The DSF finances community projects in the ICT field in line with national policies and compatible with regional plans of action and the Millennium Development Goals.

The DSF offers solutions adapted to local needs, resolving problems of connectivity, access, use, production and management of local content.

In addition to the technical aspects related to connection infrastructures (satellite links) and equipment, the DSF ensures the availability of ICT applications and services, training, support for community structures, etc. 

At the local level, the DSF works in partnership with specialized organizations (public, private or civil society) in the field of health, education, employment, the socio-cultural sector and the administration.

AFRICA

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Pilot projects designed to provide ICT and Internet access for communities engaged in the fight against HIV/AIDS have been put in place by the DSF in Burkina Faso and Burundi. Offering support to existing programmes, they contribute to social and economic development by:

a)    establishing communications (tele-medicine) between the affected communities and the different centres of expertise on a national, regional and worldwide scale, and so facilitate exchanges of information and know-how and provide medical and social support to patients and their families;

b)    creating conditions conducive to the emancipation of vulnerable populations, in particular women and children, through access to the computer as a learning tool (tele-education), and the World Wide Web as a source of information;

c)    developing skills among local populations in the field of ICT (ICT training courses), with the objective of strengthening human capacities and developing income-generating activities.

The installation of a satellite broadband connection permits the deployment of local radio loops (WIMAX) and creates conditions for:

• improved coordination between all the actors (communities, medical structures in the public and private sectors, research institutions, NGOs) engaged in the fight against HIV/AIDS;
• the housing and centralization of data bases on prevention, treatment, patient care and follow-up;
• the establishment of a more efficient follow-up and evaluation system;
• distance training and support of medical and paramedical personnel within the health structures;
• the development of telemedicine (imaging, advice to physicians, remote consultations) to provide improved facilities for remote communities;
• the development of income-generating activities associated with ICT services to promote the self-financing of community structures over the medium and long term.

Four pilot sites in Burundi - Map

National Board for the Fight against AIDS (CNLS CHU Kamange ) Bujumbura (Project Fact Sheet)

National Association of Support for HIV-positive People and AIDS Sufferers (ANSS) Gitega (Project Fact Sheet)

Society of Women Against AIDS in Africa (SWAA) Ngozi (Project Fact Sheet | Video )

University of Bururi Bururi (Project Fact Sheet | Photo gallery | Video )

Six pilot sites in Burkina Faso - Map

African Solidarity Association (ASA) Ouagadougou (Project Fact Sheet)

African Solidarity Association (ASA) Zorgho (Project Fact Sheet | Photo gallery)

Association for Moral, Material and Intellectual Support for Children (AMMIE) Ouahigouya (Project Fact Sheet | Photos1 , Photos2 )

Hope and Life Association Banfora (Project Fact Sheet | Photo gallery)

Responsibility Hope Life and Solidarity Association (REVS+) Bobo Dioulasso (Project Fact Sheet)

Responsibility Hope Life and Solidarity Association (REVS+) Diebougou (Project Fact Sheet | Photo gallery)

ASIA

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The DSF’S project in Banda Aceh in Indonesia involved reconstruction of the Town Hall at Banda Aceh, destroyed by the tsunami of December 2004.

Through its assistance, the DSF provided the Town Hall with the information technology and office equipment necessary for the functioning of essential public services following the recovery of population and public service data.

The ten administrative divisions of Banda Aceh and the local administration offices in the vicinity of the refugee camps have been equipped with some hundred computers and printers operating in a network. The project will ensure the training of staff (150 people) in the use of the new equipment and the reconstitution of essential archives for the functioning of basic administrative and public services.

Municipality of Banda Aceh Banda Aceh (Project Fact Sheet)