Author: kyrgyzisoc

Round table in Osh within the framework of digitization of the country

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As part of the “Year of Digitalization and Development” in Osh on May 15, 2019, a round table was held where innovations were discussed on ways to connect remote regions to the Internet in line with the activities of the Kyrgyz Chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC).

The Kyrgyz Chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the digitization of regions in the Kyrgyz Republic. Three major projects were launched: the Fergana Valley Internet Traffic Exchange Point, Suusamyr Net Community Network and Bilim Bulagy. Speakers were: ISOC Chairman Talant Sultanov, ISOC co-founder Aziz Soltobaev, Project Manager Isabek Asanbayev, Technical Manager Erzhigit Imamov.

The goals and objectives of the projects coincide with the five-year digital transformation strategy “Digital Kyrgyzstan 2019-2023” and contribute to the achievement of the target indicators for the component “Digital State Development” and “Digital Skills Development”.

In order to inform the public about projects and digitalization in general, a round table was organized in conjunction with the Osh city hall at the Next coworking center, where the local administration, education and telecommunication workers, as well as representatives of the nearest local self-governments were invited. The event was attended by 50 people who are not indifferent to the development of the southern regions.

The most interesting project for the public was “Bilim Bulagy”, since it belongs to the sector of education development. “During the meeting with the local population, the electronic library Bilim Bulagy attracted much attention. We received many useful comments and suggestions, ”Erzhigit Imamov notes. Another equally important part of the presentation was the ISOC grant opportunities.

Agreements were reached on cooperation with the local community of the Nookat district to build the community network, since the districts (hospitals, schools, municipal institutions) are not covered by the Internet. A decision was also made to promote the Bilim Bulagy project in the south of the country.

Thus, the productivity of the round table can be assessed as high, since people from different spheres and structures were invited, thereby contributing to the greatest coverage of the population.

 

 

Official registration of “Suusamyr Net” Community Network

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We are glad to inform you that on April 24, 2019 we received the official seal and certificate of “Suusamyr Net”! You can congratulate us on the OFFICIAL REGISTRATION !!!

A little bit about the project “Susamyr Net”. “Suusamyr Net” – contributes to the improvement of the quality of the Internet, and also allowed localities to make the Internet accessible to all local residents by local ayil okmotus. 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.

ISOC Kyrgyzstan Chapter launches internet exchange point in Osh

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Bishkek, Apr. 22, 2019. /Kabar/. The Internet Society (ISOC) Kyrgyzstan Chapter launched internet exchange point in Osh city aimed to improve connectivity in the most densely populated region – Ferghana Valley, ISOC reported.

Internet connectivity in Kyrgyzstan significantly progressed over the last few years, but had distributed unevenly. While, most of northern provinces reaping benefits of high speed mobile and broadband Internet, southern regions are still suffering from expensive Internet tariff plans and connectivity time lags. Ferghana Valley Internet Exchange Point is providing critical infrastructure for internet service providers and mobile operators to prevail regional digital gap and help underserved communities to obtain affordable Internet access.

Ferghana Valley located at the crossroads of three countries of Central Asia: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan are in top 10 regions with highest population density in the world. Over 14 million people (2014) reside in 22,000 square kilometers (approximately 636 persons per square km). The region is known for land and water disputes, inter-ethnic conflicts. There is a huge income disparity between administrative capitals of the Stans and regional dwelling communities in Ferghana Valley.

“Establishing IXP would greatly enhance the utility and value of the regional Internet and promote the growth of the digital economy”, said Talant Sultanov, Chair of ISOC Kyrgyzstan Chapter. According to Terabit Consulting, “Improvement in ICT infrastructure yields: Increased demand for the output of other industries (demand multiplier), New opportunities for production in other industries (supply multiplier), new goods and services for consumers (final demand). It also increases firms’ innovation capabilities and increases the probability of new products, innovations, and organizations.”

Internet Exchange Point is a physical location where different stakeholders who have ASN meet to exchange local traffic via a switch. Kyrgyzstan is one of the countries where Ferghana Valley is spread. There are several closed IXPs based in Bishkek (ISP, banks). Unlike present IXPs that could not be neutral and open for new members by Charter, Ferghana Valley IXP (FVIXP) follows principles of openness and neutrality by providing equal access to infrastructure to all stakeholders, including Government agencies, educational and healthcare institutions as well as commercial banks. IXP will help local small and medium ISP to minimize traffic costs, spend more on infrastructure rather than on internet traffic purchase.

Over the last two years, ISOC Kyrgyz Chapter had been working closely with local stakeholders and community members to set up first of its kind peering hub in Osh city. Together with European Chapter of ISOC, local members conducted roundtables as well as trainings to help raise awareness about role of IXP and provide skills to administer it. Chapter members had been preparing physical infrastructure and regulations to make this project operational.

