Computing for rural empowerment: enabled by last-mile telecommunications

• Published in: IEEE communications magazine Vol. 54; no. 6; pp. 102 - 109
• Main Authors: Nandi, Somen, Thota, Saigopal, Nag, Avishek, Divyasukhananda, Sw, Goswami, Partha, Aravindakshan, Ashwin, Rodriguez, Raymond, Mukherjee, Biswanath
• Format: Magazine Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York IEEE 01-06-2016; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Accessibility; Cloud computing; Computation; Economics; Education; IEEE 802.11 Standard; Information technology; Promotion; Rural areas; Telecommunications; Wireless communication
• DOI: 10.1109/MCOM.2016.7498095
• EISSN: 1558-1896
• ISSN: 0163-6804

Increasing economic and educational exposure, and promotion of global health and wellness can be achieved through the power of sharing knowledge, technology, and resources. ICT can play a key role in disseminating such knowledge across the world. But a digital divide exists between urban and rural/remote areas, which results in economic and social disparities across regions. Developing last-mile telecommunication technologies for rural/remote areas is a crucial aspect in providing computing and ICT services that can integrate millions of stakeholders in rural/remote areas globally into the digital age, particularly with the advent of cloud computing. This article focuses on the different aspects of providing last-mile rural telecommunication access such as interfering factors, technology options, and deployment trends. This article aims to guide service providers, industry practitioners, and local entrepreneurs with a technology-and-deployment-trend analysis to choose, deploy, and operate suitable telecommunication networks depending on the unique features of the rural/remote area. Our goal is to bring attention to accessible and affordable technologies with practical considerations.