Grantee	Common Room Networks Foundation (Common Room) (Yayasan Mitra Ruang Kolektif)
Project Title	Local Community-based Internet Infrastructure Development And Internet Utilization In Rural Indonesia
Amount Awarded	USD 150,000
Dates covered by this report:	2021-12-14 to 2023-08-31
Report submission date	2024-01-05
Economies where project was implemented	Indonesia
Project leader name	Gustaff Harriman Iskandar
Partner organization	Association for Progressive Communications (APC), UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) - Digital Access Programme (DAP)

Project Summary

This project was part of the School of Community Network program (SCN) initiated by Common Room in collaboration with the Association for Progressive Communication (APC) in early 2021. Subsequently, the initiative became integrated into the Digital Access Programme (DAP), led by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in the same year.

Later on, SCN training and capacity-building programs were also developed in collaboration with ISIF Asia by the end of 2021. The main objective was to support Community Network (CN) infrastructure development as part of a strategy in addressing the digital divide challenges in Indonesia.

This objective was initiated with comprehensive approaches that consisted of training and capacity-building for local communities in rural and remote areas, CN infrastructure deployment and prototyping, as well as business model development. This also included research and policy advocacy, as well as knowledge production and distribution to sustain further CN infrastructure development and adoption in a larger context.

Contents

• Background and Justification
• Project Implementation Narrative
• Project Review and Assessment
• Gender Equity and Inclusion
• Project Management
• Project Sustainability
• Project Communication
• Project Recommendations and Use of Findings
• Bibliography

Background and Justification

Since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, Internet connectivity has become an important tool to support daily communication, including carrying out public administration, health services, education, economic activities, etc. Although there has been a significant growth in Internet penetration in various regions in Indonesia in recent years, the digital divide challenges still exist among the public in general. Some of these challenges mainly dealt with a number of problems, ranging from diverse geographical conditions, the absence of basic Internet infrastructure, differences in bandwidth costs (outside and within Java island), unavailability of appropriate and affordable devices, inability to produce local content and knowledge, including a lack of digital skills and gender gap.

To improve connectivity in underserved areas, innovative solutions were needed to minimize the cost of infrastructure deployment while relying as much as possible on local resources. An innovative approach in favor of addressing the ongoing challenges was locally initiated deployment, ownership, and management of services which leveraged the new generations of low-cost Internet infrastructure in rural areas and remote places. This resulted in the emergence of growing numbers of small-scale networks based on Wi-Fi, while others provided GSM/LTE mobile services or even fiber connections. One of these complementary connectivity solutions is “community networks” (CN) and known to be operating in at least 25 developing countries. Given the benefits they afforded, the number of CN worldwide could be considered low by some. However, the little awareness of these new opportunities to self-provide communications infrastructure, the regulatory and financial barriers, along with human capacity constraints limited their replication.

In addition to supporting the development of affordable and low-cost CN infrastructure in rural areas and remote places in Indonesia, this project also focused on capacity building in terms of technical skills and digital literacy for the local community through the SCN program development. Furthermore, the implementation of this project also paid attention to research and advocacy on affirmative policies and regulations to sustain CN infrastructure development and utilization in a larger context.

As the SCN training program was developed in 10 different locations in Indonesia, each project location had various challenges, needs, and potentials, depending on geographical conditions, as well as its social and cultural characteristics, government support, and the basic capacity of each community. The recommendation to conduct activities in this area resulted from feedback and recommendations from partner organizations such as ICT Watch and Relawan TIK in regards to the request and specific challenges that happened in the region. Contextual approaches were needed to be embedded at the local level to empathize with the local community needs to increase capacity in CN infrastructure development. Furthermore, some CN infrastructure prototypes were developed to address and validate certain challenges and limitations in each project location. Based on the survey and recommendation, the “one policy that fits for all approaches” could not be applied in the SCN training program development.

In regards to the CN infrastructure development and utilization, as well as SCN training and capacity-building program, we adopted CN development frameworks based on 4 principles that consisted of a legal framework, Internet safety, affordability, and meaningful connectivity. This framework was also enhanced with technical guidelines based on the 5L Principle for local CN infrastructure development and utilization in Indonesia, which consisted of the following: (1) Low Tech, (2) Low Energy, (3) Low Maintenance, (4) Low Learning Curve, and (5) Local Support.

This technical guideline was developed to simplify the process of increasing technical capacity for the development and utilization of CN infrastructure, in addition to ensuring the accessibility and availability of the technology used. Additionally, this guideline was developed to support efforts to develop CN infrastructure in rural areas and remote places that have limited electricity sources. In a more general scope, the guidelines mentioned above also sought to develop CNs that are easy to maintain, can be easily learned by anyone, and receive support and involvement from stakeholders at the local level.

Recommendation and survey from each location were conducted in mid-2021 during the SCN conceptual framework development. Based on some findings and observations, each region had its own characteristics, needs and challenges, which were required to be adjusted with SCN training materials. In the context of ISIF Asia project frameworks, although the project proposal was included in the inclusion pillar, in the implementation level this project also had a strong relation to the infrastructure and knowledge pillars. Therefore, we decided to develop a framework that integrated the three pillars mentioned above with focus areas that were also interrelated and complement each other. Several focus areas for each existing pillar were adapted to the conditions and challenges that existed in each project location in Indonesia. All activities in each pillar and focus area had specified targeted output and outcome, as well as indicators that were aligned with ISIF Asia Guide to Monitoring Projects.

In principle, the inclusion pillar was also applied to the CN infrastructure prototype development, including in the knowledge production and distribution, in particular to the capacity building of technical skills and digital literacy in the local context. This also applied to the research and affirmative policy advocacy that could build a supporting ecosystem for the development and utilization of CN infrastructure in the future. The above-mentioned approach was also carried out in the development of multistakeholder collaboration involving partners from government agencies, civil society organizations (CSOs), academic institutions, the business sector, the media, etc. The implementation of this project referred to the theory of change scheme which sought to support capacity building for technical skills and digital literacy to support the CN infrastructure development and utilization. This approach was also complemented by studies related to the development of CN business models to ensure the sustainability of its further development in rural areas and remote places.

Project Implementation Narrative

After being launched at the Rural ICT Camp 2021, the SCN program conducted Training of Trainers (ToT) in early 2022. Initially, the project was introduced in seven regions, which was selected through a peer recommendation process that involved national partners such as ICT Watch and Relawan TIK, followed by a number of surveys and needs assessments in the destined locations. Furthermore, during the development stage, three additional locations were incorporated as part of the existing DAP project flagship in Indonesia. The SCN program then enhanced the training and capacity-building program with the expansion and prototyping of community-based Internet infrastructure development in around 10 different locations in Indonesia. The following were the SCN program implementation in some areas and activities that were carried out during the reporting period:

1. Sukadana Village, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara Province

Sukadana village was one of the villages located in Bayan Sub-district, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara Province. In this village, the vannamei shrimp farmers women's group had the potential to develop CN infrastructure to access digital tech solutions and increase their productivity.

This group was formed after receiving shrimp farming assistance funds from the West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Government but did not receive further assistance so that shrimp cultivation was carried out manually and self-taught. The SCN training program in Sukadana Village was divided into two technical training sessions that were conducted on-site. Prior to this, Common Room also developed a survey and assessment in Sukadana Village on February 8-12, 2022, to validate knowledge on the Internet of Things (IoT) and sensor technology among the women's group. Recognizing the limited skills and knowledge from most participants, the basic introduction to IoT devices was then included in the training material presented in the SCN training session.

The first training on CN infrastructure and a basic introduction to IoT devices took place on May 18-20, 2022, with around 10 participants consisting of 7 women and 3 men. However, during the IoT assembly session, some participants were still unable to deploy and install IoT equipment designed to assist and manage the shrimp ponds. The second training was conducted on May 4-8, 2023, following monthly online meetings and assistance to prepare the Internet infrastructure development training, as it was also an essential requirement for the IoT adoption process. In this second training, the training material also covered basic knowledge of CN infrastructure development and utilization, as well as follow-up training on IoT installation. In addition to this, the training session was also enhanced with basic shrimp pond management for all participants. The second training was attended by 13 participants consisting of 9 women and four men.

2. Tembok Village, Tejakula District, Buleleng Regency, Bali Province

This village was located in the easternmost region in Bali, on the border between Singaraja City and Amlapura Regency. Situated in Buleleng Regency, Tembok Village was one of the few places in Bali that still had many blank spot areas. Because of this, training and capacity building on CN infrastructure development were important parts of the SCN program implementation. The first SCN training in Tembok Village was conducted on February 10-13, 2022, and involved around 15 participants consisting of 13 men and 2 women. The training participants were introduced to the basic knowledge of community-based Internet infrastructure development and utilization. This initial training resulted in the installation of one Internet access point at the village office. Preparations for the second training were conducted concurrently with the construction of the bamboo tower for Internet backhaul from October 1-20, 2022. The SCN participants and local craftsmen finalized the tower's construction as part of the Rural ICT Camp 2022 organized in Tembok Village from October 21-25, 2022. Further Internet utilization in Tembok Village was later implemented in the public service apps development known as DjangkepApps. The prototype of this application was initially introduced to the local residents and government officials in conjunction with the Rural ICT Camp 2023. As a follow-up, DjangkepApps v.01 was finally tested on January 16-18, 2023. Parallel to this, a podcast recorded the interview with the head of Tembok Village regarding Internet infrastructure and its utilization was conducted. During the development period, DjangkepApps business model was also developed, along with the electronic signature certification process from the National Electronic Certification Center (BSrE). Currently, the completion of this app is still under development as it has to comply with existing data protection policies and regulations.

3. Campalagian Sub-District, Polewali Mandar Regency, West Sulawesi Province

Campalagian is one of the 16 sub-districts in Polewali Mandar Regency, West Sulawesi Province. The proposal to conduct SCN training activities in this region was under recommendations from peer members of Relawan TIK (national ICT volunteer) in 2021. The initial SCN training participants in Campalagian were members of the UMKM Go Digital (Digital MSME community) that focused on literacy, education, and the development of small and medium enterprises by optimizing the use of information and communication technology (ICT). This community was interested in joining the SCN training program to enhance technical skills and develop the local CN infrastructure in their region. The first SCN training was conducted on March 1Digital Content Production9-22, 2022, with a focus on basic knowledge of Internet network infrastructure development. This training was conducted at the Lapeo Village government office, attended by 24 participants consisting of 10 men and 14 women. Alongside the training, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by 9 heads of villages in the Campalagian sub-district, Polewali Mandar regency, West Sulawesi. Some heads of villages involved expressed their interest in actively engaging in SCN training and capacity building to develop CN infrastructure in their respective villages.To follow up on the training, participants were involved in a monthly meeting conducted in an online format. This session was conducted to assist further training and capacity building, as well as regular coordination and monitoring activities to solidify the training materials. Furthermore, from March 6-11, 2023, training for local technicians to obtain Junior Network Administrator certification was held in Lapeo village government office and local high school. This training was attended by 40 participants from 12 villages, comprising 27 men and 13 women, including some head of village and administrative officers in the surrounding region. Unfortunately, the certification process did not yet meet the national standard, and SCN training programs needed to improve the training material.During the monitoring and evaluation process, there were some findings that several activities from the local organizing partners did not go according to the SCN program plan. Even though Common Room had signed an MoU with some village governments and representatives of the Polewali Mandar regency government, there were some unresolved issues regarding the transparency and accountability of local organizing partners. Because of this matter, Common Room decided to terminate the SCN training program in the region and postponed the plan to organize Rural ICT Camp 2023 in Campalagian District.

