scholarly journals Canada Must Make Broadband Infrastructure a Priority

2002 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maggie Matear
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Broadband Access ◽  
Large Bande ◽  
Implementation Barriers ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Internet Connectivity ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Essential Service

Abstract: This article argues that just as universal access to traditional communications media, such as the post office and the telephone, is considered an essential service, so also should access to high-speed Internet, particularly in areas that currently lack the infrastructure to make this possible. This paper illustrates the need for high-speed Internet connectivity, or broadband access, in remote and rural areas of Canada. The article outlines the rationale for establishing high-speed access throughout Canada and provides an overview of infrastructure implementation barriers faced by the private and public sectors. It concludes with a discussion of the ways in which community-based networks could play a role in the strategic planning, implementation, and application of broadband infrastructure. Résumé : Cet article soutient que, de la même manière que l'on en est venu à considérer comme essentiel l'accès universel aux médias de communication traditionnels comme la poste et le téléphone, on devrait considérer comme essentiel l'accès à Internet à haute vitesse, particulièrement dans les régions qui n'ont pas encore une infrastructure de base pour Internet. Cet article explique le besoin d'une connectivité Internet à haute vitesse ou à large bande dans les régions isolées et rurales du Canada. Il justifie pourquoi il est raisonnable d'établir l'accès à haute vitesse partout au Canada et offre une vue d'ensemble sur les barrières que les secteurs public et privé doivent surmonter avant de pouvoir instaurer une infrastructure. Il conclut en discutant comment les réseaux communautaires pourraient jouer un rôle dans la planification, l'établissement et le maintien d'une infrastructure à large bande.

Refuting objections to a Global Rural Network (GRNet) for developing nations (originally published in August 2004)

First Monday ◽  
2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larry Press
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Developing Nations ◽  
Appropriate Technology ◽  
Grand Challenge ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Developing Nation ◽  
Internet Connectivity

In a previous article, we suggested that it is now time to undertake a Grand Challenge project: providing Internet connectivity for every village in every developing nation. Doing so would require perhaps a decade and billions of dollars for design and planning, procurement, installation and operation. Critics object that such a project would not be worth the effort and investment. This article considers nine objections to such an undertaking. 1. Internet connectivity would be nice, but it is not a high priority. 2. Internet service has been offered in rural areas of developing nations, and there is little demand for it. 3. There are no applications of interest or value to illiterate rural people who do not speak English. 4. There is no sustainable business model. 5. Developing nations lack the people and resources to do research. 6. Even if the world community can justify sponsoring the research leading to a concrete backbone plan, developing nations cannot afford to implement it. 7. Villagers cannot afford to use the network even if the backbone transport and connection are free. 8. Developing nations cannot afford high–speed connectivity — low–cost store–and–forward technology is more appropriate technology for a poor, developing nation. 9. We should focus on cities where there is already demand, not rural areas. We discuss each of these, and conclude with a brief outline of next steps.

scholarly journals Factors Affecting Access to E-Learning during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic Among Rural-Based Pharmacy Students in Zambia: A Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-34
Author(s):  
Kennedy Mwila ◽  
◽  
Steward Mudenda ◽  
Martin Kampamba ◽  
Webrod Mufwambi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Performance ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Information And Communications Technology ◽  
Pharmacy Students ◽  
Internet Connectivity ◽  
Western Province ◽  
Academic Activities ◽  
E Learning ◽  
And Performance

Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has negatively affected the education sector globally. This has resulted in learning institutions adopting e-learning techniques. E-learning implementation in higher education continues to gain prominence in both developed and developing countries. Most universities are exploring different ways of using information and communications technology (ICT). However, ICT remains a challenge more especially for students who come from rural areas. Aim This study was aimed at exploring the factors that affect access to e-learning among rural-based pharmacy students in Zambia. Methods A qualitative case study was conducted among ten (10) purposively sampled pharmacy students at the University of Zambia. The study participants were from the Manying, a district of North-Western Province, the Sinda district of Eastern Province, the Nalolo district of Western Province, the Chipili district of Luapula Province and the Mbala district of Northern Province. Semistructured interviews were used to collect data from the respondents. Data were analyzed using the framework analysis. The sociodemographic characteristics indicate that ten (10) respondents were drawn from Zambia’s five (5) provinces. Six qualitative themes were generated these included devices used for e-learning; the effectiveness of the devices; student performance; internet connectivity; and electrification of the houses. Key findings suggest that the most commonly used device was a smartphone, which posed challenges to effective learner participation in e-learning. Poor internet connectivity, non-electrification of students’ houses, electricity outages, and costs-associated with internet use negatively affected students in accessing online learning and could adversely affect their academic activities and performance. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected access to e-learning among rural pharmacy students in Zambia. The implications of the challenges faced by the rural pharmacy students are that their academic activities and performance were negatively affected. Therefore, this posed a threat to the rights to universal access to education of the rural students who were mostly venerable.

