Author: kyrgyzisoc

The first school №10 Manas (Balykchy)

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The First school we visited was school №10. Manas (Balykchy) in which 895 children are trained. The school is connected to the Internet, however, it is only the Director’s office, in connection with which this educational institution was included into the list of schools to install electronic library ilimBox.

The Administration warmly welcomed our team and gathered all the high school students in the auditorium. The number of children numbered more than 120 people.

During the presentation it became obvious that it becomes difficult to keep the attention of children of grades 5-6, in connection with which  we decided to leave active children and show them the principle of operation of the device in order for them to share their knowledge with their peers,” – said the representative of the ISOC team Begaim bekbolotova.

Re-presentation of the project was done in another room for high school students interested in teaching their peers. They actively asked questions and practiced through their smartphones.

The Director of the school – Venera Jusuenvasad: “This project will help our school to solve the issue with the textbooks”. Interest to our project was shown not only by teachers and students, but also by parents who came for children of younger classes, who with great curiosity asked about the possibility of purchasing a device home.

Schoolgirl of senior classes is trying to open electronic library of ilimBox
Presentation of device ilimBox
In the presentation of ilimBox assembled senior schoolchildren

Video report of installation ilimBox in Issyk-Kul region (Russian version)

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On September 10-11, the ISOC team visited schools of Issyk-Kul region for the presentation and mounting of devices IlimBox.

https://youtu.be/QHTuUHVCYqM
On September 10-11, the ISOC team visited schools of Issyk-Kul region for the presentation and mounting of devices IlimBox.

The electronic library “Ilim Box” in the southern part of Issyk-Kul region

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On September 10-11, 2019, the ISOC team installed the electronic library “Ilim Box” in secondary schools in the southern part of Issyk-Kul region. The device allows you to access all educational resources without an Internet connection, in other words offline. Moreover, it is worth noting that all data is stored in the device itself, and only the power supply and the box itself are needed for connection. The uniqueness of the innovative project is that students can access educational resources at school without an Internet connection.
Preparation for the trip took more than two weeks, because in addition to the presentation, the team has developed a new logo that reflects the essence of the project “Ilim Box”. Identification marks were made for the trip: branding boxes, roll-ups, spiders, t-shirts, stickers.
The choice of schools was due to several factors: no access to the Internet for students, lack of books, as well as the number of students exceeded the permissible maximum, thereby increasing the likelihood of poor performance in schools without a network connection, as well as the choice of educational institutions influenced the list of proposed schools by the Ministry of education and science of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The devices were donated:
School № 10 Manas (Balykchy)
School №7 (Balykchy)
School B. Alakhov (Kara-Taala)
School R. Jangaziev (Kara-Koo)
School Erkinbaeva (Bar-Bulak)
School-gymnasium №11 (Karakol)
School Esimbekova (Tegizchil)
School D. Turebekov (Boz-Bulun)
In these schools was held a presentation of the project “Ilim box” then testing the device with students and teachers and handing the device. During the conversation, the importance of education and self-education were touched upon. Our visit to these schools has caused positive responses from the school administration, as none of them have access to the Internet for students, and most of them stressed the problem of not completing books in both Russian and Kyrgyz languages. It should be noted that in most of the rural schools it is forbidden to use a mobile phone on the territory of the educational institution, as teachers notice children’s gaming preferences during lessons. We showed the guys that with the advent of “Ilim box” smartphone can be used exclusively for educational purposes, and all this can be fun through video lessons.
In Kyrgyzstan, there are more than 2,000 schools, among which there are those that do not have access to the Internet and do not have enough books. Accordingly, it affects the level of quality of education. In 2018, Kyrgyzstan declined to participate in the PISA world school rankings, as it was ranked last 65th in previous competitions.
Innovative solutions to two pressing problems such as the lack of books and the lack of Internet can be seen in the project digital library for schools and public libraries “Ilim Box”, which contains Wikipedia in Kyrgyz, Russian and English, Khan Academy in English, thousands of video lessons, audio and e-books. All these digital learning materials are available offline, in other words does not need Internet access. Access to Digital libraries will be carried out through smartphones, tablets, computers and any other personal devices with Wi-Fi technology.
“Ilim Box” will allow Kyrgyzstan to increase the level of education in the regions”, – said the Chairman of ISOC – Talant Sultanov, at the digital forum of Kazakhstan.
Thus, visits to schools helped to identify several important points: need to develop a training manual on Kyrgyz language for better perception of information is needed in the formation of a database of electronic books, the materials should be in Russian and Kyrgyz languages, there is a need to create a list of the most useful books, and download online tests for the preparation to ORT. The goals and objectives of the project “Ilim Box” coincide with the five-year strategy of digital transformation “Digital Kyrgyzstan 2019-2023” and contribute to the achievement of target indicators for the component “development of the digital state” and “development of digital skills”.
The project is funded by Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund 2018 (AEIF) as part of innovative solutions to global challenges and by program
Beyond the Net ISOC.