“We believe, that FVIXP will help local small and medium-sized Internet Service Provider reduce traffic costs, improve quality of connectivity and increase subscription base due to more affordable tariff plans”, said Aziz Soltobaev, project manager of FVIXP and ISOC Kyrgyzstan Chapter cofounder.

The Internet Society (ISOC) is an international organization dedicated to the development and accessibility of the Internet. The organization has more than 20 thousand specialists and more than 100 member organizations in 180 countries. The Internet Society provides assistance in the organization for a variety of other consulting and research groups involved in the development of the Internet, including the IETF and the IAB.

ISOC Kyrgyzstan Chapter is non-profit organization founded in April 2015 and officially registered on July 7, 2017. ISOC Kyrgyzstan Chapter obtain required licenses and permits for providing data transmission and peering services.

http://kabar.kg/eng/news/isoc-kyrgyzstan-chapter-launched-internet-exchange-point-in-osh/?fbclid=IwAR3msvkDTrejTWOc-xLxOC4qpNl9AxU88OosiOD6r3GCkaEAS8D-bb3qrTA

Connecting schools to Ilimbox aka Bilim Bulagy

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On April 13, 2019, the ISOC team began installing the Bilim Bulagy electronic library. The device allows you to access all educational resources without an Internet connection, in other words offline. Moreover, it should be noted that all data is stored in the device itself, and only power supply and wireless modem are required for connection. The uniqueness of the innovative project is that students can access educational resources at school without an Internet connection.  

The first schools where the trip was organized were the secondary school O. Isaeva (Kegety) and Chui boarding school (Tokmok) located in the Chui valley. The choice of schools was due to several factors: there is no access to the Internet, the number of students exceeded the allowable maximum, thereby increasing the likelihood of poor performance in schools without a network connection, as well as the choice of the above-described educational institutions was influenced by the interest Of the Association of young entrepreneurs “JIA” and the club of professionals “ProKG”, as they have a project “My school” with supervised schools.

For example, in high school O. Isaeva (Kegety) 511 students study, and the number of computers is equal to thirty-three, there is only one computer connected to the Internet. The second school is Chui boarding school (Tokmok), which has approximately the same performance. In these schools was held a presentation of the project “Internet in a box” then testing the device with students and teachers. During the conversation, the importance of education and self-education were touched upon.  

The third school was in S. Boroldai of Kemin district of Chui region. The plan of the meeting was built in the same way. Since the school is Russian-speaking, the appeal of teachers was aimed at increasing the materials in Russian, which would greatly facilitate the process of knowledge transfer.

There are more than 2,000 schools in Kyrgyzstan, some of which do not have access to the Internet and lack 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 the Internet can be seen in the project “Bilim Bulagy” (Internet in a box) – a digital library for schools and public libraries containing Wikipedia in Kyrgyz, Russian and English languages, Khan Academy, 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.

“Bilim Bulagy will allow Kyrgyzstan to improve the level of education in the regions”, – said the Chairman of ISOC – Talent Sultanov, at the digital forum of Kazakhstan.

Thus, visits to schools helped to identify several important points: it is necessary to develop a manual in the Kyrgyz language for better perception of information, there is a need in the formation of the database of electronic books, materials should be both in Russian and in Kyrgyz, there is a need to create a list of the most necessary books. The goals and objectives of the project “Bilim Bulagy” 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.







 

Interview about community network on “Suusamyr FM”

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November 23, 2018 after the launch of the project “Suusamyr net” and the start of connecting subscribers, a meeting with local residents was organized. During the conversation, they talked about the project, the advantages and importance of high-speed Internet. The audience needed to provide ip TV, as there were no entertainment and sports channels, and they received many proposals to improve the Internet environment. There were no more than twenty people, in order to reach more people community Radio “Suusamyr FM” invited representatives of our company – Talent Sultanov – Chairman of ISOC and Erzhigit Imamov – technical Manager of the project on the air. During the broadcast Talant and Erzhigit shared with the audience the immediate plans of this initiative. The broadcast was exciting and productive and solved the issue of audience coverage of Suusamyr.

 

 

Launch of the Suusamyr Net Community Network

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On November 23, 2018, with the support of the Internet Society in the village of Suusamyr, Chui oblast, the project “Suusamyr Net” was launched.

This initiative aims to provide Internet access to residents of the Suusamyr Valley, expanding opportunities and increasing access to information.

In a mountainous country, more than half of the population lives far from big cities and modern technologies. Less than 40 percent of the country’s population has access to the Internet. Such a project allows realizing the idea of digital transformation of the country.

Internet Society began work on the promotion of the Internet in the remote villages of the country in 2017. A round table was held on the Internet connection in remote areas of Kyrgyzstan. This project is the first of its kind in Central Asia. Building a public Internet provider in the village of Suusamyr will also allow you to gain experience in connecting remote areas and help identify obstacles to creating public providers. The budget of the pilot project in Suusamyr is $ 35,000 provided by the Internet grant program of the Society “Beyond the Net”.

