Upper West Commerce Association
Telecenter Experiment
April 1999

The Telecenter Experiment has been coordinated by Peace Corps Volunteer Tod Bruning, who was assigned by Peace Corps to provide general assistance in developing the services of the Upper West Commerce Association (UWCA), a chamber of commerce in Wa, Northwestern Ghana. In consultation with UWCA officials, Mr. Bruning determined that a computer training facility with Internet access would be an appropriate activity. He solicited assistance from USAID/Accra, and was referred to AfricaLink. Some $16,000 was provided for equipment purchases, Internet connectivity, and support services. Approximately $4,400 remains.

WARDA has some $50,000 remaining from its grant of $310,000 from PSGE.

Mr. Bruning is completing his service within a month, and is being replaced by Reena Patel. Both traveled to Tamale to meet with the USAID AfricaLink Advisor. Mr. Edward Addo-Dankwa of the Ghana Ministry of Food and Agriculture also traveled to Tamale from Accra and participated in the meeting.

The computer training center is not fiscally self-sustaining. Ms. Patel has inspected accounts and concurs that a persistent deficit remains once the AfricaLink (equipment and services) and Peace Corps (management salary) subsidies are eliminated. Excluding a manager's salary, and with no allowance for equipment depreciation, the monthly deficit is roughly $40. A skilled manager might cost $500 per month. A depreciation/replacement fund on 4 computers over three years would add perhaps another $250 per month.

Mr. Bruning expressed doubts about the financial viability of rural telecenters, given a definition of sustainability that requires them to operate as independent businesses. Given the financial analysis undertaken by Ms. Patel, it would appear that financial viability would be possible only if a sufficient volume of operations could be achieved to support a skilled manager. This would likely require increasing the number of computers from the present 4 to perhaps 20. A single instructor with a few assistants or apprentices could then simultaneously teach 20 students. The lab could also be made available for public access on a fee basis for word processing, Web surfing, email reading, etc.

An alternative though not mutually exclusive strategy for sustainability would be to transfer operations to a public institution, such as a secondary school. This would eliminate some of the facilities charges in the budget, provide access to secondary school students during the day, and access for private classes and the public on weekends and in the evenings.

Ms. Patel was encouraged to take this transition period to revisit the objectives of the telecenter for the UWCA, given the rapid change taking place in the Ghana Internet market. Mr. Bruning pointed out that commercial Internet telecenters were arising spontaneously within Ghana, obviating much of the need for donor funded telecenters. Discussion focused on the special services for disadvantaged populations that a telecenter located in a school, chamber of commerce, or other non-profit organization might provide.

Contacts:

• Tod Bruning, Peace Corps Volunteer
• Reena Patel, Peace Corps Volunteer