4. Jayapura Regency, Papua Province

Activities in this region were started in Sentani district, located approximately 33 km from Jayapura City, Papua Province. This region was characterized by its hilly and mountainous terrain, with dense forests, and a dispersed population in small enclaves. The ongoing effort to enhance Internet infrastructure in Jayapura demanded meticulous planning and a strategic implementation approach, which also included active community engagement and a steadfast process-oriented methodology. The SCN training was conducted for the first time in Sentani on April 20-21, 2022, with a focus on technical skills and capacity-building to construct and develop Internet access using a satellite-based Internet network (VSAT). The training was conducted in collaboration with PT. PSN, a private company that has extensive experience in deploying VSAT infrastructure in remote areas in Indonesia. This workshop was attended by 15 participants, comprising 14 men and 1 woman. After the training was concluded, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Head of Communications and Information Technology (Diskominfo) Jayapura and the SCN trainer team.Monitoring and assistance of post-training activities were conducted in monthly sessions and involved the Head of Communications and Information Technology in Jayapura as well. The regular monitoring and assistance were conducted in online discussions, held to plan and evaluate the regular training activities. The second training took place on May 15-16, 2023, in Nimboran District, covering basic knowledge of Internet infrastructure and VSAT devices. As an addition, digital literacy training was also being conducted, facilitated by ICT Watch to support peaceful elections as part of the preparation for the national election in 2024. The training for Internet infrastructure and VSAT devices in Nimboran District was attended by 17 participants, comprising 9 men and 8 women. Meanwhile, the digital literacy training was conducted in 2 different places. The digital literacy training at the Nimboran District Office was attended by 10 participants, consisting of 4 men and 6 women, while digital literacy training at SMKN 2 Nimboran (Nimboran Vocational School) was attended by 55 participants, comprising 36 men and 19 women.

5. Mata Redi Village, Central Sumba Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province

Mata Redi village was one of the tribal-based traditional villages in Katikutana District, Central Sumba Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. This village did not have electricity until August 2023. Mata Redi was part of the flagship area for the Digital Access Program (DAP) implementation in Indonesia, along with two other areas, which included Ciptagelar indigenous village and Ciracap Sub-district. The SCN training program in Mata Redi was developed together with the MENTARI Consortium that supported the development of a solar panel power plant in the region. On May 9-12, 2022, the first training was conducted in Mata Redi Village, focused on basic knowledge of computer networking and Internet infrastructure. This training was attended by 15 participants, comprising 9 men and 6 women, and resulted in the deployment of 1 Internet access point in one of the villagers' houses. Because there was no access to electricity, the training utilized an electric generator, which was borrowed from the MENTARI Consortium, which was carrying out an electrical installations project in the area. The follow-up training was conducted on August 1-5, 2022, and was attended by 10 participants consisting of 5 men and 5 women. In this training, a simple and affordable solar panel prototype was being developed to respond to the limited electricity resources in the area. Regarding the 5 L principles of SCN frameworks, the training was able to meet the Low tech, Low maintenance, Low learning curve, and Low Energy. But the lack of support from the head of the village shows that Local Support still has not been part of CN infrastructure development in Mata Redi. In addition to technical skill and capacity building, SCN training participants in Sumba also participated in the Training of Trainers (ToT) to Prevent Hoaxes with Interpersonal Communication Skill with UNICEF and ICT Watch. This training was organized in Kupang on March 1-3, 2023. For this training, SCN participants were represented by 2 representatives from Don Bosco Job Training Center. The SCN program development in Mata Redi village was also enhanced with an MoU agreement between Common Room and the Don Bosco Job Training Center. The agreement, signed on February 8, 2022, responded to some constraints in training activities in Mata Redi Village as well as to create more strategic training activities in the region. As part of the MoU, a workshop on bamboo tower development for Internet backhaul was developed at the Don Bosco Job Training Center starting on August 24, 2023, as a pilot for the effort to support sustainable Internet infrastructure development, using locally available material. Parallel to the training on bamboo tower deployment, training and capacity building were carried out as part of Training of Trainers (ToT) on November 28 - December 2, 2023, with support from the Digital Access Programme (DAP). The focus of the ToT at the Don Bosco Job Training Center was to develop, utilize, and manage CN infrastructure development. This activity was participated in by some fellows from Don Bosco Job Training Center and representatives from Mata Redi Village. There were 14 participants consisting of eight males and six females.

6. Ciracap District, Sukabumi Regency, West Java Province

Ciracap sub-district is located in Sukabumi Regency, West Java Province. This region was known for its white sandy beach and turtle conservation area at the southern coastal region that is directly adjacent to the Indian Ocean. In this context, Ciracap sub-district had the strong potential for tourism destinations. On the other hand, in regards to the education sector, there was an irony where the local vocational school had a curriculum on Internet network training but didn't have Internet access. From this situation, the CN infrastructure development was needed to widen access to education, as well as to fulfill the need of the local community for daily communications.
This area was also one of the flagship locations of the Digital Access Program, serving as the second CN infrastructure pilot project after the Ciptagelar indigenous community region. The SCN training in Ciracap actually began in 2020. At that time, the local community together with the teacher and students of Eka Nusa Putra vocational school was already able to provide Internet services. However, this initiative experienced a temporary halt due to a lapse in activities and a change in the training team, which was subsequently managed directly by the Eka Nusa Putra vocational school team. Follow-up training and capacity-building to develop CN infrastructure were conducted in Ciracap sub-district on May 18-20, 2022. The training, which involved 11 male and 13 female students of Eka Nusa Putra vocational school, resulted in the installation of an Internet infrastructure prototype at the vocational school. Subsequently, another training was conducted to expand the Internet network using fiber optic cable (FO).Further training in Ciracap employed the peer-to-peer learning method, where SCN participants from Ciracap came to learn from the Ciptagelar Hotspot team in Burangrang village on January 24-26, 2023. The focus of this peer-to-peer encounter was to learn about MikroTik, CN infrastructure management, and further Internet infrastructure development plans. This intensive training was attended by 4 men from Ciracap and directly facilitated by the CN team in Ciptagelar.The development of CN infrastructure and Internet services in Ciracap showed significant results in terms of the technical skills of the participants. Consequently, the SCN program rewarded them with tools to expand the Internet infrastructure from the initial 50 to 90 access points. On August 29-31, 2023, the CN management team in Ciracap was developed into a legal company named Internet Desa (iDes), and the bandwidth allocation was increased to cover Internet access in the Ciracap surrounding region. During this period, training and capacity building for new iDes administrators were also carried out to ensure smooth management team development. The training was attended by 8 men and 3 women.

7. Hitu Messing Village, Ambon Regency, Maluku Province/ Taliabu Island, Taliabu Island Regency, North Maluku Province

Hitu Messing Village is located around 18 kilometers away from the city center of Ambon and surrounded by beautiful beaches. The first SCN training in the village was conducted on May 24-26, 2022, which was mainly participated in by the local fishermen community. The training and capacity-building session aimed at developing fish-tracking IoT sensor technology and was attended by 24 participants comprising 11 men and 13 women, from the fisherman community, local vocational school students, and a fieldwork study group of students from Pattimura University. Unfortunately, the IoT devices that were developed could not function properly because they were damaged by a school of fish when installed in one of the fish aggregating devices (FAD) managed by a local fishing group. Because of this, further research is still needed to develop robust fish tracking devices that suit the characteristics of marine areas in this region. Because of these challenges, no further training was conducted due to a lack of resources, community involvement, and support in the development of the SCN program from local organizing partners. The activity was then shifted to Taliabu Islands, Taliabu Island Regency, North Maluku Province.This change of location was proposed by the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration through the signing of an MoU between Common Room and the Regional Development Planning Agency (Bappeda) of Taliabu Islands on May 9, 2023, in Jakarta. As a follow-up, training and the construction of micro Internet network prototypes were held in Kilong Village and Bobong Village from May 27 to June 1, 2023. The training was attended by 22 participants, consisting of 5 women and 17 men. In Kilong Village, 1 prototype Internet access point using LHG-LTE modem has been installed. While in Bobong Village, 1 Internet access point using satellite-based Internet (VSAT) has been installed.To scale up these initiatives, The Communication and Information Office of the Taliabu Regency Government received support from the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration under the stimulus fiscal funds 2023 for the 3T region (Disadvantaged, Frontier, and Outermost), which allocated to build a piloting on Internet infrastructure in the village. The SCN training program has been able to increase the capacity of human resources of Taliabu’s regency government as well as village government in Kilong and Bobong Village to support further CN infrastructure in the region.

8. Ketemenggungan Tae, Sanggau Regency, West Kalimantan Province

Ketemenggungan Tae (Tae Village) is located around 5 km from Balai Sub-district, the center of the sub-district in the region. The village could be accessed approximately 60 km from the capital of Sanggau Regency, or 82 km from Pontianak, the capital city of West Kalimantan Province. Tae Village location could be reached by road, both two-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicles, with travel time around 2-4 hours. This village was divided into 8 kampong and 4 hamlets, with topography that was a relatively hilly area with thick lowland tropical forest and very good for agricultural activities. The geographical context in general was characterized by hills and rivers. The highest mountains found close to the Tae Village area were Tiong Kandang Hill, which had important symbolic value for the Tae indigenous community. The development of CN infrastructure in Ketemenggungan Tae was begun on June 16-18, 2022, with the first SCN training in the Tae village office. The workshop participants consisted of 20 people, with 9 men and 11 women. The training activities were equipped with a toolkit to develop 1 Internet access point located at the Tae village office. Around mid-September, a storm damaged the POE and fiber optic cables in the village. During the Relawan TIK Festival (National ICT Volunteer Festival) in West Kalimantan, on November 16, 2022, the Common Room team provided technical assistance to the SCN participant coordinator with some repair tools. Despite the successful reinstallation of Internet infrastructure at the end of the month, transparency issues within the internal partner organization in Tae Village sparked a conflict and led to management changes over several months. Conflict resolution occurred through deliberation in SCN Tae participants. Meanwhile, the Tae Indigenous Community Institution (Rombokng Ria Gandhi Ria Kudur/ RRGRK) was also assisting in the mediating process of changing the management of the SCN team in Tae village. The follow-up training was conducted on May 10-12, 2023, and was attended by 15 participants consisting of 7 men and 8 women. The training was focused on further Internet infrastructure development, including network topology development and the expansion of Internet access points at 3 different locations (RRGRK Secretariat, Village Office, and Tae Bawah Kampong). The training participants were predominantly housewives interested in learning about Internet networking and management in the Tae village. With the abundance of bamboo resources in the Tae region, including the increasing need for Internet access and the availability of human resources, the local community in Tae village proposed to build bamboo towers for Internet backhaul. The bamboo tower construction was kicked off on June 6, 2023. The inauguration of the Internet tower was organized on August 28, 2023, and attended by the head of the sub-district and officers, as well as Tae indigenous community members. To maximize the use of the Internet tower, additional workshops and training on Internet networks were held on August 28-29, 2023. This workshop was attended by 67 participants, consisting of 25 women and 42 men. The Internet network was then expanded to 3 hamlets in 3 villages (Tae Village, Teradak Village, and Beruak Village).As time passed and the Internet network developed, the SCN team in Tae encountered a new conflict. Another business entity, PT Makdat, which conducted Internet reselling business began to enter Tae Village. This business entity did not have an official permit for the Internet infrastructure development in Tae Village. The cooperation proposed by the SCN team to this company was ignored, while a verbal violence threat to the SCN team coordinator in the village became the breaking point of this conflict. In the end, the problem was resolved by customary law on November 3, 2023, with the parties present including the SCN Tae team, the Head of Tae Village, the Head of the Tae Customary Institution (RRGRK), Police Officers, National Army, and PT Makdat representative. On this occasion, PT Makdat had to pay a fine of Rp7,999,000-, ($515.61 USD). After the payment of the fines, PT Makdat has been allowed to conduct sales operations in Tae Village by the Head of Tae Village, but only for a short-range Internet network, with a maximum range around 20 meters from their access point. This issue added to the need to develop conflict resolution skills and capabilities for further SCN training activities.

