UNDP to take Internet to rural Guyana
by Michelle Elphage
THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has indicated its intention of taking the Internet to rural communities especially for commercial purposes. Resident Representative, Mr Richard Olver told reporters this week that with the growing level of electronic commerce, it is time suburban communities become involved. "Already, in a number of villages in the Rupununi, solar systems have been installed to provide electric power for communications purposes. It's just one small step further to put a personal computer into that village, to train somebody on how to use it, and to begin the process of putting people in touch with the wider world," Olver said at the press conference hosted at the UNDP headquarters in Brickdam. "The SDNP (Sustainable Development Networking Programme)...is intended to provide access to market information, to development information, to networking. Already in countries such as Egypt, networking has been extended to the village level," the UNDP representative said. Mr Olver pointed out that setting up the Internet rurally will take very little initial investment and it can be accessed quite easily by nearly everyone including farmers and craft workers. "We in UNDP, are taking steps to open opportunities for entrepreneurs here in Guyana...to do their selling over the Internet," the top UNDP official explained. "Our web page with its tool-kit on electronic commerce, shows how easy it is to set yourself up in business on the Internet. We help with a little bit of technical assistance and that could be possible at the village level here in Guyana too, using our programme for sustainable development network." "With a very small initial investment, farmers, crafts people, people in trade, can access market information in real time, can develop markets overseas, can network with each other in new ways, with very little personal investment, except a small initial investment in learning." According to the UNDP representative, consumers in the United States (US) and Europe last year recorded US$1.5 billion in business. This, the official said, was more than double the figure of the previous year and that amount is predicted to triple in coming years. Mr Olver said that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has shown that by the year 2001, there will be more than US$300 billion in business transactions conducted on the Internet. "It doesn't take much to learn how to surf the Internet. One hardly needs to be computer literate. It takes perhaps ten minutes to learn how to manipulate the mouse, point and click. UNDP is very excited about prospects for electronic commerce. Shopping on the Internet is becoming really big," Olver offered. He said that Internet connections have been set up in poor rural communities in countries such as Peru and Panama. Olver disclosed that the Internet connection helped a village in Peru establish a partnership with a company in New York, resulting in a five-fold increase of income for the community. "All of you who are in small businesses or have a medium scale enterprise and want to explore markets further afield, I suggest that you log on to the UNDP home page...and look up the tool kit. Everything you need to know to get yourself established selling on the Internet, is there on the UNDP home page," Olver added. "With the SDNP, we are going to be experimenting...putting people at the grassroots, directly in touch with the global marketplace." Meanwhile, the Resident Representative disclosed that the 1999 UNDP Human Development Report, which is to be launched late next month, will focus on the effects of globalisation. In a preview of the Report, Olver said the overall positive effects of globalisation are reflected in the document, and he noted the great opportunities this phenomenon presents for large and middle income economies. But, he stated, it is clear that smaller economies like Guyana could feel the `squeeze'. 
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