NGOs Name  :-               Information & Communication Technology Forum For Rural Development Nepal

Short Cut:-                       Grameen -Nepal   

Project's Slogan/Title:-      Every Village a Rural Telecenter.

Project Coverage :-           (Rupandehi,Palpa,Gulmi,Arghakhachi,Nawalparasi &Kapilvastu Districts)

Target Groups:-                General Communities Clubs, Listener Clubs, Bal Eco Clubs, Youth Clubs ,Students of Government                                               School  & Women groups.

                                             Grameen-Nepal is a Non-Governmental Organization. This Ngo aims to give people access to economic and educational opportunities through the application of information and communication technology (ICTs) For Rural Development in Remote Areas. Around 85 % of the population of Nepal lives in rural and remote areas, with a literacy of nearly 52%in total.. The poor quality and high cost of existing communications technology limits the economic and educational opportunities available to this isolated population. For many of these people, quality health care, agricultural information, and formal education are simply out of reach. It provides access to relevant information through ICTs and the Internet for the remote populations living in Rural Areas. Creating or strengthening networks that provide training, technical assistance and other services to improve telecentre sustainability. facilitating materials-sharing to help people working in telecentres learn new skills, adopt innovative social enterprise models and deliver better services.  Telecentres are increasingly emerging as one of the most important equalizers of digital divide among urban and rural citizens.Grameen-Nepal hopes to concentrate on addressing the challenges in bringing the Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) revolution to the mass of the rural areas of Nepal.

            The main objective of this (LRTDP) is to support sustainable Information and Communication Technologies for empowering the people living in rural and remote areas of Nepal, Main Vision is to establish a rural Tele center in 60 VDC Of Lumbini Zone. At present work is underway to provide technical support to establish Rural telecentres in six districts that Grameen Nepal is currently working in [Rupandehi,Nawalparasi,Kapilvastu,Palpa,Gulmi and Arghakhachi] .Grameen Nepal also works to provide training to the operators, identify the area,mobilize to communities, and coordinate the linkage between communities. This Pilot Project's Mission  is to make          " Every Village a Rural Telecenter". This Project has been running a Radio Proramme,Community Paper, Community Portal and E-library. They are effective tools of Communication for Rural Development to empower the pepole .

         ICTs development tends to increase income inequality within the country for several reasons:-

(i)  it requires relatively good education and special skills to make full use of ICT for socio- economic gains.

(ii) ICTs infrastructure is more profitable and therefore easier to develop in urban areas, thus further broadening the gap between                    urban and rural access to ICTs,

(iii) Those who developed widely used ICTs applications are mainly from urban areas who could   reap benefits from being first in           tapping the ICTs market in the country. Not withstanding the inequality bias, ICTs has potential to improve the livelihoods of             low-income earners by enhancing delivery of socio-economic services, offering them opportunities to increase income and            empowering them through participation in decision making processes. Encourage collaboration among governments,                   evelopment organizations, NGOs and other stakeholders in finding solutions to the common problem of reducing rural                  poverty through application of appropriate ICTs services in rural areas.

       The Tenth Five Year Plan of Nepal has envisioned Nepal with rural telecentres in 1500 VDC  (Village Development Committees). This project developed and tested a model for integrating rural library and information and communications services to address the needs of identified target groups in Lumbini Rural Areas In addition to this project, Lumbini's Rural Tele-center Development programme (LRTDP) with support from VDC.

         Overall Goal:-

    To change the society by using the local people /means in acccordance to increase the literacy rate and remove ignorance about ICTs and to make easy access of ICTs for peopple is its main objective.

Project's Primary Objective:- To run ICTs Programme Useful For Rural Development .

     Specific Objectives:-

                         To raise the voice to voiceless people through ICT,Conduct Awareness Programme On" ICT's equal access to the power of knowledge for all Rural people" to Develop skills human resource and running a Radio Programme, Community Paper, Community Portal and E-library, which are powerfull tools of Communication for Rural Development.

- Organizing Communities Clubs.

- Establishing Rural Tele-center & to let community benefits from ICTs.

- Collecting Rural voice From Community &Running a Weekly Radio Programme.

- Collecting Report and Article From Telecenter & Publishing a Communities Paper every Month .

- Establish E-Learning Center for the member of Rural Telecenter and Others too.

- Providing a Internet Access To Telecenter & Developing Portal Website:-This website will be  developed  as a resource center by developing online news update, On line discussion fourm,useful ICT organizations link & Sharing  a Information and knowledge to each other.

-Generating ICT awareness and advocacy by conducting talk programme,Awareness Programme  and  Training.

-Organize Workshop,Seminars,Interaction programme,Rallies,Lobby and advocacy Training.

-Skills Development Training:-Skill development training will be Organize for  Rural Tele   center Members ,who are involved as a volunteer in our partner organization since a long time. We will  provide training for them as the demands of their own local area about ICTs.

   -Meeting of Project Management Unit: Meeting of Project Management Unit; Four times within a year, the project management unit will sit together to discuss on the progress of project activities. Theses meeting are also the part of internal evaluation and other necessary works as per the demand of the project.

   -Follow up and monitoring: To solve minor problems along with the implementation of the programme,  six  times a year, a follow up programme will be conducted. In every  two months and the total follow up will be six in a year.

-Press Conference and dissemination: Right after completion of this project a press conference in the national level will organise to give information about the out put and the next effort of Grameen Nepal

-Publication of Report: A detailed report (English as well as in Nepali version) including the participants’ experience any improvement in the targeted community and the major out put will publish at the end of the programme.

    As a result of this pilot project, the Benefits will be:

*Development of E- village & E- community.

*Production and use of local contents, such as a multi-language Web site for children.

*Delivery of personal messages through radio broadcasting in areas without telephones

*Development of small businesses

*Broadcasting of educational programs (educational contents, such as those on environment, public health, and science).

*Supply of educational materials on Web sites.

*On-line access to the academic data bases and library information

                                                As a result of this pilot project, the output will be:

*Develop Rural Telecenter System:-The Tenth Five Year Plan of Nepal has envisioned Nepal with rural telecentres in 1500 VDC  (Village Development Committees). This project Help For Government Policy to developed and tested a model for integrating rural information and communications services to address the needs of identified target groups in Lumbini Rural Areas .

                     Lumbini's Rural Telecenter Development Programme its self and increase programme where peoples from very walk of life can inform, empower and involve directly or indirectly for ral Development. Particularly the programme will sensitise and motivate the people to be involved in the skill development process and expression of their vision in outer world. Effective utilisation of ICT has the potential to make the rural communities in Nepal prosperous. Therefore,  it is necessary that ITCs be fully integrated in every level of the nation in order to make a tangible difference in the quality