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Community networks learning grant initiatives

“Connecting the unconnected: Supporting community networks and other community-based connectivity initiatives” and “Supporting Community-led Approaches to Addressing the Digital Divide” are projects by APC in partnership with Rhizomatica that aim to directly support the work of community networks, with the support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (since 2019) and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (since 2020).

The initiative intends to contribute to an enabling ecosystem for the emergence and growth of community-based connectivity initiatives in developing countries. It is part of a multi-year, multi-donor strategy envisaged to address the human capacity and sustainability challenges, along with the policy and regulatory obstacles, that limit the growth of community-based connectivity initiatives.

As part of this project, 16 community network organisations (six in Africa, four in Asia and six in Latin America) were selected and granted funding towards activities that create and foster a peer learning community. The initial selection of 12 grantees was based on a 2019 evaluation of the submissions received via a public call. The addition of four grantees in 2020 has resulted from various strategic planning and participatory consultations with actors within the additional countries. The community network organisations then nominated two “in-house” individuals who became the peer community member representatives. The 16 community network organisations selected, and the representatives appointed by them, are the following:

Africa
Asia
Latin America

 

The members of the 2019 selection committee who assisted in the process, organised based on regional base and experience, were:

  1. Kathleen Diga (APC)

  2. Mike Jensen (APC)

  3. Valeria Betancourt (APC)

  4. Josephine Miliza (Regional coordinator – Africa, KICTANET)

  5. Talant Sultanov (Regional coordinator – Asia, ISOC Kyrgstan)

  6. Karla Velsaco (Regional coordinator – Latin America, REDES A.C.)

  7. Christian O'Flaherty and Maria Deambrosio (ISOC-LAC)

  8. Michuki Mwangi (ISOC-Africa)

  9. Naveed Haq (ISOC-Asia Pacific)

  10. Leandro Navarro (Pangea, APC Board member)

  11. Sylvia Cadena (APNIC Foundation, APC individual member)

  12. Nils Brock (Rhizomatica, Pathfinder Grant coordinator)

Read APC communiqué: Employment and funding opportunities for strengthening community networks and local access here.