Nikolai Jacsev
Hangary

About the importance of founding teleecommunication centres in developing areas

    In my presentation I would like to speak about the origin and development of the Telecottage-movement, with examples mostly from Hungary, and its possible perspectives in Russia.
    We are living in a world where traditional communities have changed, people are searching for solutions to their problems based on intelligent information. The importance of access to information is growing considerably. The main risk lies in the creation of a new two-tier society, in which only a part of the population has access to the new technology, is comfortable using it and can fully enjoy its benefits. There is a danger that individuals will reject the new information culture and its instruments. Therefore international organisations and government organisations all over the world articulate their position on the information society.
    Based on statistics it's not difficult to gather that new information technology is located mostly in larger cities and industrial areas, enhancing the development of already advanced regions. It means that less advanced areas fall behind more and more, first of all rural areas, sparsely populated areas and all the peripheries. Therefore in such areas it is well worth founding a telecommunication centre, shortly Telecottage.
    The first Telecottages were founded in the middle of the 80's in Scandinavia with an aim to promote the development of areas at a disadvantage, and to increase their ability to support the population. Since that time the idea has kept spreading in the whole world and now we can find Telecottages as well in Western and Central Europe as in North and South America or Africa. 6-7 years ago the movement reached Hungary, and at the moment there are large number of (more than 100) well-organised Telecottages here. Almost every Telecottage in the world is maintained by a civil organisation.
    Telecottage is a place where everybody is welcome, may use services or ask for help, but can also drink a coffee or otherwise have a good time. Its function is similar to the home of culture from soviet times, but it meets the requirements of today. There is usually an assistant who can help people, and also technical equipment like computer, Internet, printer, copying apparatus, telephone and fax.
    How can be a Telecottage useful for a community?
    Above all, by helping people solve their everyday problems by creating a new real civil community, and through the Internet they can have access to virtual communities and to intelligent information.
    A Telecottage offers space for individual and civil initiations, they may have a bigger chance to find financial sources and a way to express their opinion widely by using Internet.
    A Telecottage provides opportunity for distance jobs so that commuters no longer need to travel far away to work. From there, they can connect electronically to whatever professional environment they need.
    A Telecottage affords opportunity for distance learning so that distance learning centres provide course materials, training and tuition services tailored for companies, public administrations, civil organisations and individuals. They extend advanced distance learning techniques into schools, colleges, universities and research centres.
    A Telecottage gives chance for boosting the productivity and economy of the whole healthcare and social sector.
    From a Telecottage citizens may access by Internet public administration offices. The result is a more efficient administration at lower costs. Electronic interchange of data is going to be more and more accepted officially.
    Russia has very good specialist and technicians who should be involved to co-working. But before making a decision on what should be done in Russia to develop telecommunication centres, first some questions should be asked to understand the situation of civil society and the opportunities of financial support.

• Do Russians really want to have democracy in their country?
• Did Russian government articulate its stance to the information society?
• Which ministry might be involved in developing Telecottages (in charge of the areas mentioned above)
• Are there government sources for which local government / civil organisations may apply?
• Are there international or other (USA, EU) sources concerning the development of civil society, democracy, social sector, telecommunications or others in Russia?
• How can the private sector be involved in the development of areas at a disadvantage?
• Is civil sector in Russia interested at all in Telecottages?
• How can be it technically supported? (regarding Russia's very big dimensions)

    Personally, I can not answer these questions, because I do not live in Russia, I do not know the situation in Russia, at least via the media. I just want to show how has it happened in Hungary, and hope that international financial resources are expanding more and more to the east and they reach Russia. I think that they will hopefully have a positive influence the regions beyond Moscow too.

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