People in Zambia's remote rural areas without Internet access will now be able to access Internet services following the delivery of solar-powered cyber caf'es to the country by Computer Aid International.
The Internet caf'es dubbed ZubaBox (meaning sun box in the Zambian local language) have been sent to Zambia and Kenya to help rural communities access the Internet, boost IT skills and education. While most rural communities in Zambia are already connected to mobile communications, Internet penetration has been slow due to lack of power from the national grid to power computers.
The ZubaBox is a shipping container fitted with a thin client computing system running about 11 computers and powered by solar panels. The container, costing more than $35 000, can take computers and Internet across areas where there is no wired Internet connectivity or electricity.
Computer Aid International is a UK-based non-profit organisation whose aim is to reduce poverty through information and communication technologies.
The ZubaBox uses satellite connectivity and each box contains refurbished Pentium 4 computers with 3GB or RAM, advanced solar-power system as well as sockets for recharging up to 10 mobile phones and capacity for VSAT modem or printer among others.
Solar energy supplies all the system's energy needs on a sunny day, with several hours of full service energy possible on a rain or cloud day. The solar-powered boxes were sent to Macha and Chikankata, the rural communities in the southern part of the country, as donations.
A bank kiosk attached to the box also makes it possible for those in formal employment to receive their monthly salaries in Macha and Chikankata, as opposed to travelling to nearby towns where a few banks are found.
Anja Ffrench, Computer Aid International's director of marketing and communications, says: “Computer Aid International is committed to removing the barriers to ICT access to developing countries.”
“Therefore, the ZubaBox is an exciting project for us, as it enables us to reach the most isolated rural communities.”
Ffrenchsaid Zambia and Kenya were chosen as the first recipients of the ZubaBoxes as Computer Aid International works with longstanding partners in each of the three countries who trialled the first three trial ZubaBoxes. Anja said internet access is provided through rural Wi-Fi network. The fourth container is shortly expected to be sent to Murtala Muhammed Foundation in Nigeria, according to Ffrench.
The ZubaBox, she said, has been designed to help rural communities access IT and Internet, which can have a huge impact on poverty reduction.
For example, she said, access to local weather forecast allows farmers to adjust their planting and harvesting times of their crops, increasing agricultural productivity and food security, learning IT skills also means that children will be able to gain better paid employment in future.
A mess network system in the ZubaBox can allow users in a 1.5-kilometre radius to access the Internet while plans are also underway to extend the network to over a 30-kilometre radius.
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