TELECENTER “NOVO AR”
Municipality of São Gonçalo - State of Rio de Janeiro


The Telecenter Novo Ar carries out an educational work through communication, reaching more than 80% of the total households of San Gonçalo, a city of 1 million and two hundred thousand inhabitants, one of the poorest of Brazil. The main source of income is contributions given by its more than 1600 members, equal to 1% of the local minimum wage. As a counterpart, the radio facilitates to its members access to services through agreements with professionals in the fields of accounting, law, psychology and with hospitals, laboratories, drugstores, travel agencies, language schools, catering services, etc. The audience is monitored by the number of listeners who contact the radio by phone: nearly 320 calls daily. The radio counts with the work of 4 fixed staff and 76 voluntaries.

In June 2002, the Telecenter Novo Ar was chosen as one of the best experiences in a contest promoted by the Work Bank: “Innovative Social Experiences”. The funds awarded enabled the purchase of computers and to establish internet connection and this allowed the Telecenter to work, since February 2003, with the goal of lowering the digital gap in the community through capacity building. The Telecenter has 5 computers and it is opened to the community every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, from 8 am to 8 pm with a capacity to assist 180 people weekly. There is a fee of R$ 1,00 (30 cents of dollar) per access hour. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, the Telecenter is used to provide courses on computers and internet for community members.

On Saturdays afternoon and on Sundays, the Telecenter is used for research and planning by the producers of the radio program. Of all the income received with the courses and internet access, 35% is used to pay the trainers, 10% for maintenance of the equipment and the rest stays in the Telecenter account. All the users (732 people use it frequently) are registered and there is a card with the data of the member, the computer used and the number of hours of connection. With the wide spread of the news about the Telecenter, there is, nowadays, a waiting list for people wanting to use it for internet connection. The staff is comprised by: a coordinator, 2 teacher trainers and 2 assistants, 2 technical supporters and an educational assistant for the development of the materials and the methodologies for the courses.