9. Pulo Aceh, Aceh Besar District, Aceh Province

Pulo Aceh was a sub-district located in the archipelago region in Aceh Besar Regency, Aceh Province. This island was situated on the northwest tip of Sumatra Island, bordering the Indian Ocean, which was classified as the underdeveloped region (known as 3T region or Disadvantaged, Foremost, and Outermost). In 2004, Pulo Aceh was one of the areas most affected by the tsunami disaster event. The tsunami disaster that hit Pulo Aceh at that time claimed the lives of more than half of its population. In the general sense, the Pulo Aceh region consisted of a group of small islands with 2 main islands for population settlement, namely Breuh Island (inhabited by about 5,000 people) and Nasi Island (1,400 people), which were divided into 15 villages. SCN training activities were focused on Breuh Island, particularly in Lapeng Village. Initially, the SCN participants in Pulo Aceh consisted of the team from Relawan TIK Aceh (Indonesian ICT Volunteer) and Mitra Utama Bahari Cooperative. In the making of the initial CN infrastructure development proposal in this region, the discussion between SCN participants, Relawan TIK, and Common Room did not find consensual agreement as it was not in accordance with the SCN frameworks. With the absence of support and cooperation from Relawan TIK Aceh, Common Room decided to postpone the activities for 6 months, in particular, SCN training activities in Pulo Aceh. For around 6 months, a problem-solving process was carried out by building communication directly with the SCN participants in Pulo Aceh to develop a shared understanding of the principles and framework of CN infrastructure development. After the communication reached a common understanding, the SCN participants in Pulo Aceh were eager to continue the training program. The first training was supported by the APC and organized from July 16-18, 2022. The total number of participants who attended the basic training on Internet infrastructure was around 16 people, consisting of 3 women and 13 men. After the initial training, SCN participants encountered difficulties in using the prototype of GSM-based LHG LTE devices due to the geographical conditions in Lapeng Village, which made it impossible to capture GSM-based Internet signals. Based on the evaluation and assessment with the SCN trainer team, a decision was made to build a prototype Internet network using a satellite-based Internet infrastructure (VSAT). At that time, Common Room decided to work with PT. Pacific Satellite Nusantara (PSN), which had extensive experience in providing satellite-based Internet access that reaches 3T areas (Disadvantaged, Foremost, and Outermost). PSN also had experience in conducting training and providing a license for reselling Internet service in rural communities. In April 2023, the SCN participants in Pulo Aceh were already able to deploy a VSAT infrastructure in Lapeng Village together with the SCN trainer and PSN technicians team. Collaboration with the PSN team was developed under a contractual agreement with financial support from ISIF Asia. This also included bandwidth subsidies for the SCN participants for 1 year. After the VSAT was installed, the second training was held on May 5-7, 2023, with the focus to provide refreshment on basic Internet networking and management. The second training consisted of 10 participants that consisted of 1 woman and 9 men. The development and utilization of VSAT Internet access in Lapeng Village faced challenges as the community perceived the Internet prices were too high, and bandwidth was running out too quickly. SCN participants were then able to give understanding to the local community and the village government about the limitations of satellite-based Internet networks. The team also trained the local community to maximize the bandwidth usage with settings on mobile phones to prevent excessive use of Internet quotas while accessing the Wi-Fi devices.

10. Ciptagelar Indigenous Village, Sukabumi Regency, West Java Province

Ciptagelar indigenous community village was one of the flagship areas of the Digital Access Program and also the first pilot location for the CN infrastructure development in Indonesia. The activity in Ciptagelar indigenous village was held for the first time in 2019 with the support from APC. CN infrastructure development in Ciptagelar indigenous village has become one of the baseline and examples adopted by SCN program development in other regions in Indonesia. In this reporting period, activities in Ciptagelar began on September 26-27, 2022, with the preparation of bamboo tower construction for Internet backhaul. As the Ciptagelar indigenous community still practiced the nomadic tradition (ngalalakon), the center for customary institutions was moved from Ciptagelar to Gelaralam village in 2020. In this new location, the indigenous community was developing basic infrastructure including roads, clean water sources, electricity, and Internet infrastructure.The above-mentioned activities started with the meeting with the Head of Ciptagelar indigenous community, followed by the determination of the location and local team who would work on the construction of the bamboo tower. Furthermore, a technical survey and budgeting plan for the construction of Internet towers were being conducted, along with the creation of tower structural designs that adopted the tradition of the Ciptagelar indigenous community. On January 23-25, 2023, the construction of the bamboo tower was started.This project was developed in collaboration with the Research Center for Cultural and Environmental Product ITB (PPPBL-ITB). During this period, the SCN team and representatives from the Ciptagelar indigenous community initiated regular discussions on the design and technical aspects, including materials needed to build the tower in the village. On this occasion, a podcast was also recorded to share stories of SCN activities in Ciptagelar and the experiences of local technicians while managing CN infrastructure in the region.In addition to the above-mentioned activities, field research on Internet utilization in the Ciptagelar indigenous community region was conducted from March 23-31, 2023. The research on CN infrastructure development and utilization in this area involved 351 respondents from 37 hamlets. Alongside this research, there was also a kick-off for the bamboo tower construction in the village. During this period, capacity building for the SCN participants in Ciptagelar was also carried out at the technician base camp in Burangrang village. As a result, the SCN participants successfully established a point-to-point Internet network using LHG XL and the Winbox64 application, including additional skills for further Internet network maintenance.Further development activities in Ciptagelar indigenous community region were the construction of an early warning system for disaster events, namely, Jaringan Informasi Desa (Village Information Network/JARINDES). This activity was developed in collaboration with the Gugus Mitigasi Lebak Selatan (Lebak Selatan Disaster Mitigation Team/GMLS). This initiative included the plan to build early warning sirens in 4 different villages and defining the scope of cooperation between Common Room, GMLS, and Ciptagelar Indigenous Community. The early warning system for disaster mitigation was also planned to be adopted in other SCN training areas, especially for the disaster-prone locations.From August 24-September 28, 2023, the preparation and construction of JARINDES were being carried out. This new device and infrastructure were not only utilized as an early warning system for disaster events but also could be used as a tool to facilitate communication between people in different hamlets and even between different villages. Due to budget constraints, only 2 points of early warning devices could be installed in 2 villages, namely, in Kasepuhan Gelaralam Village and Ciptagelar Village. One of the early warning devices was placed on top of the bamboo tower that had been previously built in Kasepuhan Gelaralam village.

Additional Activities

Research and Policy Advocacy

Common Room collaborated with the academic community to conduct a deeper study on specific aspects of the SCN training program and CN infrastructure development in Indonesia. This collaboration involved researchers from Universitas Padjadjaran (UNPAD) and civil society organizations (CSOs) such as ICT Watch and Lembaga Studi dan Advokasi Masyarakat (Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy/ELSAM). Research topics focused on policy ecosystems in building CN infrastructure and services to strengthen development with necessary support in the policy ecosystem. The aim was to assist rural communities and village governments in accessing and managing their resources, ensuring sustainability of community-based internet infrastructure through an affirmative regulatory framework. With support from APC and other stakeholders, Common Room conducted research, formulated position papers, and developed policy briefs to advocate affirmative policies and recommendations for further CN development in Indonesia. Some research outcomes were disseminated through conferences and published in academic journals, such as a public discussion on the Indonesian Civil Society Position Paper for Three Main Challenges of Indonesia’s Digital Transformation on March 25, 2022, presentations at the Indonesia Internet Governance Forum (ID-IGF) on November 22, 2022, and the Practice of Digital In-And Exclusion in Everyday Life Conference at Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Netherlands, on April 3-4, 2023. Additionally, Subekti W. Priyadharma's findings on the policy and practice, titled "Does the Provision of Digital Technologies Improve the Lives of Rural Communities in Indonesia or Create New Problems?" were published in a book, Digital Technologies in Emerging Countries, that was published by the Stanford Cyber Policy Center on May 26, 2023.

Some policy research and advocacy outputs include:

• Digital Transformation Position Paper
• APC Policy Brief: Community Network Development in Indonesia
• Journal article: Digital Technologies in Emerging Countries [PDF]. Also available online via Stanford.
• Embracing Digital Connectivity for the Future of ASEAN Solidarity
• Presentation: School of Community Networks - the Digital Divide in Indonesia and its challenges

Rural ICT Camp

The Rural ICT Camp was an annual event initiated by Common Room in 2020, together with several institutions and communities of Internet activists such as Relawan TIK and ICT Watch. This event was organized to support, consolidate, and amplify good practices and disseminate knowledge in CN infrastructure development and utilization in Indonesia. The first Rural ICT Camp was organized in 2020 with a hybrid approach from Ciptagelar indigenous village to comply with COVID-19 pandemic prevention protocols and to broaden participation from various locations in Indonesia.

Participants in the Rural ICT Camp represented diverse regions from at least 36 different provinces across Indonesia. Some participants came from remote areas, including Sabang City (Aceh Province), Masohi City (Seram Island, Maluku Province), Kolepom Island (Merauke Regency, Papua Province), and Sebatik Island (East Kalimantan Province).

The second Rural ICT Camp was organized in 2021, also from Ciptagelar indigenous community village and officially initiated the School of Community Networks (SCN) training program. The camp involved on-site participants from 10 different provinces in Indonesia, with the addition of online participants taking part in various workshops and discussions.

The third Rural ICT Camp was organized in 2022 in Tembok Village (Bali) with the theme "Desa Bangkit, Nusa Bangkit," aimed to support rural recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. This event was also aligned with the G20 meeting and elaborated on practice and reflections on digital transformation for rural areas and remote places.

The Fourth Rural ICT Camp 2023 took place in Pulo Aceh and focused on the theme "Rural Resilience,” emphasizing resilience amid challenges on climate change, urban-rural development gap, economic instability, and multiple crises in rural areas. The event featured an international conference, involving experts, government officials, rural champions from the SCN training program, and various stakeholders. Activities were also enhanced with Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) initiatives, including environmental preservation and a community empowerment program. This particular event also released a joint statement entitled, “Embracing Digital Connectivity For The Future Of ASEAN Solidarity.”

Conferences and Seminars

To enhance and disseminate information and knowledge on research and practice on the CN movement in Indonesia, Common Room actively participated in various seminars and conferences both in national and international contexts throughout 2023. In regard to CN development and capacity building, Common Room also engaged in discussions on digital inclusion and meaningful connectivity at several conferences and seminars, including the Social Enterprise Advocacy and Leveraging (SEAL) Conference & Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) in Bangkok, Thailand (March 21-26, 2023), Digital Rights Asia-Pacific (DRAPAC 2023) in Chiang-Mai, Thailand (May 21-25, 2023), and Stockholm Internet Forum - SIF 2023, Sweden (May 29-31, 2023). During the involvement at SIF 2023, Common Room was invited as one of the panelists for the discussion on "Crisis Resilient Connectivity and Digital Infrastructure." Common Room was also invited to the Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum (APrIGF 2023) in Brisbane, Australia (August 28-30, 2023), and shared some insights and learning experiences on the "Sustainability of Complementary Connectivity Initiatives." Additionally, Common Room has also contributed to the stakeholder discussions on "A Framework for Developing Gender-responsive Cybersecurity Policy," initiated by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC).

