PRIZE WINNERS 2001-First Winner

First Category For projects by UN, international and regional organizations.

The WorldSpace Foundation was founded in response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is devastating Africa . It is based on the belief that timely and accurate information about the disease is essential to fight against it. The mission has expanded beyond HIV/AIDS prevention and control to include topics designed to equip communities with the knowledge and information they need, in order to combat poverty and empower the African people to participate in their own development.

The project provides educational and social development information to over 1.5 million people in 49 African countries. WorldSpace Foundation (WSF) bypasses communications barriers in developing countries to provide education and social development programs through the cost-efficient use of high innovative satellite technology. The objective of both the Africa Learning Channel (ALC) and the WSF Multimedia Service is to reach under-served and “out reach” populations around the world with current, reliable and relevant information by using appropriate information and communication technology.

The LAS provides educational and social development audio programs to people in Africa who are disadvantaged by illiteracy, poverty, geographical isolation and lack of information. It is a collective audio channel that combines program content designed for African audience by African producers. It serves as a first-voice electronic campfire and a portal for Africans to talk to each other and share information.

The WSF Multimedia Service enables partner groups to transmit wed-based text and image files to targeted audience in regions with limited or no Internet access. It is a relatively inexpensive alternative for groups in need of a reliable information-sharing mechanism other than the Internet.

The target audiences of the ALC are communities in remote and isolated regions of the African continent that have been left out of the Information age. It broadcasts current and relevant information on topics such as HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, women's health, micro-enterprise development, food security, conflict resolution and environmental conservation. The beneficiaries also include African farmers, teachers, doctors and other health practitioners, students and regional and international NGOs. The projects also serves groups that have web-based information to disseminate but are unable to do so efficiently because of the high cost limited scope and unreliability of internet access in Africa.