Day 5- Statistics on Affordability.

I acknowledge an interesting thread filtering in on Trust relationships b/w IGOs/ISPs...feel free to continue contributing on that as well as on today's theme on affordability (multi-tasking encouraged by internet technologies ...)

and just to pick up from Kai's projection of KDN fiber hitting Bungoma in early August 2007. This would be quite a welcome and timely development, but at what cost to the consumer? To what extend will the (internet) services be affordable to the rural/average communities?

Affordability is a subjective term gven that what is considered cheap by

Bill Gates of this world is probably not so for the average Kenyan on

street. In trying to get an objective measurement for affordability,

Report pegged it on the national average incomes. In other words, if

Walu, Your concern on affordability of internet access by rural communities is justified. I don't think fibre optics (being a point-to-point) network can benefit a majority of rural communities economically unless there is a seriously subsidized provision of the last-mile network. Thousands of schools and Government offices which are situated far away from the fibre optics paths will never sniff the benefits of broadband communications supplied through fibre optics pipe. Fibre optics, microwave and satellite media always complement each other, especially for restoration purposes. Kenya is lucky to have them all. Can Walu's concern be addressed in all the cases? On 5/3/07 9:01 AM, "John Walubengo" <jwalubengo@kcct.ac.ke> wrote: the the the the

monthly average income in Kenya is around 100USD and if the average monthly cost for internet access is also around 100USD then obviously the average

Kenyan will not bother with accessing the Internet - it just becomes way beyond their means or too expensive or not affordable.

The report indicated that access through the more convenient Internet Dial-up/Desktop services costed over 200% the average incomes (too expensive), while the same access through mobile phones was costing just 8% of the average incomes (quite affordable). What needs to be done in order to make Internet Services more afforable to Kenyans?

1 day deliberation on this one.

walu.

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