SWITZERLAND AND BELGIUM FUND NEW UNESCO PROGRAMME AIMED AT BRIDGING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

Paris, January 17 (No.2001-06) - Switzerland and Belgium will finance UNESCO’s new Programme for Community Multimedia Centres through new funds-in-trust dedicated to broadening access to information and communication for community development.

The donation - Switzerland is giving Swiss francs 1.5 million over three years, Belgium Euro 334,000 for 2001-2002 - will provide considerable reinforcement to the community media development activities undertaken over the last 20 years by UNESCO’s International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC).

The programme, Integrating New and Traditional Technologies for Community Development, combines community broadcasting, especially radio, with Internet and related technologies. UNESCO has brought its extensive experience in community radio development and its more recent work in the field of community telecentres to the innovative area of integrated communication and information facilities.

Some of the poorest communities in the developing world are now benefiting from the new opportunities provided by these facilities and finding the knowledge they need for their social and economic development. Local radio by local people in local languages, combined with new information and communication technologies, means the literate and illiterate alike are able to identify their information needs and share in the processing and exchange of information.

This issue is addressed by UNESCO and the Sri Lankan authorities in an international seminar on Integrating New and Traditional Technologies for Community Development in Kothmale, Sri Lanka, from January 22 to 27, 2001. The meeting presents a unique opportunity for the international pooling of project experience in this area. Some 20 managers and project co-ordinators from community radios and telecentres in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean will exchange experiences in a workshop. They will be joined by international partners representing multilateral and bilateral donors, the private sector and NGOs, many of whom are members of the Global Knowledge Partnership in which UNESCO plays an leadership role, notably regarding the integration of technologies for community development. Representatives of the G8 Dot Force will also attend.

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