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Richard Fuchs
comes
from the most rural and the poorest province in Canada.
This
is
Newfoundland, where he was born and grew up, and where he later became its
Commissioner for the Economic Recovery Commission.
Today Fuchs is the
Director of ICTs for Development of the International Development Research
Centre (IDRC).
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“What people don’t realise is that
there are many parts
of the ‘developed world’ that are still underdeveloped, where poverty
and low education attainment exists and where telecommunications and
ICT are not developed. So the model we worked applies to the Third
World and to the people in Africa.” |
As entrepreneur Fuchs started
up Enterprise Network Inc,
a joint
venture with the federal
and provincial government,
in 1988. As the chief executive
and chairman, he had to ensure that the group made good on its stated
objective, to deliver electronic distance education, and business and
economic development information services to rural areas. It was in this
capacity that he oversaw the creation of the first telecentres in Canada.
Fuchs described how he helped
set up six telecentres for fishing communities
averaging
250 to 500 people,
the largest being 3000.
“What people don’t realise is
that there are many parts
of the ‘developed world’ that are still underdeveloped, where poverty and
low education attainment exists and where telecommunications and ICT are not
developed. So the model we worked applies to the Third World and to the
people in Africa.”
For Richard Fuchs telecentres
bring ICTs closer to those who need them the most – rural areas, villages
and many other remote, poor places. These centres, he says play a key role
in alleviating poverty, improving the
wellbeing of
communities, and lifting the education standards.
The 53-year-old joined the IDRC
in 2001. He says his mission is to “influence the direction of the project”
by tapping into his experience,
knowledge
and upbringing in
Newfoundland
–
a place, he admits
candidly, that is much like Africa in that it is “both developed and
developing”.
Asked if he was accomplishing
his mission, he says: “I’m on my way.”
The Canadian-funded IDRC
supports research projects that address the challenges of sustainable and
equitable development. “It’s a big challenge,” asserts
Fuchs, adding “you
cannot expect people to move from agricultural society to a post-industrial
information age,
just like that!”
In 1996, Fuchs founded
Futureworks Inc, a
company that specialises
in developing ICTs in rural development, custom networks and IT consulting
for rural telecentre planning, design and delivery. The company also renders
services to some countries in West and East Africa, where it pioneered
telecentres.
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