Book Publications

Knowledge production and distribution were essential to enhance technical skills and capacity building on CN infrastructure development and utilization. Common Room had been actively engaged in preparing the curricula and training material for the SCN program since early 2021. Before this, Common Room published a CN infrastructure handbook, which was released during the Rural ICT Camp 2020. The handbook was compiled together with ICT Watch and Relawan TIK, containing practical guidelines on CN infrastructure development. To enhance the curricula and training materials for the implementation of the SCN program in Indonesia, Common Room released a series of 10 books written under the guidance of APC and contributed by organizing partners such as ICT Watch, Relawan TIK, and Institut Teknologi Garut (ITG). This series of books, containing SCN training material, was also considered a living document, meaning that any additions or modifications to the training materials would promptly align with the latest updates. During the 2023 Rural ICT Camp in Pulo Aceh, Common Room released a new addition to the SCN curricula and training material, which was published with a focus on "Internet and Disaster Preparedness." The addition of this new handbook was prompted by the fact that nearly all SCN program areas are located in disaster-prone areas. Up until now, Common Room has produced 12 series of books used as references for Training of Trainer (ToT) activities, workshops, online training, and various capacity-building initiatives, encompassing both the technical aspects of computers, Internet infrastructure, as well as further utilization, Internet security, and digital literacy.

Digital Content Production

To enhance information and knowledge distribution, there were 6 podcast contents, 3 motion graphic videos, and 2 short movies produced during the program period. On January 19, 2023, digital content production for the Rembuk Nusa Podcast: Bali Series focused on the utilization of Internet infrastructure and digital connectivity for public services in Tembok Village, featuring the Head of Tembok Village. On January 24, 2023, a podcast content was also created in Ciptagelar Indigenous Village, West Java Province. The Rembuk Nusa Podcast: Ciptagelar Series included lessons learned and experience from the journey of local CN technicians in Ciptagelar and insights from the SCN training participants from Ciracap sub-district. Some of the podcast content has not been officially released because it is still in the editing process.

Capacity Building Plan

Background

This project was the continuation and expansion of the existing partnership between Common Room, APC, and FCDO that specifically strengthened the initiatives to address the digital divide challenges and support the development of community-based Internet infrastructure in rural Indonesia. The first CN infrastructure prototype development was initiated in Ciptagelar indigenous village (Sukabumi Regency, West Java Province) as part of the LocNet Project led by APC in 2019. In the following year, this initiative was also developed in Ciracap Sub-district as part of the DAP implementation that is supported by FCDO.

As part of the above-mentioned initiatives, Common Room also initiated the 1st Rural ICT Camp in October 2020 as part of a strategy to support and consolidate collaborative efforts in deploying CN infrastructure development and utilization in rural areas and remote places in Indonesia. This event also engaged in capacity building and policy advocacy for further CN infrastructure development and utilization in Indonesia. After having program evaluation by the end of 2020, Common Room started to initiate the School of Community Networks (SCN) that was officially launched at the 2nd Rural ICT Camp in October 2021. This joint effort was implemented with guidelines prepared by APC as well as a framework co-developed with partner institutions such as ICT Watch, Relawan TIK, and Institut Teknologi Garut (ITG).As a follow-up to the ongoing activities, this project directly addressed focus areas under the ISIF Asia inclusion pillar, aiming to increase Internet availability, affordability, and diversity in unserved and underserved communities in Indonesia with the following two objectives:

1. Expanding coverage of cost-based broadband infrastructure through wider awareness of the availability of low-cost tower and electronic communications equipment deployment options, along with increasing the technical knowledge to develop and operate the broadband networks in a sustainable approach, particularly through the inclusion of youth, women, and indigenous people in trainings and assistance to operate Internet networks, and;
2. Reducing online inequality and promoting online safety through targeted capacity building efforts to address diversity in network management and operations, security, and IPv6, as well as increasing online participation and representation (along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, language, literacy, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, etc.) on network infrastructure deployment to expand Internet access and adoption.

The above-mentioned activities were also intended to leverage the momentum of a current project development that was only constrained by a lack of equipment funds to help support local communities in rural areas and remote places in making and strengthening their initial network deployments. Furthermore, this project was also expected to provide a convincing example of how to help ensure that everyone in Asia, even in the most remote areas, has meaningful and efficient access to the Internet , including online applications and services, from a technical and operational perspective. In addition to this, the project also aimed to support the COVID-19 response, in particular, the example of CN deployment for the post COVID-19 pandemic recovery process.

Project Implementation Plan

Since the initial development, this project implemented a multistakeholder approach to comprehensively address the digital divide challenges in Indonesia. The multi-stakeholder approach engaged diverse actors and agencies, increasing awareness of CN infrastructure development and utilization in rural areas and remote places in Indonesia. In addition to supporting the prototype development of affordable and low-cost CN infrastructure in some rural areas in Indonesia, this project also focused on capacity building in terms of digital skills and literacy for the local community through the SCN training program and related activities. Furthermore, the implementation of this project also involved research and advocacy on affirmative policies and regulation to sustain the further CN infrastructure development and utilization.

Although this project proposal was included in the inclusion pillar, in the implementation level, this project also had a strong relation to the infrastructure and knowledge pillars. Therefore, we decided to develop a framework that integrated the three pillars mentioned above with focus areas that were also interrelated and complemented each other. Several focus areas for each existing pillar were adapted to the conditions and challenges that existed in each project location in Indonesia. All activities in each pillar and focus area were also specified with targeted output and outcome, as well as indicators aligned with ISIF Asia Guide to Monitoring Projects. 

In principle, the inclusion pillar was also applied to the CN infrastructure prototype development, which was integrated with the capacity building in digital skills and literacy, as well as the knowledge production and distribution in the local context. This approach was also applied to research and affirmative policy advocacy, which was expected to benefit building the supporting ecosystem for the development and utilization of CN infrastructure in the future. The above-mentioned activities were also carried out with multi-stakeholder collaboration involving partners from government agencies, civil society organizations (CSOs), academic institutions, the business sector, the media, etc.

Capacity Building Program Implementation

The support from ISIF Asia substantially contributed to the capacity-building process, both for Common Room at the institutional level and the SCN participants as the main beneficiaries. This also included certain public and individuals involved in some activities as indirect beneficiaries. During the project implementation, the capacity-building plan was divided into two targeted impacts, which included internal and external outreach. The internal outreach focused on capacity building for the internal team in Common Room, while external outreach aimed to increase technical skills and non-technical abilities for communities involved in the SCN training program and activities. In addition to this, there were also several capacity-building activities that involved the general public through activities developed with partner institutions, particularly for capacity building on digital literacy and Internet security. Some of the above-mentioned activities also included technical skills and basic knowledge on CN infrastructure development and utilization, policy and regulation for rural connectivity, as well as data protection and Internet security. Further description of the capacity-building plan and activities is as follows:

Capacity Building for Internal Organization

The capacity-building plan for the internal team in Common Room focused on organizational sustainability (management, finance, and administration), basic principles of CN infrastructure development and utilization, personal data protection, and Internet security. This also included some important principles of CN development, such as human rights and gender equality, the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, disaster risk reduction (DRR), etc. The capacity-building activities involved partner institutions that have specific skills and competence, including accredited reputations at the national and international levels. Detailed information on the implementation of the capacity-building plan for the internal organization team in Common Room was included in the following fields:

• Capacity building for management, finance and administration:
• Tax brevets training and certification for finance and administration team;
• Workshop and training on preparation of guideline and Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) for financial management;
• Workshop and training on Social Return on Investment (SROI).
• Capacity building for organizational sustainability
• Workshop on program management and sustainability;
• Workshop on knowledge management;
• UNICEF Training and Workshop on Prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA); 
• Workshop on the preparation of guidelines, Standard Operational Procedure (SOP), and code of conduct for the prevention and handling of gender-based violence.
• Capacity building for policy advocacy
• Workshop and training on policy advocacy for CN infrastructure development and utilization;
• Workshop and training on digital literacy, data protection and Internet security.

SCN Training and Capacity Building Program

The implementation of the external capacity-building plan for the SCN training participants was focused on technical skills and non-technical capabilities in CN infrastructure development and utilization, institutional strengthening of local communities and technical teams, and capacity building on digital literacy. This also included policies and regulations for rural connectivity, as well as basic knowledge and practice on interpersonal communication skills. The above-mentioned description includes the following training materials and activities:

• Workshop On SCN Curriculum And Training Material Development
• Basic Guidelines and Introduction To Computer;
• Basic Guidelines and Introduction To Computer Networking; 
• Basic Guidelines For Wired and Wireless Internet Infrastructure; 
• Policy and Regulation On Internet Infrastructure And Rural Connectivity; 
• Safe and Secure Internet Utilization; 
• Internet Utilization For Village Administration; 
• Internet Utilization For Remote Education; 
• Internet Utilization For Small and Medium Enterprise; 
• Internet Utilization For Telemedicine and COVID-19 Response; 
• Basic Guidelines and Introduction To Internet of Things (IoT); 
• Basic Guidelines On Internet and Disaster Mitigation; 
• Internet Backhaul Tower Development From Bamboo And Other Locally Available Material.
• Capacity Building For Skill And Technical Capabilities
• Workshop and training for basic Internet infrastructure;
• Introduction to alternative energy, solar panel, and dry batteries storage;
• Workshop and training on Junior Network Administrator & Computer Network Technician (With certification from the National Professional Certification Agency/ BNSP);
• Workshop and training on basic Internet of Things (IoT);
• Workshop and training on digital prototyping (3-D modeling and printing);
• Workshop and training on Digital Content Production (copywriting, podcast and video editing);
• Peer-to-peer Internet network technician workshop and training;
• Workshop and training on the construction of bamboo material for Internet backhaul tower;
• Training of Trainers (ToT) to prevent hoax, misinformation and disinformation with interpersonal communication skill (With UNICEF and ICT Watch);
• Workshop and sharing session on program management with basic principles of transparency and accountability.
• Internet and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR)
• DRR guidelines for Internet infrastructure development;
• Internet utilization for disaster events and recovery.
• Capacity Building For Policy Advocacy
• Strengthening local government support through collaboration agreements;
• Policy advocacy module for village government annual budget plan (Village Fund) for CN infrastructure development in rural areas and remote places

Project Review and Assessment

During the reporting period, Common Room successfully achieved the program output and indicators from 3 pillars including infrastructure, inclusion, and knowledge. In this regard, the SCN training program was also able to deliver significant contributions to the expansion of Internet connectivity in rural areas by fostering positive impacts, such as the development of local technical capacity to a considerable extent. In addition to the impact that is reflected in the project narrative, this can also be observed in the project highlights from the following three indicator pillars as follows:

Infrastructure Pillar

The SCN project implementation for the infrastructure pillar comprised designing, deploying, and operating low-cost connectivity with several approaches such as optical fiber connections and point-to-point wireless infrastructure in Tembok Village (Bali), Lapeo Village (Polewali Mandar Regency), Sukadana Village (North Lombok), Ciptagelar indigenous village, and Ciracap sub-district (West Java). This also included GSM-based Internet services in Ketemenggungan Tae Village (West Kalimantan), Mata Redi Village, and Don Bosco Job Training Center (Sumba), as well as a satellite-based Internet infrastructure (VSAT) in blank spot areas in Pulo Aceh, Taliabu Island Regency, and Jayapura Regency. The implementation of the infrastructure pillar was also enhanced with hardware and software development and/or deployment to comprehend and address the environmental impact of the Internet infrastructure. This included the construction of bamboo towers for Internet backhaul in Tembok village (Bali), Ketemenggungan Tae village (West Kalimantan), Ciptagelar indigenous village (West Java), and Don Bosco Job Training Center (Southwest Sumba). These initiatives were developed through research collaboration with the Research Center for Environmental and Cultural Product (PPPBL-ITB), to offer an alternative solution for locally sourced materials and sustainable Internet infrastructure development in rural areas. In regards to addressing the local needs and challenges in each SCN project location, a prototype of mobile Internet network embedded with solar panels to adapt to the limitations of electricity sources was developed in Mata Redi Village (Central Sumba), a prototype of disaster mitigation devices (JARINDES) was developed in Ciptagelar indigenous community village (West Java), and the village service application (DjangkepApps) was developed to optimize village government services in Desa Tembok (Bali).

