Women’s Digital Inclusion Project Supported by the Foundation Wins Award

The women’s organization Communication, Education and Information on Gender (CEMINA) was the winner in the NGO category of the first ever Telemar Digital Inclusion Award, created to recognize sound initiatives to expand access of low-income communities to technology in Brazil. CEMINA received the award for its Women Presenters’ Digital Inclusion Project, which was implemented with the support of the Kellogg Foundation.

In this project, the NGO established a network of women who present radio programs for their communities, and offered equipment and training so they may use the Internet in their work. There were 29 participants throughout the country by the end of 2004. Besides being given computers with audio education programs and broadband access, they received training to use the digital technology resources in their radio programs.

In some places, the project has already embarked upon a new stage. Units called ”radio-telecenters” have been set up, where the computers are also used by local residents. The first radio-telecenters were installed in São Gonçalo, in the state of Rio de Janeiro; Paulo Afonso, Lençóis and Pintadas, in the state of Bahia; Campestre, in the state of Alagoas; and Cocalzinho de Goiás, in the state of Goiás.

02/04/2005