The project previously had various names “Internet in a box”, “Bilim Bulagy”, “Spring of Knowledge”and is not related to the World Bank project “Bilim Bulagy”.

ISOC in partnership with KG Labs is to prepare ICT development roadmap for Osh oblast

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Kyrgyz Chapter of Internet Society in partnership with KG Labs Public Foundation will prepare roadmap for ICT development for Osh oblast and city in upcoming months.  ISOC signed agreement with GIZ programme “Promotion of Sustainable Economic Development” (NaWi) to help the most populous regions of Kyrgyz Republic to secure sustainable development with enabling technology adoption and digital skills. Aziz Soltobaev will lead team of experts to prepare guidance and roadmap.

Programme Background

In 2017, the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic adopted the concept of regional development “Cities – points of growth”. This concept envisaged the development of strategic development programs for 20 cities of Kyrgyzstan using the basics of business planning. The implementation of the concept was divided into several stages, where the first stage incorporates development programs for 5 pilot cities, including Osh, Jalal-Abad, Kara-Balta, Karakol and Naryn.

In 2018, the GIZ programme on “Promoting Sustainable Economic Development” provided technical support to the Osh city development program. The project for the creation and development of ICT is one of the business plans included in the strategic program for the development of the city.

In 2018 the programme supported Osh City Hall to improve knowledge and skills on attracting and promoting investments, including FDI. ICT was chosen as a pilot sector for attracting investments.

During the period between July-November 2018 an international expert conducted weekly online webinars/conferences during which a quick initial analysis on the status of ICT in the region was carried out. The expert also provided advice on strategic ICT business planning.

The Agency for External Relations and Development of the Business Environment and private ICT entrepreneurs have jointly developed the concept of creating an ICT Technopark based primarily on the inputs of the international expert.

Further development of the project involves the transition from the stage of theory to practical implementation. To carry out such a transition a comprehensive consultation is needed particularly in view of scenario planning to cross check the theoretical concept of the Technopark with the current economic development of Osh and Osh oblast, it’s legal framework and the market conditions.

Aziz Soltobaev and his team will carry out an in-depth analysis of current level of ICT development in coherence with the potential opportunities with the objective to develop an ICT development roadmap. The roadmap should clearly outline a set of actions with stipulated timelines enabling the responsible partner structure to fully utilise local /regional resources with the knowledge and the experience in ICT and develop strategies and potential partnerships.

Osh City Hall: represented by the Agency for External Relations and Development of the Business Environment under the Osh City Hall, the Office of the Plenipotentiary Representative of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic in Osh oblast and the Agency for the Promotion and Protection of Investments.

The purpose of this assignment is to provide strategic guidance to the NGO “ICT Technopark” (established on the initiative of a private entrepreneur and the Osh city hall) in their objective of developing a comprehensive roadmap towards creation and development of ICT technology park in Osh.

The traffic exchange point in the Ferghana valley (FVIXP) – successfully implemented

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The traffic exchange point in the Ferghana valley (FVIXP) is successfully implemented by our team project. The Fergana valley, located at the crossroads of three countries, is the most populated area in Central Asia, the center of regional inter-ethnic tensions related to water and land.