Inclusion Pillar

This pillar was approached with community-owned Internet infrastructure development to increase Internet access in unserved and underserved communities where the SCN training program was being implemented. Based on the recent state of development, the number of people who could access the Internet in each area differed. This depended on various levels of learning progress and experience, as well as geographical location, technical approaches, and accessibility solutions on CN infrastructure development in the respective region. For example, in Lapeng Village (Pulo Aceh), Internet access was still limited to 20 users in one access point, while in other areas such as Ciracap sub-district, the SCN participants had succeeded in providing Internet services to the village level and already able to reach 100 Internet users per day. In order to build sustainable Internet access at the community level, SCN training participants also needed to learn about the voucher-based Internet subscriber, which enabled community participation in contributing to the operation and maintenance costs to provide Internet service in their village. The Internet voucher system was already running well in Ciptagelar indigenous village. This was also growing rapidly in Ciracap sub-district (West Java) and Ketemenggungan Tae village (West Kalimantan). In this regard, Common Room also built coordination with local village and district governments to gather support for local government policy and regulation to maintain the sustainability of CN infrastructure development that had been initiated in the respective regions. On the Inclusion Pillar, one of the objectives was also to increase the participation of women and marginalized people in rural areas to access equal opportunities in SCN training, as well as active engagement on CN infrastructure development and utilization. More detailed information on this can be seen in the gender section.

Knowledge Pillar

The ability of human resources (brainware), particularly in technical skills related to networks and Internet governance, was a crucial key to sustaining CN infrastructure development and utilization. Through a series of SCN training and capacity-building programs implemented during the reporting period, the program was able to reach around 647 participants in 10 different regions. In this regard, most SCN training participants were actively engaged in the training and capacity-building to enhance technical skills on Internet infrastructure development and utilization. Additionally, the training also included digital literacy, as well as the management and governance of community-based Internet services in rural areas and remote places. SCN training participants generally came from non-technical audiences with low education levels. With hands-on training that combined on-site and online approaches, SCN training activities were able to help improve understanding of network operations and security, as well as strengthen an open, stable, and reliable Internet . From the ongoing training and capacity-building, currently, seven local SCN trainees have already been certified as junior network administrators with the national standard (National Professional Certification Agency/ BNSP). Apart from their involvement in CN infrastructure development, some of them have also acquired the ability to engage as junior trainers in some SCN training activities in various regions. To enhance and simplify the dissemination of SCN curricula and training material, Common Room also produced digital content based on the series of SCN handbooks. Some of the digital content was also produced in the form of podcasts and animated videos, which could be shared and accessed for free by anyone who needed it. Furthermore, all handbooks, training material, and content were also produced in the Indonesian language to be easily understood, including for the non-technical community. To consolidate multistakeholder collaboration at the national and international levels, Common Room also initiated an annual event known as the Rural ICT Camp. Since its commencement in 2020, the Rural ICT Camp has also hosted training and capacity-building sessions, providing updated information, and disseminating knowledge related to community-based inteInternet net infrastructure development and utilization for the public in a general sense. These efforts were also developed to iterate and validate the implementation of the SCN training program, in sync with existing policies and regulations, as well as to contribute to the research and publications conducted with the academic community and existing partners. Furthermore, Common Room was also actively engaged in local, regional, and international forums on Internet governance to support the CN movement and initiatives at the larger context.

SCN Training Level

We learned that the project lived up to its potential for growth and further development to a significant extent. Based on the program implementation narrative, we also learned that each region had different achievement levels, which had different potentials to be further developed, with stages as the following:

Early Initiative Stage

At this level, SCN training participants were still learning to be able to operate and utilize the CN infrastructure properly, as it was still in the prototype stage. The local CN technician team still needed more time to master basic knowledge and technical skills on Internet networking, including further development and management to sustain the CN infrastructure. Certain constraints experienced by the SCN participants within this particular region included geographical conditions that did not allow the development of a more affordable Internet network, as at the time the village could only be reached by satellite-based Internet access. Support and engagement from the local community and authorities were also still limited, as it needed more time to disseminate knowledge and develop a shared understanding of CN infrastructure development and utilization in the respective region. Some of the areas included in this stage were Pulo Aceh (Aceh Besar Regency), Sukadana Village (North Lombok Regency), Nimboran District (Jayapura Regency), Mata Redi Village (Central Sumba), Bobong and Kilong Villages (Taliabu Regency), Hitu Messing Village (Central Maluku), and Lapeo Village (Polewali Mandar). In addition, there were different learning abilities compared to SCN training participants in other program areas. However, there were also various potentials for the contextual development of Internet utilization, which would strengthen the meaning of Internet network development for the local community. This included, among other things, the Internet utilization for ecotourism development in Pulo Aceh, Internet utilization to support shrimp farming and agriculture in Sukadana village, as well as Internet development to support the development of local vocational schools in Nimboran District.

Development Stage

At this level, SCN training participants have been able to develop Internet infrastructure, expand outreach, and provide services to around 30-200 users per day. This included Ciracap sub-district (Sukabumi Regency, West Java), Ketemenggungan Tae indigenous village (Sanggau Regency, West Kalimantan), and Tembok Village (Buleleng Regency, Bali). Further support at this stage was to develop cooperation with Internet service providers (ISP) for more reliable Internet access and provide minimum quality of services (QoS) at a proper level, which also included wider fixed broadband coverage. Local technicians also needed further technical capacity building to enhance technical skills in server management, fiber optic infrastructure development skills, point-to-point wireless networks, maintenance and business development to sustain the CN infrastructure development in the future. Organizational capacity building was also needed to support the transformation of informal CN governance into more formal institutions such as Village Owned Business (BUMDes), Cooperatives, or other legal business entities to comply with existing policies and regulations in Internet services and utilization.

Advanced Stage

At this stage, a medium to wide-scale Internet service in the local context had been developed and managed independently by local technicians and organizations, with support and engagement from the local community and related stakeholders. An example is the CN infrastructure development and utilization in the Ciptagelar indigenous community region, which had reached up to 2000 users per day in 37 different hamlets. The local technician team was also able to facilitate the peer-to-peer learning process, which was beneficial for further CN infrastructure development and adoption on a larger scale. In this context, additional support and assistance that could be developed was to strengthen the capacity building of local operators to have more professional governance in large-scale Internet services, including deploying various Internet utilization technologies to address local needs and challenges. For example, the development of IoT-based weather stations to support the development of sustainable agriculture and environmental monitoring in the local context, as well as digital TV broadcast that utilizes a simple intranet infrastructure. At the end of the reporting period, Internet utilization for disaster preparedness known as JARINDES was started to be implemented in the Ciptagelar indigenous community region. Detailed information about this can be seen in the project narrative report. As part of the peer-to-peer learning process, SCN training activities were planned to be continued to be developed in early 2024 to host several training and workshops on CN infrastructure development, as well as knowledge production and digital content creation. This activity was planned to be hosted at Ciga Sakola, a local training center that was previously developed in 2020 as part of the Digital Access Program (DAP) supported by the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO).

Additional Notes

Certain aspects of the design, management, and implementation of the project played an important role in the successful implementation of this project. From the several steps that were developed, there were valuable lessons learned from this process, and this was important for improving organizational internal capacity and further project development in the future. Some of the approaches in program development resulted in several findings and significant learning experiences as follows:

Human Centered Approach

Common Room and SCN trainers always made an effort to recognize the different characters, needs, and challenges of SCN participants in each region, with diverse conditions and social, economic, cultural, and geographical backgrounds. Within these contexts and localities, we needed to customize training materials and activities in accordance with the capacity of participants, as well as adjust the proportion of practice, theory, discussion, and knowledge exchange. This was done to ensure that participants were able to learn and develop their skills according to their own conditions. This approach made the SCN training program become more contextual and easily followed by local participants in the respective region. 

Peer to Peer Learning

This particular learning process was a dynamic and effective approach that harnessed collaborative learning, active engagement, knowledge sharing, and the development of interpersonal skills. In peer-to-peer learning, participants could actively engage in various learning methods, improve interpersonal skills, increase confidence, and most importantly, both trainers and trainees could tailor the learning process to each other's specific needs. In short, peer-to-peer learning could be a more efficient use of time and resources, as all participants could assist each other in understanding the training materials, incorporating firsthand experiences from the peer trainers in the field. In this context, the SCN training program was able to deploy peer-to-peer learning methods to enhance further technical skills and knowledge of participants in regards to CN infrastructure and utilization. For example, the CN technician team in Ciptagelar exchanged their skills, knowledge, and experience with SCN training participants from Ciracap sub-district. Taking place at the technician's base camp in Burangrang, SCN participants from Ciracap sub-district were able to gain new knowledge about CN infrastructure development, maintenance, and management during their study visit on January 24-26, 2023. This also happened when training participants from Ciracap sub-district were involved in providing training material and sharing experiences with SCN training participants at Don Bosco Job Training Center in Southwest Sumba on November 29, 2023.

Optimizing Local Support

The ongoing effort to develop CN infrastructure in rural and remote areas required technology that was accessible, including low energy consumption, easy maintenance, and opportunities for anyone to learn the technical skills and knowledge in developing and managing the CN infrastructure with ease. The support of local communities and institutions was also beneficial to this effort.

Multistakeholder Collaboration

The CN infrastructure adoption and development required a long process with participatory and multistakeholder collaboration approaches. This included the ecosystem mapping to identify supporting ecosystems that consisted of relevant actors, agents, and institutions at the local, national, and international levels. Role sharing based on competence, ability, and resources was also beneficial to support these joint efforts and to sustain the CN infrastructure development, with additional engagement from academic institutions and communities that played a key role in research, knowledge production, and innovation.

Annual Event, Conference and Festivals

Rural ICT Camp was an annual event designed to develop supporting ecosystems that enabled the growth and sustainability of the SCN training program and CN infrastructure development in Indonesia. This annual gathering served as a hub for CN representatives and practitioners, including government institutions and agencies at various levels, the academic community, business sectors, the technical community, as well as civil society organizations (CSOs), both at the national and international levels. Programs and activities organized in this annual event included workshops and training, knowledge sharing, policy dialogue, exhibitions, as well as art and cultural performances. This event was also organized to support, consolidate, and disseminate knowledge, as well as amplify good practices and challenges in CN infrastructure and utilization in Indonesia. Through a series of activities set against the diverse culture, environment, and localities of each Rural ICT Camp location, strong engagement was fostered among SCN participants and the public in a general sense. This engagement honed technical skills, knowledge, and empathy through interactions with local communities, who served as beneficiaries at the local level.

Within the above-mentioned notes and findings, including various activities outlined in the project narrative and program communication, we were able to promote some of these valuable lessons to achieve broader impact and sustainability of the CN movement in Indonesia. These also needed to be enhanced with further research, knowledge production and distribution, digital content creation for widespread distribution to the general public, as well as active participation in various forums both at local, national, and international levels.

Gender Equity and Inclusion

Based on our learning experience in carrying out the SCN training program, increasing women's confidence to be involved in the training and capacity-building activities was very important. This included instilling the idea that whatever their position in the team, they had an equal position and an equally important role with other team members. One of the efforts that was made as an initial step to increase self-confidence was to increase space for learning, specifically for women, on issues that they understood most easily, such as digital literacy and the use of the Internet in daily life. This also showed that women needed to be strengthened and supported to be confident in developing their abilities.

Within the SCN training program and related activities, women were not forced to be part of technicians but rather encouraged and involved based on their personal interests. Therefore, in the SCN training program development, we tried to implement specific strategies where women's involvement was defined based on their own unique interests and capabilities. In some areas, such as Ciptagelar indigenous village, Ciracap sub-district, and Sukadana Village, the women's group was preferred to be involved in the administrative team, WiFi voucher sales agent, or community organizer. Women's groups did not have to be technicians if they were not interested. But if they were interested in becoming technicians, then the opportunities for them to learn were also open. For example, in the Ciptagelar indigenous village, there were currently 35 women who were members of Internet voucher agents.

