The word sustainability is derived from the Latin word ‘sustinere’, which means to uphold, support, or endure. In simple words, “sustainability” refers to the capacity to endure. It used to be referred to as the capability of an ICT4D project to survive beyond the “pilot” phase when donor funding was withdrawn but with the introduction of ICT4D, the concept of sustainability acquired a new meaning.

Sustainability in the Telecentre Context

Initially, in the telecentre context, sustainability studies focused on the financial viability of telecentres, i.e. on their capacity to ‘break even’. Later, with the emergence of the idea of a telecentre ecosystem, which was described as a sum total of the inter-relations and inter-linkages among its various components, such as the wider policy environment, technology, telecentre operators and managers, capacity building, content and services, networks and partnerships and community, the concept of sustainability acquired a wider definition. Along with financial viability, telecentre sustainability came to be seen as an overarching concern that influences and, in turn, is influenced by all the critical components of the telecentre ecosystem. Mainly, the sustainability concerns of the telecentres are centred on the following issues:

1. Financial – breaking even, profit making, etc.
2. Social – community acceptance, community development and impact, and so on.
3. Organisational – matters related to the running and management of the telecentre, including capacity building, infrastructure maintenance, etc.
4. Policy related – conducive policy environment related to connectivity, IT infrastructure, etc.

Previous Telecentre.org Foundation Initiatives to Address Telecentre Sustainability

Sustainability First: In order to address the issues related to telecentre sustainability, ‘Sustainability First’ research funded by Telecentre.org Foundation was conducted. Sustainability First, which was one of the earliest efforts in telecentre sustainability research, intended to study the available best practices, recognize the constraints hidden at the multiple layers of the telecentre eco-system that affect telecentre sustainability, and formulate mechanisms to generate social-entrepreneurial spirit within the overall telecentre eco-system.

360 Latam Project: Next, the 360 Latam Project sought to address economic and organizational sustainability. It was jointly supported by Telecentre.org Foundation, TechSoup Global and the Non-profit Enterprise and Self-sustainability Team or NESsT. They worked on this project in partnership with three Latin American regional networks – Asociación de Telecentros de Información y Negocios (Association of Information and Business Telecentres or ATN) in Brazil, Fundación Empresas Publicas de Medellin (Medellin Utilities Company Foundation, or EPM) in Colombia, and Comité para la Democratización de la Informática (Committee for the Democratization of Information Technology, or CDI) in Chile.

360 Latam’s mission was to build sustainability not only in the networks and telecentres served, but also in the local communities served by the telecentres. The project concluded that, being a social enterprise, a telecentre’s success is closely interlinked with the surrounding community’s development. When a telecentre can help its customers find employment, education, and training, the community’s success will translate into success for the telecentre. For more information on the tools created under the project, please visit the website: http://home.techsoup.org/pages/telecentre.aspx

Telecentre.org Foundation Services and Products on Telecentre Sustainability

Building on these previous efforts towards exploring the issue of telecentre sustainability, Telecentre.org Foundation is committed towards offering the following products and services to strengthen and support the wider telecentre movement:

1. A resource base on telecentre sustainability on the Telecentre.org Foundation website.
2. Briefing/ positioning papers on telecentre sustainability.
3. Book and Magazine on telecentre sustainability to facilitate wider sharing of best practices and learning in this field.
4. Curriculum on ‘Telecentre Sustainability’ in partnership with Intel and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), aimed at building the capacity of policy-makers.