Get on board the information boat

In the Sunamgonj and Kishoregonj districts of Bangladesh, residents are increasingly boarding boats to get online. The boats serve as information hubs for the people residing in these rural communities, providing them with the opportunity to learn, share and communicate with the world.

Grameenphone and CARE partner to bring Tothyo Tori to the rural residents

Called “Tothyo Tori” or information boats, this unique approach to bringing communications tools to people in Bangladesh is the result of a partnership between Grameenphone and CARE, an organization dedicated to fighting global poverty. There are currently four information boats in operation, and they travel up and down the haor, a wetland ecosystem in the north eastern part of Bangladesh, on a fixed schedule.

“We are providing Internet to areas where the level of education is quite low and the residents are largely disconnected from the main land,” said Debashis Roy, Acting Head of CR, Grameenphone. “In the beginning, very few people had any knowledge of the Internet, so it was difficult to get them interested in learning about computers and the Web. But we are seeing an increase in usage every day, as more and more people learn about the opportunities that await on the information boat.”

A fully equipped and connect river boat

A typical information boat is equipped with computers for accessing e-mail and the Internet, photocopiers, printers, scanners and more, depending on the needs of the community. The services provided include information services, computer training, entertainment and educational materials for kids, computer composition and printing, photo printing, music and image downloads and much more.

Healthcare services provided on board

“The main objective of this project is to break the digital divide by both educating and empowering people in rural areas with the necessary information for their livelihoods,” explained Omar Farook, Technical Coordinator, CARE. “The project place specific focus on underprivileged and marginalized people of the community. Periodically, depending on the local demands the boats also organize health camps to provide primary healthcare services to the community.”

An award-winning service

Mr. Debashis Roy, Head of CR, Grameenphone

The Grameenphone and CARE information boat project recently received both the “Chairperson’s Appreciation” award in National e-Content and the “ICT for Development” award in 2010. These awards were given by the D.Net (Development Research Network) in association with Ministry of Science and Information & Communication Technology (ICT) in Bangladesh.