In the early period of the SCN training program development, the application of the principles of inclusion and gender equality was carried out by involving groups of female shrimp farmers in Sukadana Village (North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara Province). This group of female shrimp farmers had 45 members and was formed after receiving shrimp farming assistance funds from the West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Government. Unfortunately, the group did not receive training and assistance, so the cultivation was carried out manually and self-taught. Through the SCN training program, this group of female shrimp farmers participated in a series of capacity-building activities, including basic introduction of the Internet of Things (IoT) in order to increase shrimp farming productivity. The training also enhanced with basic introduction to CN infrastructure development, digital literacy, and household financial reporting using excel/spreadsheet.

A series of capacity-building for women's groups was also carried out in several other program areas, such as workshops on digital security and online-based gender violence, which was chosen based on the vulnerability conditions that exist in Ciracap sub-district. This area is considered as one of the biggest sources of migrant workers in West Java. On the other hand, this condition also increases the risk of online fraud under the guise of recruiting migrant workers, online sextortion, and illegal online loans. The SCN training activities in this area are one of the efforts to disseminate information and knowledge to young groups, especially young women, to prevent human trafficking and online-based gender violence, including other risks and challenges in digital connectivity in rural areas.

In Mata Redi Village (Central Sumba), some women were interested in becoming electrical and Internet technicians. Although there were doubts at the beginning of the process, at the end, the women's group in Mata Redi Village was able to prove that they could actually be more successful than the male participants. At this stage, one important thing was not to count how many women were involved as technicians but to focus on the goal of how women could be actively involved in efforts to develop and utilize CN infrastructure in respective regions. In principle, each role had an equivalent contribution. No matter what the role, all of them had an equally important contribution.

Currently, what we have been pursuing through the SCN training program is to ensure that every component of society has access to information and knowledge, particularly in regards to Internet technology and its utilization in rural areas. This also includes women's groups, as well as other minority and vulnerable groups in the larger society. In all activities, efforts were made to maintain the principle of gender balance and the diversity of training participants, from technical activities such as CN infrastructure development to further utilization for various needs. The implementation of the SCN training program in various regions in Indonesia was also able to encourage Common Room to capture women's active participation in the SCN training program, not limited to technical activities but significantly beneficial to program management and administration at the local level.

During the whole project implementation period, 20 capacity-building activities related to the CN development and utilization have been held. These activities have been involved by a total of 389 participants, consisting of 160 women and 229 men. In addition, as in previous years, the implementation of Rural ICT Camp 2022 was carried out in a hybrid approach in Tembok Village (Buleleng Regency, Bali Province), with 426 online participants that consist of 247 women, and 179 men. As for offline participants, there were 590 participants, consisting of 223 women and 367 men. During the implementation of Rural ICT Camp 2023 in Pulo Aceh (Aceh Besar Regency), this annual event was attended by 686 online participants consisting of 376 women, 309 men, and 1 other. As for offline activities, there were 309 participants consisting of 142 women and 167 men.

Common Room also joined the UNICEF Training and Workshop on Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) to reduce incidents of sexual violence in the workplace, particularly among civil society organizations. All Common Room staff participated in this workshop. The aim was to ensure that all workshop materials could be easily adapted to daily activities within the organization and SCN training activities. The knowledge and insights gained from the workshop were also adopted for Common Room's internal guidelines on preventing gender violence. These guidelines were also developed based on the specific needs and challenges faced by the organization in the SCN project site. By integrating the workshop content into the existing program, Common Room teams could effectively address issues related to gender violence and create a safe and supportive environment for all members of the organization, SCN training participants, and other relevant stakeholders.

During the implementation of the SCN training program, we also faced the challenge of being able to involve disability groups in the implementation of the program intensively. The lack of data collection related to disability groups/individuals at the local level is one of the factors that makes it difficult to involve the disability community. However, we strive to build a learning environment for people with disabilities by providing sign language interpreters in some online activities, such as the Rural ICT Camp annual event. In addition, we also involved individuals with disabilities from the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) group who have abilities in IoT tech development and invited them to take part in the exhibition and be involved as resource persons during the Rural ICT Camp 2022 in Tembok Village, Bali.

Project Management

The SCN program implementation was effectively managed by involving 10 Common Room staff and three trainers. With this team, program targets were achieved in 10 project locations. The effectiveness was enhanced by an agile and adaptive team, including collaboration with local community partners, village government, regional government, NGOs, and the national government. This multistakeholder approach was applied in the planning and implementation process, where each partner had their role and responsibilities based on their resources and capacity, particularly to various needs and challenges in each project location.

This approach was made because of various conditions and challenges, particularly the geographical conditions and basic infrastructure of each SCN project location, which was mostly located in rural and remote areas. Certain training activities also required adjustments in the implementation level, responding to the socio-cultural situation, considering that some program areas still had unique customary laws. Local customs, such as rituals or traditional ceremonies, needed to be carried out before the training was started. These unique circumstances also made the multistakeholder engagement and cooperation very helpful for the further project implementation process.

Adjustments occurred not only in the field project activities but also at the level of internal management in Common Room, particularly for the flow of program implementation and the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). This included the division of tasks between the field project team, finance, and the administrative team. In this context, various learning processes, either directly through training activities or indirectly through the program implementation process, was able to increase capacity building for the internal team. The learning process also continued to maximize collaboration between different stakeholders (at the local, national, and international scale) and also for further CN infrastructure development programs.

The above-mentioned process also improved the procurement tools, as Common Room created an implementation flow that started with (1) identifying the needs of the tools and devices to be used in training and/or infrastructure development, (2) consulting with the master trainer regarding the suitability of the tools, (3) conducting market surveys to obtain commensurate equipment prices both through surveys on the online marketplace and offline stores, (4) determining suppliers, (5) placing orders, and (6) checking when the tools and devices had been received. The procurement process also had to ensure that some tools and devices purchased were certified and in compliance with the technical standardization policy and regulation in Indonesia.

Regarding the support from ISIF Asia, this initiative was not only able to expand the project outreach, but also helped to increase the capacity of local communities in certain regions so that they could learn the core aspects of CN infrastructure development, especially for autonomy and sustainability. Furthermore, Common Room was also able to effectively managed the SCN training program, including to iterate and validated the frameworks and approaches of CN infrastructure development in Indonesia, which consist of (1) Legal, (2) Safe, (3) Affordable, and (4) Meaningful Connectivity, with detailed descriptions as follows:

• Legal: The SCN training program and activities complied with local, regional, and national policies, ensuring a strong legal foundation for CN infrastructure development and sustainability. The CN infrastructure development also collaborated with policy researchers to compile relevant policy advocacy and map the supporting ecosystems. Ongoing communication with stakeholders, including the Ministry of Communication and Information (KOMINFO) and the Indonesian Internet Service Provider Association (APJII), contributed to legal compliance and recommendations for the affirmative policy-making process.
• Safe: Internet security and personal data protection issues in CN initiatives were observed to increase limited awareness of safe Internet utilization among rural communities. The lack of digital literacy hindered safe and effective Internet utilization. This also increased vulnerability to scams and phishing, and resulted in inadequate parental controls. Addressing these issues involved educating rural communities, enhancing digital literacy, and implementing safety measures to protect users, especially vulnerable individuals and communities.
• Affordability: Emphasizing that free Internet is not sustainable, the SCN training program promoted affordable Internet services through CN infrastructure frameworks that enhanced community engagement and affirmative policies. SCN participants actively advocated for affordable internet access, engaging communities in operating locally owned Internet infrastructure to reduce costs in underserved areas.
• Meaningful Connectivity: This principle focused on the significant value of Internet utilization for local communities. Raising awareness among CN practitioners about the importance of Internet connectivity to improve the quality of life, optimize public services, and increase access to education, health services, and economic prosperity. SCN participants actively promoted meaningful connectivity as a core aspect of the training and capacity-building program.

In addition to the learning experience in SCN project management, Common Room also noted some issues in the activities below: 

• Rural ICT Camp 2023 Preparation
  • The preparation for Rural ICT Camp 2023 increased Common Room's capacity to address unresolved agreements on transparency and accountability with organizing partners in Polewali Mandar (West Sulawesi). Concerns about potential fraud from organizing partners in Polewali Mandar led to the crucial decision to relocate the event to Pulo Aceh (Aceh Province). Despite the tight time frame, Common Room efficiently evaluated and selected the new venue, adjusting the planned activities to fit within the context of Pulo Aceh. Rural ICT Camp implementation in Pulo Aceh also enhanced the team's ability to empathize with the local community through immersive activities and interactions with the committee, village government, and local communities. This particular aspect also increased the common understanding of the importance of transparency and accountability to sustain further CN infrastructure in rural areas and remote places.
• Digital Literacy Program
  • In order to enhance capacity building in technical skills and digital literacy, Common Room also collaborated with the Asean Digital Literacy Program (ADLP) and ICT Watch in conducting training in SCN project locations. The focus of capacity building for local communities was to address misinformation, disinformation, and illegal content, preparing them to combat hoaxes effectively. Aside from collaboration with the Asean Foundation, Common Room gained extensive knowledge in overseeing digital literacy initiatives through cooperation with BAKTI Kominfo, the Indonesian USOF agency. This allowed Common Room to enhance its expertise in developing collaborative digital literacy modules, incorporating insights from field surveys, needs assessments, and focus group discussions that involved communities, government institutions, civil society organizations (CSOs), and stakeholders at the local and national levels. 
• COVID-19 Pandemic Outbreak
  • Support from ISIF Asia also allowed us to continue implementing health protocols to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, considering that several regions in Indonesia experienced an increase in the number of virus transmissions. The COVID-19 pandemic presented unprecedented challenges for Common Room staff. The implementation of Large-Scale Social Restrictions (Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar/ PSBB), including the increase in cases of the spread of COVID-19, changed some aspects of the activity plan. Restrictive regulations and tightening mobility were challenging as Common Room decided to continue working in the field during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Busy schedules and the need for teams to go into the field to conduct various training sessions increased the risk of virus exposure and other diseases. As a necessary precaution to protect the training team and others from virus infection, the team was provided with a set of medical tools such as multivitamins, health masks, and hand sanitizers. In every on-site training and activity, the team was required to take a COVID-19 test to ensure that no personnel carried the COVID-19 virus. In addition, the implementation of activities in the form of gathering many participants was carried out by obeying the safety measures regulations from the Ministry of Health, such as conducting activities in open spaces, implementing strict health protocols, maintaining distance, using masks during activities, and coordinating with health facilities and local officials. At the beginning of the program implementation, several teams conducted fieldwork in regions such as Central Sumba, Bali, and North Lombok, which was conducted during the COVID-19 period. Fieldwork was carried out during the implementation of Large-Scale Social Restrictions rules, so the implementation was carried out by complying with the COVID-19 prevention protocols, such as conducting COVID-19 tests before traveling and carrying out social distancing. However, despite carrying out a series of preventive procedures for COVID-19 transmission, five Common Room team members were exposed to and infected by COVID-19 viruses, so they had to self-isolate. From this incident, Common Room postponed some fieldwork or meetings held offline until the Indonesian government issued easing regulations. The Rural ICT Camp activity in 2021 was also held during the COVID-19 pandemic. The implementation was carried out by bringing participants from 10 program areas. This activity was also carried out while still implementing strict health protocols in accordance with the rules of the Ministry of Health. Each participant and organizing committee were required to take a COVID-19 test before leaving their hometown for the activity location in Ciptagelar indigenous village. Participants were required to provide original proof of the test results. Before heading to the village, participants took a COVID-19 test again at the meeting point. All participants were required to wear masks and follow health protocols during the entire program. This health protocol rule was also applied during the Rural ICT Camp 2022 in Tembok Village (Bali). The activity was held directly under the supervision of the National COVID-19 Task Force (Komite Penanganan Covid-19 dan Pemulihan Ekonomi Nasional/KPCPEN). 

