participants in this session were:
- Risper Arose - APC
- Talant Sultanov - GDIP
- Lilian Chamorro - Colnodo
Online participants were:
- Dr Carlos Rey Moreno - APC
- Dr Emma Otieno - RIFEN
- Jane Coffin - The Office of International Affairs, Federal Communications Commission
It was a very diverse panel with speakers representing various stakeholder groups: civil society, private sector, government, technical community and intergovernmental agencies.
Some important aspects that were raised were the challenges of universal access, the limitations of traditional approaches, and the emergence of community-centered connectivity solutions.
The first speaker, Dr. Carlos Ray Moreno, gave a key note presentation on why it's important to start thinking around innovating financing mechanism for bridging the digital divide, framing it in the context of the WSIS+2 review that is taking place at the moment to be concluded next year. He highlighted the continued inability to meet universal service aspirations amply demonstrates that ensuring the WSIS vision of “a people-centered, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society, where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information” cannot be left solely to traditional telecommunication incumbents to solve. He reflected on the need to Improve the balance between profit maximisation and the goal of reaching universal access stating that the time has come to fully review where socially driven investments are made and how effective they are at addressing digital inclusion. His presentation can be found here https://x.com/APC_News/status/1869361877702320471
Lilian Chamorro touched on discussion on the main barriers to universal access, and why traditional infrastructure approaches have failed. She emphasised on the need to shift from top-down infrastructure projects to community-centered solutions, which provide the flexibility, sustainability, and adaptability required to effectively address the digital divide in rural and marginalized areas. By empowering communities to design, implement, and sustain their own connectivity solutions, we can create impactful and long-lasting change.
Talant shared an inspiring story about a remote village in Kyrgyzstan, that transformed dramatically after a small $10,000 investment from the Internet Society Foundation to establish a community network. Once connected to the internet, villagers used the connectivity to advocate for essential infrastructure, attracting significant government investments in electricity, roads, and mobile connectivity. He highlighted the importance of IGF in fostering the community network movement, sharing that he first learned about these networks at IGF in Guadalajara. Talant noted the transformative potential of small investments, multi-stakeholder partnerships, and targeted funding in bridging the digital divide
Jane Coffin emphasized the importance of localized approaches to connectivity, regulation, and financing, stressing that these areas must align to address community-specific needs effectively. She noted that innovative and blended financing models are necessary to address local connectivity challenges, with a shift from traditional, risk-averse financing paradigms. Jane encouraged regulators and policymakers to take a step back, gather more data, and reimagine connectivity solutions by working with various stakeholders, including financial institutions, international organizations, and community networks, to gather insights and co-develop solutions tailored to local contexts.
Dr. Emma Otieno talked to the role regulators play in enabling flexible, community-oriented licensing frameworks and how USF mechanisms can be more transparent, efficient, and inclusive to support smaller local connectivity providers. She explained that regulators should transition from a policing role to being enablers that nurture community networks. This involves creating supportive licensing frameworks and offering capacity-building opportunities tailored to community network operators. Dr. Emma highlighted alternative models, such as Brazil’s approach of offering loans through the USF, which could inspire similar shifts in Africa. This requires collaboration between ICT ministries, finance ministries, and banks to align laws and frameworks.
There were several comments and questions raised onsite and online, which were addressed by the panelists.