Planning and building a community network for the future

In spring 2024, Fantsuam Foundation held their ‘Wireless Barefoot Engineers’ training in Nigeria. This enabled 27 participants to learn more about setting up and maintaining a community network. The project comprised community consultations, classroom and field-based training, and assignments given to help practice the concepts learned in this course and self-assessment.

The Wireless Barefoot Engineer training

Fantsuam Foundation based this project on the manual developed by the Commonwealth of Learning, and Digital Empowerment Foundation. With the knowledge they have about their local needs, they were able to apply the manual in real life. 

The model consists of two modules. The first module provides capacity building in some basic concepts related to planning the setup of wireless networks, such as conducting a location survey and selecting the required hardware. The Barefoot Engineers will be dealing with community members who need some basic knowledge and skills, so they will be taken through these basics. Then, the trainee-engineers will be taken through the Planning of a Wireless Network.

The importance of community networks for rural communities

Community networks provide a cost effective and sustainable model for reaching underserved, rural and remote communities. A community network is a communication infrastructure owned, managed and maintained by the host community. There is now a growing global movement that is promoting the community network model, and Fantsuam Foundation is one of the first to be doing so in Nigeria. One of the core problems of rural connectivity is a lack of last mile infrastructure and community networks provide an opportunity to address this challenge.

The benefits of the ‘Wireless Technology’ training

Many community networks face challenges of lack of in-house technical support. This project identified youths and women in the various communities who could be given basic training to set up, maintain and troubleshoot wireless networks. They became familiar with the target communities and can now easily be reached by the community network whenever there is a challenge with the networks. The community network will pay for the services of the Barefoot Engineers, thereby making the program more financially sustainable.

It also means that the community network is not saddled with looking for a resident member who may have to draw a salary. The community network will only pay the Barefoot Engineer when there is a network challenge to be fixed.

Future outlook

The training empowers the beneficiaries to become self-employed. Their new skills will be in demand even beyond their communities and will earn them some income. The skills can be used alongside their other income generating activities.

The ready availability of technical support will enhance the sustainability of the community network. The continued development of the community network will also ensure that the community is carried along in the growing digital economy.

Making the ‘Wireless Barefoot Engineers’ training accessible to women in the future is an additional sustainability factor in addition to promoting gender digital inclusion. 

Want to know more about the projects 48percent.org contributes to? Check out our website and follow our social media: LinkedIn, X and Facebook!