Project Sustainability

Stakeholder and Institutional Support 

The support from ISIF Asia was beneficial in strengthening the capacity of the organization and increasing its credibility. It also contributed to a more robust and credible presence in the community by actively engaging related stakeholders and securing institutional support. Furthermore, the SCN training program also worked effectively to align the CN infrastructure development in project locations with national policy and regulatory standards.

Stakeholders in certain SCN project regions were also supporting the sustainability of training outcomes through various roles. The Tembok Village government in Buleleng Regency (Bali) ensured the continuity of CN infrastructure development by allocating village funds for free Internet access, particularly for marginalized communities in the village. This also involved the construction of a bamboo tower for Internet backhaul, which was developed in collaboration with Common Room and PPPBL-ITB, with support from APC and ISIF Asia. Additionally, the Tembok Village government was also committed to developing a mobile application known as DjangkepApps, as a means of optimizing Internet utilization from established CN infrastructure to increase access to village government services.

The Bobong Village government in Taliabu Regency was committed to supervising the allocation of fiscal stimulus funds managed by the Taliabu Regency Government for the CN infrastructure development in the region. The Head of Bobong Village also actively facilitated coordination among the SCN training program participants to update progress in respective regions. Certain institutions that actively participated in supporting the SCN training program included the Don Bosco Job Training Center in Southwest Sumba Regency. The commitment of the Don Bosco Job Training Center was to ensure that all its instructors acquired knowledge about Internet networks and CN infrastructure, including technical skills in bamboo construction for Internet backhaul. This effort aimed to sustain the CN infrastructure development and utilization through educational initiatives within the Don Bosco Job Training Center activities.

In Ketemenggungan Tae Village (Sanggau District, West Kalimantan), and Ciptagelar Village (Sukabumi District, West Java), support from indigenous community institutions was established for CN infrastructure development and utilization in their regions. This included addressing various Internet governance issues through customary law, building local technician teams and operators with strong cultural values, and ensuring transparency and accountability in managing administration, which formed a solid foundation for further institutional development. In Pulo Aceh (Aceh Besar District, Aceh Province) and Sukadana Village (North Lombok District), support was provided by local institutions and communities such as cooperatives, ecotourism institutions, and women's groups. This support aimed to integrate the ongoing CN infrastructure development into community-owned business sectors, making it relevant to sustainable CN infrastructure development.

At the national level, Common Room was able to initiate communication and collaboration with several ministries, including the Ministry of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration (Kemendes), the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo), and Indonesian USOF agency known as BAKTI Kominfo. Common Room was also actively promoting the CN infrastructure framework as one of the alternatives for the government to address the digital divide challenges in rural areas. From August to November 2023, Common Room was involved in implementing a digital literacy program that was initiated by BAKTI Kominfo. This collaboration provided an opportunity for Common Room to learn how to work alongside government institutions to expand SCN training activities through government-led programs.

In regards to research and policy advocacy, Common Room also has been able to engage in policy dialogue with the Directorate of Coordination of Telecommunication Facilities and Infrastructure, aiming to enhance community-owned Internet infrastructure in rural and remote areas. The discussions with the Information and Communication Technology Training and Development Center (DTC) were also still in progress, intending to develop cooperation in the training and capacity-building for rural connectivity. Additionally, Common Room also participated in disseminating the CN frameworks at the USO 2.0 Toolkit workshop organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). This workshop was also part of the Digital Access Program, and supported by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), British Embassy Jakarta, and the Association for Progressive Communication (APC). This workshop was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) and BAKTI Kominfo on November 27-29, 2023.

Strategy To Support Community Networks Developments

Common Room has been able to initiate further planning to sustain further CN developments, focusing on three key areas as follows: 

Financial Sustainability

At the organizational level, Common Room planned to develop independent business units focusing on consultation services in CN infrastructure development that include training and capacity building, as well as IoT adoption and other emerging technologies for rural development and innovation. This approach was planned to be developed in order to have differentiation on funding resources to support programs and activities in the future.

Common Room has planned to support further CN infrastructure developments through the social entrepreneurship model. This approach was developed in collaboration with The Institute for Social Entrepreneurship in Asia (ISEA) to map and identify the support ecosystem needed to develop these initiatives. In addition to the Internet service business that served the needs of the rural community, there were various other potentials to be developed into social businesses that supported the sustainability of CN development and utilization in the future. For example, some of these potentials included ecotourism in Pulo Aceh, vannamei shrimp farming in Sukadana village, and an SCN training center in Ciptagelar Indigenous village.

Within the scope of the internal organization, Common Room also began mapping the potential of the social entrepreneurship model to support the sustainability of SCN training programs in the existing regions. This also included exploring ideas to develop Internet service providers and village government service applications in rural areas and remote places and accelerating local Internet networks management strategies according to the potential and commitment of each village. Some examples were through cooperation with the village-owned enterprise (BUMDes), in applying fees for the utilization, service, and maintenance of Internet tools and devices. In addition to this, cooperation with other organizations was also enhanced, including the potential to integrate the SCN training with government-led initiatives, as well as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs with public and private companies.

Common Room continued to enhance its public relations campaign within the project implementation to increase awareness of its programs and services to a wider public, both in the national and international context. This effort was expected to increase collaboration and generate a mix of funding support from various sources.

Adjusting Technical Capacity Building in Based On Human Centered Approach

This ongoing efforts were supported by the development of training modules that could be easily used by local partners to increase technical skills and capacity building in further CN infrastructure development. Currently Common Room has been  to produce 12 handbooks of SCN training programs for CN infrastructure development & utilization. In addition to this, Common Room also developed a prototype of Internet infrastructure that could be easily assembled by the local community and could be studied together by local instructors (such as a solar panel-based mobile Internet network tools in Central Sumba). To ensure that the SCN training materials were precisely targeted and could be effectively implemented by participants in various regions, Common Room developed the following training stages:

Basic Training: Provided technical knowledge on Internet network tools and devices, Internet network design and topology, micro Internet network assembly and services, and an introduction to Internet network settings;

Advanced Training: Delivered deeper knowledge on Internet network settings, fiber optic Internet connections, creating vouchers for Internet access services and distribution, including designing and expanding Internet access points in rural areas;

Advanced Training: Conducted for local CN technicians and operators, enabling them to independently expand and maintain Internet infrastructure and services. This included more detailed technical management of Internet services and utilization;

Professional Certification: National standard certification for junior network administrator level, aimed at nurturing more local trainers in the respective region and increasing the number of local trainers to spread knowledge and expertise to other areas, without having to bring centralized training instructors from Java island.

Develop Strategic Collaboration and Capacity Building On Internet Governance

Through this project, Common Room was able to encourage capacity building in various regions through a series of training activities to develop, maintain, update, and expand Internet networks by operating sound commercial cost recovery principles. This was also included in the techno-economic feasibility study at the end of the project implementation period. The above-mentioned activity was included as follows:

Strengthen the capacity of village governments to manage village resources in support of Internet networks infrastructure development; village Internet governance regulations, village budget policy advocacy and human resource management;

Building partnerships with local partners, especially universities, non-profit organizations and government institutions to support Internet infrastructure development and utilization, as well as specific development projects needed in respective villages;

Enhanced a multistakeholder network to support the specific needs of further SCN program development.

Project Communication

Common Room built a flexible and adaptive internal communication process both in offline and online activities, adjusted to the needs of the specific tasks and responsibilities. Throughout the implementation of the two-year project duration, the team consistently strives to work in an agile and adaptive approach to achieve various project objectives. Team bonding and cohesion were particularly developed when the team collaboratively prepared and executed regular activities in the SCN training program, as well as large-scale events such as the Rural ICT Camp. Regarding the Rural ICT Camp, this annual event also enriched the team's perspective on the socio-cultural conditions of each location where the event was held.

Communication and coordination with participants from the SCN training program were conducted through monthly online coordination. These sessions served as a means of indirect monitoring and evaluation processes, offering ongoing support to SCN training participants in applying training materials and achieving targeted outcomes. While these sessions enhanced the overall quality and effectiveness of the SCN training program by providing personalized feedback, a certain limitation indicated that some participants may have felt hesitant to ask questions, potentially leading to uneven skill development. Not all participants could fully optimize online communication platforms due to challenges in Internet quality and the limitations faced by rural communities in engaging in online meetings. To address these challenges, communication was established through direct phone calls to representatives of SCN training participants who encountered difficulties in online communication.

In terms of public communications, Common Room was also able to employ media planning to identify effective channels for disseminating information about CN infrastructure development and utilization in rural areas and remote places. Traditional and digital media channels, including social media, were utilized for communication to larger audiences. The team's activities were regularly shared on social media platforms; which includes sharing progress, achievements, and upcoming activities. Common Room also had a dedicated team for media planning and development to ensure effective communication to the target audiences. The goal was to deliver messages appropriately, reaching the right people at the right time, and in the proper context.

Additionally, for major events such as the Rural ICT Camp, publication and communication were conducted through various channels, including press conferences and online publication. Participation in various workshops, conferences, and webinars was also a key strategy for disseminating information about SCN training programs implementation in Indonesia. These activities facilitated discussions and allowed for questions and answers from various parties, including policymakers, local governments, civil society organizations, and other relevant stakeholders. To disseminate content on the SCN training program to the wider public, we initiated the creation of digital content, animated infographics, as well as short films extracted from the SCN curriculum handbook. Furthermore, we also produced podcasts that included best practices of CN infrastructure development in Ciptagelar indigenous village. This also includes experiences of local technicians in managing the CN infrastructure in Ciptagelar (West Java) and Tembok Village (Bali), as well as collaborations with ICT Watch in conducting digital literacy training.

For the project implementation, Common Room was also able to develop collaboration with the academic community to conduct a deeper study of certain aspects of the SCN training program and CN infrastructure development in a larger perspective. For these purposes, Common Room also developed research topics on policy ecosystems in building CN infrastructure and services in rural and remote places. In order to strengthen the CN infrastructure development, support in the policy ecosystem is also needed to assist rural communities and village governments in accessing and managing certain resources. This also includes a regulatory framework to ensure its sustainability. With support from APC, ISIF Asia and other stakeholders, Common Room was able to conduct research and formulated a position paper and policy brief for affirmative policy and recommendations for further CN development in Indonesia.

Research activities conducted by Common Room and partners at the national level were disseminated through various conferences and seminars, including publication in academic journals. An example is the publication of research material in the academic journal entitled Digital Technologies in Emerging Countries, which was published by the Stanford Cyber Policy Center on May 26, 2023. This was followed by a presentation at a conference with a topic Practice of Digital In-And Exclusion in Everyday Life Conference at Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Netherlands, on April 3-4, 2023. Prior to this, some of the findings on the research in CN policy and regulation were also included as part of policy advocacy and recommendations for the development of community-owned Internet infrastructure in rural and remote places. Some of which were presented and released at the public discussion for the Indonesian Civil Society Position Paper for Three Main Challenges of Indonesia’s Digital Transformation on March 25, 2022, as well as a public discussion at the Internet Governance Forum Indonesia (ID-IGF), on November 22, 2022.

In regards to the publications, dissemination, workshops, webinars, and participation in various conferences, the Rural ICT Camp was also part of the strategic component for our public communication efforts. This annual event served as a space for dialogue and knowledge exchange for government representatives at the local and national levels, policymakers, academics, donor institutions, civil society organizations, SCN participants, and local communities. This annual event was able to facilitate direct engagement that consolidated CN movement and initiatives, in addition to technical training on Internet infrastructure, policy discussions, and capacity-building sessions on Internet utilization and digital literacy for rural communities. In addition to this, Rural ICT Camp was also able to increase the visibility and engagement of stakeholders at the national and international levels. One of them was through policy dialogue at the Rural ICT Camp 2023 in Pulo Aceh, which resulted in a joint statement entitled "Embracing Digital Connectivity For The Future Of ASEAN Solidarity," released on October 14, 2023.