This pilot project consists of two phases:

1. Conducting the Internet in the village Suusamyr.
The optimal solution for the implementation of the first stage was the use of radio relay transmitters.
At a distance of 23 km from the village there is a connection point (gas station Gazprom) to the fiber-optic highway Elkat. Due to the lack of direct visibility, the radio bridge was built of two spans.
The first span from the gas station Gazprom to Tokiluu, distance 6km.
Second span from Tokiluu to Suusamyr 18km distance.
At the moment, it was possible to achieve a channel with 90 Mbps speed. In the future it is planned to double the width of the channel.

2. Construction of a network inside the village.
The Community Network infrastructure is based on GEPON technology. The main feature is high – connection speed, up to 1000 Mbps. Such a reserve of speed will allow to delay the need to upgrade equipment for many years, providing an extremely high level of services.

Local residents were involved in the construction of the network. So welders for metal welded fixtures on which wires were hung. Local electricians hung fiber optic cables on power poles. Several people were trained to work with a special welding machine for optical fiber and work with subscriber equipment.

Preliminary results of the project:
The use of modern technology has reduced the cost of the project. The involvement of local people in the creation of a community network has strengthened the future of the project.
So the subscriber connection is 4000 soms, which is equal to the cost of equipment and necessary work.
The monthly fee is 650 soms with a tariff of 5 Mbps for the first 50 subscribers. The network is capable of receiving up to 250 subscribers. With an increase in subscribers, the monthly subscription fee will significantly decrease, dividing all monthly network expenses equally among subscribers.

At the request of residents, it is also planned to introduce the possibility of connecting IP television with 100 channels, which will cost an additional 200 soms per month, and the purchase of a TV box for 2000 soms will be necessary.

After the successful launch of a Community Network in the village of Suusamyr, the project will be scaled to all regions of the country. This will include training of interested communities on the example of a pilot project, assistance in designing, building and launching Community Networks.

For more information on the project you can contact the coordinators:
Erzhigit Imamov responsible for the technical part of the project.
[email protected], +996779880422.
Isabek Asanbayev project coordinator [email protected], +996556552247.

Launch of the Internet Traffic Exchange Point of the Fergana Valley.

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The Public Association “Kyrgyz Chapter of the Internet Society” launches one of its first and most ambitious projects, the Internet Traffic Exchange Point of the Ferghana Valley.
The project was made possible by a grant from Beyond the Net, the Internet Society. The Ferghana Valley Internet Traffic Exchange Point Project (FVIXP) is the installation of an internet traffic exchange point (IXP) in the city of Osh, in southern Kyrgyzstan, which will significantly reduce the cost and speed up the Internet for all residents of the Fergana Valley.

The equipment of the Internet Traffic Exchange Point of the Fergana Valley is installed and works in Kyrgyztelecom Osh city. All Internet providers operating in the city of Osh can connect to the internet traffic exchange point. The first participant to join was UniLink LLC. Connecting to an Internet traffic exchange point allows you to establish peer-to-peer interaction between participants with lower costs and greater efficiency regarding the organization of pairwise physical joints. The effectiveness of IXP increases with the number of connected participants.
According to ITU 2014, Central Asia has one of the lowest Internet penetration levels in Europe and  Asia. In regional terms, Internet prices for residents of the Fergana Valley are higher than for residents of other administrative districts. For example, Internet tariffs in southern cities are 5 times higher (13USD) for the same capacity as in Bishkek, located in the north of Kyrgyzstan. Tajikistan, which primarily depends on Kyrgyzstan, has an even more serious situation. The national Internet service provider Tojnet provides an unlimited tariff of 1Mb for $ 45. The situation in Uzbekistan is even worse. Uzbekistan’s exclusive Internet provider provides Internet in cities located in the Fergana Valley, at a price of $ 59 for 10 GB of daily Internet and unlimited night traffic.
Considering the aforementioned situation, the Internet traffic exchange point in the valley will remove barriers to connection and will stimulate improved access.
Fergana Valley IXP (FVIXP) will adhere to the principles of openness and neutrality, ensuring equal access to infrastructure for all stakeholders, including government agencies, educational and health institutions, as well as commercial banks. IXP will help local small and medium-sized providers to reduce costs for traffic, and will allow you to spend more on infrastructure than on the purchase of Internet traffic.
There are two IXPs in the north of Kyrgyzstan. The old IXP is closed to new members and therefore new ISPs cannot join. The second IXP is open, but also located in the city of Bishkek.
In the case of line breaks due to farmers, communication is lost throughout the region. Subscribers cannot forward messages to each other. Millions of subscribers remain waiting for the repair of communication on the line.
Any message that is generated by users comes to the data exchange center in Bishkek and returns to Osh again. This is a millisecond, but not very logical and costly process. Thus, the lines between Bishkek and Osh become overloaded.
At the same time, many Bishkek Internet providers can not profit from developing the Internet infrastructure in the regions, including the southern regions.
FVIXP opens up possibilities for building a digital silk road. Taking into account the connection of the junction with China, new junctions with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Osh is becoming a key city in the development of digital infrastructure.