Innovation

2020 ◽  
pp. 295-310
Author(s):  
David Stoesz
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Economics ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Policy Reform ◽  
Disruptive Innovation ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Evidence Based Policy ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Community Based Services

Evidence-based policy can serve as a disruptive innovation if it is modified in accord with the circumstances of the typical agency director. Behavioral economics has implications for introducing RCTs in social care, addressing the inertia that typifies community based services. Four recommendations can make RCTs more visible and instrumental in policy reform: (1) deploying innovations to rural areas and small towns and testing them rigorously, (2) altering federal tiered funding so that half of allocations are for programming demonstrated by multiple RCTs, (3) modifying MIT’s MicroMasters for domestic programming, and (4) developing a “randomista” award for researchers making substantial contributions to the evidence-based policy movement. Collaboration between private and public sectors will be essential for expanding the evidence-based policy movement.

scholarly journals Community monitoring: A strategy to watch out for

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saurabh RamBihariLal Shrivastava ◽  
Prateek Saurabh Shrivastava ◽  
Jegadeesh Ramasamy
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Quality Health Care ◽  
Community Ownership ◽  
Community Monitoring

India’s National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was launched in 2005 on a nationwide scale with a vision to provide universal access to equitable, affordable and quality health care. In particular, it aims to meet the health needs of the poor and vulnerable in mostly rural areas, such as women, children and the elderly. The Mission is distinguished by in-built flexible mechanisms, so that local needs and priorities can be identified and addressed and local initiatives promoted. Central to these mechanisms is the role of community ownership and participation in management, which is seen as an important prerequisite within the NRHM. This article explores the development and use of community-based monitoring (CBM), which involves drawing in, activating, motivating and capacity building so that the community and its representatives can directly give feedback about the functioning of public health services, including input to improving planning of those services. The focus of this monitoring process is mainly on ‘fact finding’ and ‘learning lessons for improvement' rather than on ‘fault finding’. This article describes the objectives and stages of CBM and also discusses its current status and challenges. The most important reasons for the success of CBM are strong civil society engagement, the involvement of public health personnel as well as the community as principal stakeholders, adequate geographic representation and the crucial role played by the Monitoring and Planning Committees. Community-based monitoring of health services is a key strategy of the NRHM to ensure that services reach those for whom they are intended. This framework is consistent with the ‘Right to Health Care’ approach since it places health rights of the community at the centre of the process. It also seeks to address gaps in the implementation of various programs, thereby enhancing transparency down to the grassroots level. Keywords: Community, community mobilisation, community monitoring, community ownership and participation in management, health care, public health

scholarly journals The failure of community-based health insurance schemes in Tanzania: opening the black box of the implementation process

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramadhani Kigume ◽  
Stephen Maluka
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Community Health ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Health Coverage ◽  
Access To Health Services ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Community Based Health Insurance ◽  
Urban Districts ◽  
Health Fund ◽  
The Government

Abstract Background Globally, there is increased advocacy for community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes. Like other low and middle-income countries (LMICs), Tanzania officially established the Community Health Fund (CHF) in 2001 for rural areas; and Tiba Kwa Kadi (TIKA) for urban population since 2009. This study investigated the implementation of TIKA scheme in urban districts of Tanzania. Methods A descriptive qualitative case study was conducted in four urban districts in Tanzania in 2019. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and review of documents. A thematic approach was used to analyse the data. Results While TIKA scheme was important in increasing access to health services for the poor and other disadvantaged groups, it faced many challenges which hindered its performance. The challenges included frequent stock-out of drugs and medical supplies, which frustrated TIKA members and hence contributed to non-renewal of membership. In addition, the scheme was affected by poor collections and management of the revenue collected from TIKA members, limited benefit packages and low awareness of the community. Conclusions Similar to rural-based Community Health Fund, the TIKA scheme faced structural and operational challenges which subsequently resulted into low uptake of the schemes. In order to achieve universal health coverage, the government should consider integrating or merging Community-Based Health Insurance schemes into a single national pool with decentralised arms to win national support while also maintaining local accountability.

scholarly journals Clustering Techniques for Secondary Substations Siting

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 1028
Author(s):  
Silvia Corigliano ◽  
Federico Rosato ◽  
Carla Ortiz Dominguez ◽  
Marco Merlo
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Universal Access ◽  
Distribution Networks ◽  
Industrialized Countries ◽  
Agglomerative Clustering ◽  
Clustering Techniques ◽  
Hierarchical Agglomerative Clustering ◽  
Efficient Planning ◽  
Target Set

