CUZCO, Aug 27 (IPS) - Little by little, rural communities in southern Peru are beginning to take advantage of the Internet to acquire new knowledge and increase their income. But the use of computers in rural areas faces numerous challenges, from illiteracy to fear of the unknown or questions about the sustainability of these new communications initiatives once they are left in local hands.
In Cuzco, Peru. © abmiller99 (flickr)"I used to be scared to touch the computer, I thought I would break it. But now I check my e-mail three times a week," Teófila Anchahua told IPS. She lives in the town of Pucyura, where an Internet facility known as a Commercial Information Centre (CIC) was set up a year ago.
In Pucyura, a half hour drive from the city of Cuzco, the Internet has provided farmers of pigs and Guinea pigs – which are native to the Andean region and used as a source of food – with opportunities to expand their business operations, through information on new breeding techniques developed in other areas, recipes to promote their products at fairs, and contacts with potential buyers.
The dozen computers in this town of 4,500 people were installed by the government-run Puno-Cuzco Operations Unit, which among other initiatives is promoting the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) as tools for development in rural highlands communities.
Up until now, Internet facilities have been installed in 24 districts in the provinces of Arequipa, Cuzco, Moquegua, Puno and Tacna as part of the former Puno-Cuzco Corridor and Sierra Sur initiative, another government programme supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
This initiative, which received funding from IFAD until the end of 2008, was considered by the U.N. agency to be one of the most successful experiences undertaken around the world, since it made it possible for more than 80,000 families to develop value-added agricultural production activities through the use of the Internet.
The successes and limitations of these initiatives and others implemented in different areas of Peru and Bolivia were presented at an IFAD-sponsored workshop held Aug. 14 in Cuzco, attended by 50 participants from organisations that use ICTs for development, government authorities, local community members and experts.
"In rural areas there are many challenges, because you have to deal with illiteracy, with guaranteeing the sustainability of the project through a commitment from the local authorities, and with a lack of capacity for maintaining the service," explained Luis Andrade of the Sierra Sur project.
Sierra Sur has approved 20 projects submitted by mayors of rural villages and towns, 18 of which involve the establishment of Internet facilities.
This particular project has placed emphasis on providing Internet connectivity, although the representatives of Sierra Sur recognise that access to the Internet alone is not enough. Campesinos (peasant farmers) are not going to improve their livelihoods simply by sitting in front of a computer.
It is essential for complementary initiatives to be undertaken alongside these projects, particularly because of the high rates of illiteracy in rural areas, Andrade stressed.
The administrator of the CIC in Pucyura, Margot Huamán, explained to IPS that when non-literate community members take part in the computer courses offered as part of the project, she first uses the computer to teach them to read, and then moves on to basic computer skills.
Huamán, who is both a teacher and computer technician, is able to combine her two professions to teach both basic literacy and computer literacy. "I teach them the alphabet using the computer keyboard, and then teach them to join the letters together to make words, and then have them transcribe texts on the computer. It's not easy, but we're slowly making progress," she said.
Sergio Toro, the executive coordinator of the TICBolivia (ICTBolivia) Network, stressed that initiatives like these "must go beyond the use of a Web site."
In numerous rural areas of this neighbouring country, the use of modern ICTs like computers and the Internet has been linked with community radio stations, the most widespread communications medium in these communities. For example, the Internet is used to look up the latest market prices for farm products like soybeans, corn and potatoes, and the prices are broadcast over the radio to local farmers, who are thus able to negotiate fairer prices when they sell their goods. link..
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