TELECENTRE SUSTAINABILITY IN GHANA

Despite the fact that there is no strong competition from other telecentres in the area, the Community Information Centre(CIC) in SALAGA is seeing its client base eroded by the spread of mobile phones, a direct result of liberalization of the Ghanaian telecommunication sector. It is interesting to know that, more people at the community level are now using mobile phones to access information, communication and for business transactions. This is view as a challenge for the centre as it is cheaper to access a mobile phone than to visit the information centre to access the web. In most cases, people who access the internet in the rural areas are the same as those who use mobile phones. Of late, the district assembly, NGOs, schools, hospitals and churches have interest in sharing the existing internet connection. This is seen as an opportunity for the project's sustainability. This will go a long way to enhance the operaton of the telecentre in providing relevant information to the isolated rural farmers.