Project Recommendations and Use of Findings

• There was no one policy that fit for all approaches to develop and provide community-owned Internet infrastructure for rural connectivity in Indonesia. CN infrastructure development has always been context-specific by nature, including within diverse geographical and socio-cultural backgrounds. This ongoing and collaborative effort needed to be iterated and validated within the local needs, challenges, and opportunities;
• The human-centered approach was essential for CN infrastructure development and utilization, particularly for capacity building in technical skills and digital literacy. This also required a gradual process and hands-on learning by design;
• CN infrastructure development needed to be enhanced with a long-term strategy for at least 3 to 5 years. In a general sense, these initiatives also needed to be structured into three phases: (1) The initial period focused on capacity-building in technical skills for local communities to establish CN infrastructure prototypes and access points, with additional mapping of the supporting ecosystem at the local level, (2) Managing the minimum quality of services (QoS) and expanding the network infrastructure, and (3) Optimizing QoS and harnessing the Internet for the benefit of the community;
• Blended funding support sustained the CN infrastructure development and utilization, as well as the capacity-building program to increase technical skills and digital literacy in the long run. This also included local crowdfunding, government funds, corporate social responsibility (CSR), joint project grants, and more;
• Institutional strengthening and capacity-building were encouraged, with an emphasis on valuing transparency, accountability, commitment, and integrity to prevent fraud and misappropriation that may have occurred in the further CN development. In addition to this, some of these values were also beneficial to the CN initiative with certain emphasis, among others: (1) building institutional credibility, (2) effective decision-making, (3) risk management, (4) efficient and responsible allocation of resources, (5) increasing sustainability, (6) compliance with law and ethics, and (7) contribution to institutional strengthening;
• Based on lessons learned in the SCN training program and CN infrastructure development, bridging the connectivity gap was not only about technical capacity building but also needed to include the social engineering process. This required interpersonal communication and multistakeholder collaboration skills, policy advocacy from national to village level, advocacy for government funds and other relevant financing mechanisms, conflict resolution and mediation, institutional strengthening, community development and empowerment, etc. This approach was necessary considering the diverse socio-cultural dynamics in each CN project location. The main objective of the social engineering process was to create transformative changes in people's behavior, knowledge, and skills so that they could overcome challenges and improve their ability in the long run.

Bibliography

• “Training, mentoring, and capacity building for the public are important prerequisites to encourage the development and utilization of community based Internet infrastructure in rural and remote areas.”
  ~ Gustaff H. Iskandar (Common Room) | Resolving Internet Access Delays in Rural Areas, School of Community Networks Targeting Tembok Village | URL: https://bali.tribunnews.com/2022/03/30/atasi-keterlambatan-akses-internet-di-pedesaan-sekolah-internet-komunitas-sasar-desa-tembok?page=2
• “The principles of human rights and gender equality are an important value base in the community internet movement. As an effort to address the challenges of the digital divide in Indonesia, we need to ensure that everyone can have equal, safe, and inclusive Internet access.”
  ~ Ellen Kusuma (Safenet) | Instagram Post: Last session of SCN Training of Trainer day 1: reflection while casually chatting with all participants related to learning materials and activity plans that will be developed in each area. | https://www.instagram.com/p/CYnQYI4P7LK/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
• "The community networks movement is needed to provide affordable and reliable Internet service in rural and remote areas.”
  ~ Dr. Sarbani Banerjee Belur (Asia Regional Coordinator for APC) | Instagram Post: SCN Training of Trainer | URL: https://www.instagram.com/p/CYqqk1iPP1_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
• “We hope that our friends who have participated in the training can be useful and can be applied to the community, so that our village can move forward and become an example for other villages.”
  ~ Noor Irwandi Yusuf (Head of Lapeo Village) | Common Room Holds School of Community Networks Program in Campalagian District. | URL: http://wartakominfosp.polmankab.go.id/common-room-gelar-sekolah-internet-berbasis-komunitas-di-kecamatan-campalagian
• ”We all know that nowadays the Internet connectivity has started to switch to a 5G network, so it’s very important that people in rural and remote areas can also know this. There must be training that can be more stimulating, understand, and know (also) more about the VSAT networks in Jayapura.”
  ~ Elvina Situmorang, AP, S.Sos., M.KP. (1^st Assistant of Secretary in Jayapura Regency Government) | URL: https://www.detakpapua.com/ekonomi/asisten-i-setda-kabupaten-jayapura-resmi-buka-workshop-teknologi-visat-dan-pengelolaan-infrastruktur-internet-berbasis-komunikasi/
• “Collective knowledge is actually important to increase our resilience in anticipating future disasters.”
  ~ Gustaff H. Iskandar (Common Room) | Nandong, Mitigation of the Tsunami Disaster With the Local Wisdom of the Simeulue Community | URL: https://www.goodnewsfromindonesia.id/2022/05/30/nandong-mitigasi-bencana-tsunami-dengan-kearifan-lokal-masyarakat-simeulue 
• “Common Room and School of Community Networks also develop similar activities in Aceh, West Java, West Kalimantan, West Sulawesi, Ambon, Papua, Sumba, Bali, and Lombok. We also try to increase public understanding of policies and regulations regarding community-based Internet that are legal, safe, affordable, and meaningful.”
  ~ Gustaff H. Iskandar(Common Room) | Towards an Innovation Village Through Digital Access Programme | https://daulatrakyat.id/menuju-desa-inovasi-lewat-digital-access-programme/ 
• “The Marasa programme for village Internet , which is an aid from the province, must continue its commitment by the village. Campalagian can be the pilot project for villages whose Bumdes wants to work together. The training from SCN is also an important foundation for digital transformation in the village community."  
  ~ Emeralda Ayu Kusuma (IT Expert for acting Governor of West Sulawesi) | Polewali Mandar Multi Stakeholders Take Advantage of Community Internet in Campalagian District | URL: https://infonanggroe.com/ing-20228/multistakeholder-polewali-mandar-manfaatkan-internet-komunitas-di-kecamatan-campalagian/ 
• "This can be a pilot project for other villages that want to increase the potential of their villages through the Internet network." 
  ~ Ketut Suwarmawan - Head of the Kominfosanti Buleleng Office | Buleleng Regency Government Synergizes with Common Room to Hold Rural ICT Camp 2022 | URL: https://bulelengkab.go.id/informasi/detail/berita/85_pemkab-buleleng-bersinergi-dengan-common-room-gelar-rural-ict-camp-2022
• "The Buleleng Regency Government through Diskominfosanti appreciates and welcomes the implementation of activities aimed at encouraging the development and utilization of community networks infrastructure as an effort to overcome the challenges of the digital divide in Indonesia, especially in Buleleng Regency because it still has blank spot areas." 
  ~ Ketut Suwarmawan - Head of the Kominfosanti Buleleng Office | Rural ICT Camp 2022 Builds Bamboo Internet Tower in Tembok Village | URL: https://wartabalionline.com/2022/10/20/rural-ict-camp-2022-bangun-menara-internet-bambu-di-desa-tembok/
• "If you only rely on support from the government, it is not enough, so, together, let's make this activity successful." 
  ~ Ketut Suwarmawan - Head of the Kominfosanti Buleleng Office | Buleleng Regency Government Synergizes with Common Room to Hold Rural ICT Camp 2022 | URL: https://baliportalnews.com/2022/10/pemkab-buleleng-bersinergi-dengan-common-room-gelar-rural-ict-camp-2022/
• "At the beginning of 2022, to be precise, last March, we carried out an MoU with the Common Room to form a School of Community Networks. Now this collaboration is the basis for improving Internet infrastructure in our village.” 
  ~ Dewa Komang Yudi Astara - Head of Tembok Village | Rural ICT Camp Officially Opens, Tembok Government Ready to Develop Community Networks Infrastructure | URL: https://www.balisharing.com/2022/10/22/rural-ict-camp-resmi-dibuka-pemdes-tembok-siap-kembangkan-infrastruktur-sekolah-internet-komunitas/
• "I see that enthusiasm, so that later the Internet network in Tembok Village can only be used by the community for the benefit of learning, as well as public services." 
  ~ Dewa Komang Yudi Astara - Head of Tembok Village | Unique, Tembok Village Makes Internet Tower Using Bamboo | URL: https://www.balipuspanews.com/unik-desa-tembok-buat-tower-internet-memakai-bambu.html
• "Hopefully these solar panels can be useful for many people, especially those areas that don't get electricity sources." 
  ~ Malik Muhammad - SCN Trainer | Day Two, Common Room Provides Education on Solar Panel Internet Infrastructure | URL: https://bulelengkab.go.id/informasi/detail/berita/33_hari-kedua-common-room-berikan-edukasi-infrastruktur-internet-panel-surya
• "This is very interesting, so we can apply it in Papua later by adding some tools. So far, the Internet in Papua has been good, just divide the flow of the Internet network." 
  ~ Thomas - SCN Participants from Papua | Day Two, Common Room Provides Education on Solar Panel Internet Infrastructure | URL: https://www.balisharing.com/2022/10/22/hari-kedua-common-room-berikan-edukasi-infrastruktur-internet-panel-surya/
• "This is the reason we use bamboo towers. In addition to being able to reduce costs, the material is very easy to get and durable depending on how it is maintained. That's why this tower uses a roof to protect direct exposure to heat and rain." 
  ~ Dr. Adi Nugraha - Head of Research Center for Environment and Cultural Product - Institut Teknologi Bandung | Overcoming the Digital Divide, Buleleng Regency Government Inaugurates the Construction of a Bamboo Tower in Tembok Village | https://dewatapos.com/atasi-kesenjangan-digital-pemkab-buleleng-resmikan-tower-internet-bambu-di-desa-tembok/
• "The digital divide of urban and rural areas still occurs in Buleleng Regency. The development of Internet network infrastructure is very necessary. With the construction of a bamboo Internet tower in Tembok Village, it can increase digitalization, improve health services, education, MSME marketing, and government public services." 
  ~ Ir. Nyoman Genep, M.T. - General Administration Assistance, Buleleng Regency Government | Spreading the Internet Through Bamboo Towers in Tembok Village | URL: https://tatkala.co/2022/10/24/menyebarkan-internet-lewat-tower-bambu-di-desa-tembok/
• "We chose Banjar Dinas Sembung as the location because it is quite far from the center of government. So we hope that with this tower, the community, especially students, can more easily access information, facilitate public services and activities that support the community's economy."  
  ~ Dewa Komang Yudi Astara - Head of Tembok Village | Overcoming the Digital Divide, Construction of Bamboo Internet Tower in Tembok Village Inaugurated | URL: https://bali.tribunnews.com/2022/10/24/atasi-kesenjangan-digital-pembangunan-tower-internet-bambu-di-desa-tembok-diresmikan

Policy Research and Advocacy

• Policy Research and Advocacy Documents (English Language):
  • Digital Transformation Position Paper
  • APC Policy Brief: Community Network Development in Indonesia
  • Journal article: Digital Technologies in Emerging Countries [PDF]. Also available online via Stanford.
  • Embracing Digital Connectivity for the Future of ASEAN Solidarity
  • Presentation: School of Community Networks - the Digital Divide in Indonesia and its challenges

Podcasts

• Rembuk Nusa | Community Networks Movement In Indonesia (Bahasa Indonesia): https://youtu.be/NfhOwKO-fzk?feature=shared
• Rembuk Nusa | School of Community Networks In Indonesia (Bahasa Indonesia): https://youtu.be/5_287tkkhMg?feature=shared
• Promoting Digital Rights and Combating Hoaxes in Indonesia (English/Bahasa Indonesia): https://youtu.be/pwXLpi_LOIE?feature=shared

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