Bridges to the Future Initiative

Target Countries

Participating countries will include those with relatively high poverty and illiteracy, as well as large social and economic stratification. These countries typically will have a significant proportion of their populations that have never been to school, have dropped out of primary school, and/or have never used ICTs for communication or knowledge retrieval. National agencies will have to demonstrate a commitment to the use of ICTs in support of the disadvantaged youth and adults. At the same time, each participating country should have a sufficient platform of human resources expertise and hardware access such that additional appropriate investments can make a substantial impact. It is expected that there will be two types of participating countries during the first five-year plan: a "core" group of 3-5 countries; and a larger "observer" group. A final decision on BFI country participation by the international oversight committee will depend both on local interest, 'buy-in' national commitments and sustainability, as well as on the availability of funding support by sponsoring agencies. The BFI core group, where initial reaction has been positive and initial funding possible, includes India, Mexico, and South Africa. Countries that have expressed a substantial interest in the BFI, and where resource commitments are likely, include India, Mexico, and South Africa, with the additional interest of Nigeria and Bhutan. In addition to the ILI and J. P. Morgan, a variety of corporate, foundation, and international agencies have expressed support for the BFI. Estimated funding of about US$2-3 million/country/year (over 5 years) depending on size and scope of the national project is required. The BFI planning and development process is currently underway, and the project is expected to be formally announced in the first quarter of 2001. Bridges to the Future will build on common multimedia content in each country while ensuring cultural and linguistic relevance.

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