Dear Editor,
First of all let me begin by commending the PPP/C administration on the GOAL scholarship programme initiative. Long overdue, scholarship awardees can study in the comfort of their homes without the hassle of leaving their homes and families to achieve a quality education. However, only those on the coast of Guyana will be able to benefit fully from the GOAL initiative; online delivery of education calls for good internet service which is severely lacking in the hinterland regions. The ICT hubs installed in the various villages in the hinterland under the previous administration have limitations which are not conducive to online learning.
Firstly, the ICT hubs have limited bandwidth and therefore scholarship awardees will not be able to access reliably their programmes of choice which will often involve video tutorials, Zoom chats etc. which calls for fast internet. Secondly the ICT hubs, which are mostly powered by solar have inadequately sized battery banks which leaves the hubs
susceptible to power outages. Satellite internet is an option but the actual installation costs coupled with monthly fees and data caps makes this prohibitive for those living in the hinterland. Then there are the cellphone service providers GT&T and Digicel which provide mobile data services but neither have complete coverage across the hinterland. And in those areas that do have coverage the data service is often quite poor and unreliable.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel however. Many homes in Lethem, Tabatinga and Saint Ignatius in Region 9 have been getting relatively good quality internet. How is this so? Innovative entrepreneurs have been sourcing internet service from nearby Brazil and are then selling it to customers at relatively affordable rates. Now I am made to understand that if relay towers of suitable height are built at predetermined sites in remote villages then the internet service from Brazil can be extended to these villages and will be faster and more reliable than that being supplied by the ICT hubs. This in turn will alleviate many of the internet related problems being faced not only by university students, but by children going to primary and secondary schools as well as teachers and other public and private sector employees doing online studies.
Of course investments such as relay towers and accompanying equipment are very costly undertakings and as such, the government should look at subsidizing the operations of those entrepreneurs desirous of extending internet services to far flung areas. The government can even look at building their own relay towers and tap into the Brazilian internet market. Until then, initiatives such as the GOAL programme will continue to be just an elusive dream for the majority in the hinterland and the educational gap between those persons on the coast and those in the hinterland will continue to widen significantly.
Sincerely,
S. Fredericks