FVIXP is the installation of an Internet traffic exchange point (IXP) in southern Kyrgyzstan, in Osh, which significantly reduced the cost and accelerated the Internet for all residents of the Fergana valley. FVIXP opens up opportunities to build a digital silk road. Connection to the Internet traffic exchange point allows to establish peer-to-peer interaction between participants with lower costs and greater efficiency regarding the organization of pairwise physical joints. IXP efficiency increases with the number of connected participants. With the junction with China, new junctions with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Osh is becoming a key city in the development of digital infrastructure. The project is aimed at expanding regional cross-border cooperation, as well as increasing the availability of the Internet by reducing tariff plans up to 3 times, multiplying the growth of Internet traffic exchange in the region, increasing the level of Internet penetration.

The goals and objectives of the project coincide with the five-year digital transformation strategy “Digital Kyrgyzstan 2019-2023” and contribute to the achievement of target indicators for the component “development of the digital state” and “development of digital skills”.

Beyond the Net Grants

ISOC General Assembly

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May 23, 2019 a general assembly of members of the Public Association “Kyrgyz Chapter of the Internet Society” (ISOC) was held, where they talked in detail about current projects and plans for the coming year. The meeting was attended by: ISOC Chairman – Talant Sultanov, ISOC co-founder – Aziz Soltobaev, Erzhigit Imamov, Isabek Asanbaev, Begaim Bekbolotova and new members of ISOC.

It was said that at the country level, the organization adheres to the basic mission of the Internet Society, and aims to assist in providing all citizens of Kyrgyzstan with high-quality and affordable Internet access. In the 21st century, Internet access is an integral part of modern life and in some countries is already recognized as a human right at the constitution level. The Internet allows one to access information and knowledge of all mankind, gives one the opportunity to get a quality education, improve one’s own potential, broaden one’s horizons, participate in e-commerce, and improve one’s own economic well-being, thereby making a contribution to the prosperity of the whole country.

Members shared news about their activities: on April 25, they organized a seminar on Community Networks and on April 27 a seminar on Internet Traffic Exchange Points. In September, we launched our first projects in these areas. On May 15 of this year, a round table was held in conjunction with the Osh city administration for educators, telecommunications and subordinate departments, and also organized a presentation for Osh residents interested in digitization of the country.

They told about trips abroad. In March 2018 Isabek Asanbaev visited the European Chapters Meeting in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia. In 2017, this meeting was held in Spain, and Bermet, one of the founders of our Chapter, went. In November 2018 Isabek and Erzhigit flew to India, where they participated in a seminar on building Community Networks. For Erzhigit, this was the second ISOC visit to India on the subject of Community Networks. This year, Erzhigit participated in the ISOC conference, which was organized in the capital of Romania, Bucharest.

The meeting ended with a discussion of ISOC’s plans for the upcoming 2020 year. We talked about possible projects with new members of the community. The friendly atmosphere of the meeting allowed not only to get better acquainted with the participants, to feel the desire of everyone to make their contribution to the development of the country’s digitalization, but also to involve everyone in the upcoming projects.

Round table with local activists of Osh interested in digitization of the south of the country

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May 15, 2019 ISOC organized a second meeting in Ololo House Osh with local activists interested in digitalization and the development of the south of the country.

With invited participants, we discussed innovative ways to connect remote regions to the Internet as part of the activities of the Kyrgyz Chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC).

The evening meeting with civil activists were no less productive, and the project “Suusamyr Net” was of great interest. This initiative contributes to the improvement of the quality of the Internet, and also allows communities together with the local aiyl okmotu to make the Internet accessible to all local residents. This project is the first of its kind in Central Asia. The construction of a public Internet provider in the village of Suusamyr also made it possible to gain experience in connecting remote areas and helps to identify obstacles to the creation of public providers. It is worth noting that we shared practical tools, materials and documents. We have analyzed in detail the algorithm for the implementation of the project, and the possibility of implementing such an initiative on the ground. As a result, there are people who are ready to repeat the experience of Suusamyr Net and wish to make their contribution to the development of digitalization of the regions.

After the presentation, we provided iftar for the fasting. In such a friendly atmosphere, the discussion continued at the dinner table with Aziz Soltobaev, Talant Sultanov, Erzhigit Imamov, Isabek Asanbaev.

We express gratitude to the business association JIA for assistance in informing their members about this event.