Broadband

In a new position paper from APC, we unpack the underlying causes of limited connectivity, the shortcomings of current initiatives, and propose a set of policy responses to address the access gap.    

<p>By <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gavinmusic/">Gavin St. Ours</a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/gavinmusic/3922055137/">via Flickr</a></p>

In April 2013, the South African government published their proposal for a national broadband policy with the aim of ensuring “universal service and access to reliable, affordable and secure broadband services by all citizens prioritising, rural and under-serviced areas.” These are the comments officially submitted by APC.

The Andean region has some of the lowest fixed telephone line, mobile telephony and broadband penetration rates of all Latin America, the continent with the starkest economic disparities in the world. In the 90s, Andean countries adopted new liberalisation and privatisation policies in order to attain universal access. Almost 20 years later, these promises have not been fulfilled. APC studied e...

This advocacy action was carried out by CEPES, AndinaTIC member in Peru, compiling and systematizing documents on Peruvian government ICT projects. This task supplemented the organisation’s ongoing research on connectivity strategies in rural contexts. CEPES questions the governmental initiatives which tend to focus on access to infrastructure. It highlights the importance of taking the comm...

The action consisted of approaching the decision-makers for the Colombian government’s project to supply community internet access centres in schools, through which close to 1700 new telecentres will be installed. Colnodo and the National Network of Telecentres (RNT-Red Nacional de Telecentros), members of AndinaTIC in Colombia, have been working with the government to promote models of socia...

Venezuela’s advocacy action was carried out by EsLaRed and Funredes, the country’s AndinaTIC members, and focused on analysing a proposed reform of the telecommunications, information technology and postal service law. Among other things the law would grant greater control to the government which could pave the way for content regulation. The reform was proposed by organisations closely li...

Universal Access Funds, in Ecuador as well as several other countries of the region, were created in response to liberalisation and privatisation policies of the telecommunications companies. These funds, financed through a percentage of the companies’ profits, intended to finance projects to expand telecommunications infrastructure. This study analyses the Telecommunications Development Fun...