CRC - Community Resource Centres

USPF, in partnership with local entrepreneurs and community-based organizations will facilitate the establishment of Community Resource Centres (CRC).  The aim is to extend voice, internet and ICT training and other e-services to unserved communities on shared basis and bridge the digital divide in the communities.

The centres are fully equipped with desktop computers, furniture, telephone, power generator, and bandwidth to provide access to telephone, internet, ICT and e-initiatives at semi-urban and rural un-served and under-served areas.

The CRCs will also serve as support centres for the following projects in order to ensure inclusion of unserved and underserved target communities:

• ICT Innovation Hubs
• E-Health support Centres
• E-Agriculture Centres
• E-Government
• E-Commerce

Objective:

The objective of the CRC project is to promote the adoption of ICT at community level for social and economic development. The CRC offerings include, but not limited to conflict and disaster warning and management, improving farmers' access to markets, information centre for community development mobilization, small scale businesses, e-agric, and community health.

Service Model:

This project is funded through grants. The local entrepreneurs and companies are selected through open competitive bidding to establish the CRCs. The grant is provided for capex and initial one year opex. Additional support is thereafter provided in terms of bandwidth provision for the first five (5) years of operation.

Benefits

CRC serves as one-stop shop for access to good quality ICT services at fair and affordable rates. Other benefits are:

• Employment generation
• Reduction of rural to urban population drift by bridging the urban-rural access gap
• Empowerment through easier access to Information on markets and e-commerce, weather, global trends, public health, e-agriculture, government services, security, banking and micro-financing, etc
• Improved socio-economic development through more efficient and less expensive service delivery
• Supports self development and distance learning
• Increases ICT skills

Locations