The document discusses the challenges of internet access in Mongolia. It has a very low population density and communication has always been difficult. The cost of internet access is very high for most citizens, averaging $50 per month when average annual income is only $2,250. The UN is working to establish information centers in remote areas to help citizens connect to the government and access news and training. However, changing attitudes remains a challenge as the government is unsure how official email communications can be.

1. BBC News | Information rich information poor |The cost of communication Page 1 of 2
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News inVJtteo Newyddion HOEOCTH Nottciss
Thursday, October 14, 1999 Published at 12:09 GMT 13:09 UK
The cost ofcommunication
By BBC News Online's Kate Milner
Communication has never been easy in Mongolia.
The country is nearly three times the size of France but
has a population density of 1.5/sq mile, one of the
lowest in the world. The Internet seems the natural
answer but the problem is less one of infrastructure
than the cost of getting online.
!lNFORMATIONRICH
• Introduction
• The wideninggap
Case studies
• Burkina Faso
The price to connect is
certainly out of reach for most
ordinary people. One ISP
charges approximately £30
($50) per month and that
does not include the cost of
the phone call. The average
GDP per capita is £1,359
($2,250).
Mongolia
Morocco
United States
That's complicated by the
gap between rich and poor.
More than one third of the
population lives in poverty.
Outside the capital
Ulaanbaatar, many areas still do not have telephone
access.
The Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme
(APDIP), a United Nations-funded organisation based
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is trying to help.
APDIP has launched Citizen Information Service
Centers, where citizens in remote Aimags including
areas of the Gobi desert, can now connect to the
central government, apply for grants on-line, receive
news, and obtain basic training in computing.
The first step was a summit designed to explore
opportunities through IT. APDIP also set up a cyber
». UN Human Development
Report
» UN Development
Programme Info 21
>. World Bank InfoDev
tf African Development
Forum
fc. The first mile: Wiring the
South and rural areas
* Plugged In
» PEOPLink
» NTIA report: Falling
Through the Net
» CIAWorld Faclbook:
Burkina Faso
» AfricanVirtual University
>. Virtual Souk
» Information and
Communication
Technology. Mongolia
». Asia-Pacific Development
Information Programme
» The United Nations in
Mongolia
» Soros Foundation:
Mongolia
The BBC is not responsible
for the content of external
internet sites.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/special_report/1999/10/99/information_ri.../472445.st 07/05/2002

2. BBC News | Information rich information poor | The cost of communication Page 2 of2
cafe in the UNDP building in Ulaanbaatar, to show
people what technology has to offer.
"We want to involve ordinary people," he said. "If they
cannot see the vision then we cannot make it work,"
said Atsushi Yamanaka who works for the UNDP.
"Young people are the ones who have to create this.
People are very eager to tap into new technology, but
they're not sure of how to best use it.
The programme's long-term aim is to encourage
businesses and colleges to take up information
technology and to build a culture of open information. It
has set targets for the next two to three years and is
building an action plan up to 2010.
But Mr Yamanaka said there were still problems in
Mongolia following the end of socialism and the
country's first democratic elections in July 1990.
"Under socialism there was a train every few days, so
people got letters every two days," he said. "Citizens
who had everything, all of a sudden they didn't have
anything. Now it can take two months for letters to get
through.
"The people are suffering a lack of information and a
lack of basic services."
But even as new technology takes hold, those in power
in Mongolia still have doubts. Changing people's
mindset is the hardest part.
"There needs to be a very top-level support." Said Mr
Yamanaka. "Email is not seen as an official document.
It's not like a paper agreement that you can sign and
seal.
"The government is keen to use email but they ask,
'What is its status, how official is it?'"
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/special_report/1999/10/99/information ri...7472445.st 07/05/2002