Creating an IXP would greatly enhance the value of the regional economy. According to Terabit Consulting, “Improving ICT infrastructure produces: an increase in demand for products from other industries (demand multiplier), new production opportunities in other industries (supply multiplier), new products and services for consumers (final demand), increased innovative capabilities of firms and increase the likelihood of new products, innovations and organizations. “

Digital Libraries for schools

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Thanks to grants from the American Embassy in Kyrgyzstan and the Internet Society, the Public Association “Kyrgyz Branch of the Internet Society” starts the project “Bilim Bulagy”. Bilim Bulagy is a digital library for schools and public libraries containing Wikipedia in Kyrgyz, Russian and English, the Khan Academy, thousands of video lessons, audio and electronic books. All these digital learning materials are available offline, that is, without needing access to the Internet. Access to the Digital Libraries will be provided through smartphones, tablets, computers and any other personal devices with Wi-Fi technology.

Many schools in Kyrgyzstan annually experience a shortage of teachers and textbooks. As a result, thousands of children do not receive a proper quality education. In particular, there are not enough teachers of the exact sciences and the Russian language. As a result, Kyrgyz schoolchildren show poor knowledge of such fundamental skills like reading and computing. This is evidenced by the results of the PISA International Student Assessment, where students from Kyrgyzstan showed the worst results and finished last in 2006 and 2009.

Bilim Bulagy aims to provide opportunities for students to fill in missing knowledge on their own. Similarly, the lessons of the Khan Academy have the potential to help retarded students understand complex topics.
Over 6 million Wikipedia articles will be available for reading in three languages helping to develop curiosity in children.

Many digital learning materials are also available for download, thus allowing you to take a piece of the library with you. Download speed is very high, because it does not use the Internet, but only its internal network.

Bilim Bulagy will be implemented in 50 pilot schools and libraries in the country in 2019.

Learning by Doing: Have You Heard of the Suusamyr Community Network in Kyrgyzstan?

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Last week, the Internet Society together with our Kyrgyz chapter and the wider local community held discussions about Internet connectivity in remote areas in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Approximately 35% of the Kyrgyz population use the Internet (ITU data, 2017) and most users are located in cities and urban areas.

In cooperation with its Kyrgyz chapter, the Internet Society is piloting the community networks approach in the village of Suusamyr, located some 150 kilometers south of the capital city Bishkek. We had an opportunity to visit this village of about 4000 people, tucked away in a wide valley surrounded by high mountains. The economic activity revolves around farming, horse and cattle keeping, and tourism.

While the final phase of the Suusamyr community network is still under implementation, we can already draw some lessons learnt from the preparatory and testing phases.

Partnerships

As a starting point, the Internet Society Kyrgyz chapter consolidated a partnership with the government, Internet Service Providers (ISP), and the local community in Suusamyr. The Kyrgyz government saw the opportunity for local economic development. Two ISPs agreed to lease their existing backbone infrastructure to connect the last mile. And most importantly, the local community embraced this initiative with a hope that it will provide new opportunities for the people in the community. It is important to have the backing of the key stakeholders.

Licensing and permissions

As in most countries, building Internet infrastructure requires licenses and permissions. While it was relatively simple to get the network operator license, the rules for spectrum licenses in Kyrgyzstan involve costs and time-consuming application processes. Our project team partnered with a regional ISP to share their existing spectrum license. Permissions for land use and power supply for masts can also be complicated. Following discussions with landowners and the national electricity company, the permissions for the Suusamyr project were agreed on by a case-by-case basis. An enabling policy framework is necessary to make progress with connectivity in remote areas.

Demand generation

During our visit to Suusamyr, it was clear that there was enthusiasm and demand for the Internet within the local community. The largest school in Suusamyr had a computer lab, but no Internet connection. The municipality headquarters, the local hospital and small businesses would surely benefit, too. However, the municipality does not yet have concrete plans on how to use the Internet to boost local economic development. There is a need for a local “action group,” which could raise awareness and provide skills training amongst the village population.

The President of the Kyrgyz Republic has named 2018 a year of rural development. This ambition is perfectly aligned with the Internet Society’s goal to connect everyone to the Internet, with a focus on the communities in the hardest to reach places. We aim to have a fully operational community network in Suusamyr in a few months’ time.

By Maarit Palovirta

Senior Manager, Regional Affairs Europe