The scientific community is active in developing new models and methods to help reach the ambitious target set by UN SDGs7: universal access to electricity by 2030. Efficient planning of distribution networks is a complex and multivariate task, which is usually split into multiple subproblems to reduce the number of variables. The present work addresses the problem of optimal secondary substation siting, by means of different clustering techniques. In contrast with the majority of approaches found in the literature, which are devoted to the planning of MV grids in already electrified urban areas, this work focuses on greenfield planning in rural areas. K-means algorithm, hierarchical agglomerative clustering, and a method based on optimal weighted tree partitioning are adapted to the problem and run on two real case studies, with different population densities. The algorithms are compared in terms of different indicators useful to assess the feasibility of the solutions found. The algorithms have proven to be effective in addressing some of the crucial aspects of substations siting and to constitute relevant improvements to the classic K-means approach found in the literature. However, it is found that it is very challenging to conjugate an acceptable geographical span of the area served by a single substation with a substation power high enough to justify the installation when the load density is very low. In other words, well known standards adopted in industrialized countries do not fit with developing countries’ requirements.

Do the Heterogeneous Determinants of Repayment Affect Differently across Borrowers of Diverse Credit Sources in Rural Assam? A Double Hurdle Approach

2021 ◽  
pp. 245513332110316
Author(s):  
Tiken Das ◽  
Pradyut Guha ◽  
Diganta Das
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Brahmaputra Valley ◽  
Double Hurdle ◽  
Instrumental Variable Probit ◽  
Instrumental Variable Probit Model

This study made an attempt to answer the question: Do the heterogeneous determinants of repayment affect the borrowers of diverse credit sources differently? The study is based on data collected from 240 households from three districts in the lower Brahmaputra valley of Assam through a carefully designed primary survey. Besides, the study uses the double hurdle approach and the instrumental variable probit model to reduce possible selection bias. It observes better repayment performance among formal borrowers, followed by semiformal borrowers, while occupation wise it is prominent among organised employees. It has been found that in general, the household characteristics, loan characteristics and location-specific characteristics significantly affect repayment performance of borrowers. However, the nature of impact of the factors influencing repayment performance is remarkably different across credit sources. It ignores the role of traditional community-based organisations in rural Assam while analysing the determinants of repayment performance. The study also recommends for ensuring productive opportunities and efficient market linkages in rural areas of Assam. The study is based on an original data set that has specially been collected to examine question that—do the heterogeneous determinants of repayment affect the borrowers of diverse credit sources differently in the lower Brahmaputra valley of Assam—which has not been studied before.

scholarly journals Homeless on Main Street: Using Photovoice to Highlight Older Adults Among the Hidden Homeless

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 728-728
Author(s):  
H Shellae Versey
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Photo Elicitation ◽  
Service Agency ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Formerly Homeless

Abstract Homelessness is a reality for a growing number of Americans living in small towns and rural areas. However, unlike in cities, housing instability may be less visible. Using a photo-elicitation method (i.e., Photovoice), this study explores the meaning of place and obscured visibility to currently and formerly homeless older adults living in a small town in central Connecticut. Participants (N = 27) were recruited from a local service agency, given cameras and asked to photograph areas around town that were meaningful to them. Photographs were developed and followed by in-person, semi-structured interviews with participants in which photos and experiences during the project were discussed. Primary themes included belonging, generativity, social isolation, and place-making as meaning-making. The study culminated in a community photography exhibition in which photographs from the project were displayed in public spaces around town. Implications for community-based interventions to reach homeless groups in rural areas are discussed. Part of a symposium sponsored by the Qualitative Research Interest Group.

Entrepreneurship, Broadband, and Gender: Evidence from Establishment Births in Rural America

2021 ◽  
pp. 016001762110187
Author(s):  
Tessa Conroy ◽  
Sarah A. Low
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Birth Rate ◽  
Broadband Access ◽  
Rural America ◽  
Variable Approach ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Business Size ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Instrumental Variable Approach

Broadband access may have important implications for establishment births in rural areas, which feature thinner markets. Broadband may be especially important for rural nonemployer businesses, particularly those without a storefront, for access to nontraditional market channels. As women are more likely to run these types of small businesses, we further expect that broadband may have important implications for women-led businesses. With an effective instrumental variable approach, we find evidence that broadband access is a key factor leading to a higher establishment birth rate across business size and gender in rural areas. This paper identifies the largest effects on nonemployer, women-led and remote rural establishments.

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