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LearnLink Projects: BENIN
Benin
Community Networking Services Centers
In
conjunction with the Africa Bureau Leland Initiative and with USAID/Cotonou,
LearnLink supported USAID’s efforts to increase opportunities
for learning in Africa through access to the Internet and to information
and communications technologies (ICTs). USAID/Cotonou funded LearnLink
to assist a local NGO in establishing three Community Networking
Services Centers (CNS Centers) in different regions of Benin.
LearnLink
worked with the Songhai Center, a Beninese NGO, to establish CNS Centers
in each of Songhai’s three regional centers: Porto Novo, the
nation’s capital; Savalou, an important commercial hub in Benin’s
central region; and Parakou, Benin’s third largest city in the
northern region. Founded
in 1984 by Frere Nzamujo, a Franciscan priest, the Songhai Center
operates innovative agricultural production centers and trains individuals
from all over Africa on small plot agriculture, animal husbandry,
appropriate technologies, construction, marketing, and financial management.
Songhai’s goals include not only agricultural autonomy, but also
the creation of a uniquely African approach to development that takes
advantage of local knowledge, indigenous culture and environmental
conditions. The CNS Centers were designed to help extend the successful
Songhai experience throughout the country.
The
three sites in Benin in which the CNS Centers were established
have
a poor telephone infrastructure and scarce electrical facilities.
Innovative approaches to overcome these barriers, such as solar
energy supplementation and wireless radio modems for data transfer
and Internet connectivity, were tested under this activity. The
CNS Centers are equipped with networked computer workstations
with
multimedia capabilities, email, Internet access, and a variety
of off-the-shelf and locally-produced learning materials.
For
more information, contact  ict@aed.org
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Project Brief (PDF)
