Multi-country - CDI Network Of 800+ Schools Delivers ICT for Development at the Base of the Pyramid with a Social Franchise Model Promoting Bottom-Up Innovation
Case Story 110 of 178 
Organization(s): CDI - Center for Digital Inclusion (formerly known as The Committee for Democracy in Information Technology)
Country(ies): Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, Jordan
Primary thematic focus: Fostering the rise and resilience of middle-income countries
In a Nutshell:
CDI transforms lives and strengthens low-income communities by empowering people with information and communication technology and a unique social educative model that fosters community organization. Our 800+ schools in eight countries (1.25+ million graduates), use technology as a medium to fight poverty, stimulate entrepreneurship; creating a generation of changemakers.
The Story:
CDI works throughout Latin America and now the MENA region to end the digital apartheid that exists in underdeveloped countries and communities, impeding the development of human capital. Our goal: to integrate excluded people into the global knowledge economy through access to IT and tools that teach people to understand and work with technology to gain access to markets, jobs, networks, and information which enables people to transform their lives and their communities. At stake for today’s digital “have nots”, especially youth, is whether they find themselves marginalized for life lacking skills and tools to participate in our globalized, knowledge based economy. Simply put bridging the digital divide is about delivering access to telecommunications infrastructures- particularly the Internet, essential to participate in the emerging electronic commerce and digital or knowledge economy at the heart of the Information Society.
CDI headquarters works in a client-centric culture enabling our schools and our student and community’s development and success. One empowered student can teach a community how to save a polluted river, to combat dengue fever, to gain skills to find a job. One classroom of students can create community leaders, create networks with local, national and international groups, open up supply chains etc. With a strong social franchise model CDI opens territories based on need and requests for our solution. When approached we look for strong leadership, potentiality for success and partnerships across a broad sector of society, grassroots, governmental, corporate, multilateral and institutional cooperation et al. We seek like-minded vision and mission, evidence of sustainability, ambition for replication and ability to maintain CDI standard of quality.
CDI Regional offices are self-managed, responding to CDI Headquarters guidelines. Their mission is to replicate CDI methodology and educational model when implementing the schools. We open CDI Community Centers (Information Technology and Citizens Rights Schools) in partnership with community-based associations, providing free computer equipment, software and implementing educational strategies for a continuous training of local instructors. Each of the schools is an autonomous unit, self managed and self-sustainable through a symbolic contribution collected from its students and through a recently introduced self-sustaining social enterprise scheme. From the day that we opened our first school in a favela in Rio de Janeiro in 1995, demand for new schools has not abated. CDI has encouraged the collaboration of the schools internationally and formed a network that meets biannually in Brazil and on the national’s level as well. This formal network has meant that our growth is fueled by a culture of bottom up innovation. CDI collects best practices and formalizes their methodology and disseminates information throughout the network giving each region the opportunity to adapt what is relevant to each country and community reality.
In 2009, CDI created an online platform through our website that encourages ongoing collaboration throughout the network of international programs. This platform has more than 2000 active members accessing 109 working groups to date. CDIs unique value proposition is based on the work that we have carried out since 1995. The Center for Digital Inclusion CDI is a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization working primarily in low income communities and with institutions assisting individuals with special needs including, among others, the physically and mentally disabled, the visually impaired, homeless youth, prisoners, and indigenous populations. The CDI network has expanded internationally, with 800+ schools in ten countries in Latin America and as of last quarter of 2009 another 120 schools in Amman Jordan. With regional offices in 19 Brazilian states and in 13 countries, on four continents, CDI has developed a non-profit “social franchise” with defined quality standards.
Results and Critical Factors:
When CDI began in 1995 there did not exist one country in LATAM whose Technology Minister had policies in place to bridge the digital divide for their citizens. CDI founder, Rodrigo Baggio - a pioneer in social inclusion through the use of ICTs for the base of the pyramid- spent five years as a lone voice addressing organizations such as the UN, World Bank, UNICEF, and IADB to the importance of ICT for development. The success of our work has been a catalyst for the adaption of ICT in the Global South. Our methodology is highly replicable and adaptable across cultures. Our model for self managed, self-sustaining community centers count on the autonomy of the projects to integrate our model; once established these groups take the talents and opportunities that exist within their communities and countries and form partnerships relevant to the needs in the locale where they work.
Examples of success:
CDI Uruguay a member of Uruguayan network of telecenters- Rutelco- in collaboration with the Uruguayan government to implement the national One Laptop per Child initiative intended to reach every single child and teacher in public schools and now every telecenter in Uruquay with educational objectives to include social and economic development. CDI is the first NGO chosen to administrate and execute RUTELCO's projects. In February 2009, three networks: CDI Chile; Asociación de Telecentros de Información y Negocios (ATN) of Brazil and Fundación Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EPM) of Colombia, launched "Project 360 LATAM” whose goal- to help affiliated telecenter networks distribute products and services that member telecenters can use to generate revenue and deliver value by plugging them into supply chains for the distribution of products and services; providing benefits to communities served. A recent initiative - CDI LAN- enrolled 2,062 LAN Houses (cybercafés) who make up an affiliate program CDI began in Brazil to insure the sustainability, quality and longevity of these internet related essential services for the greater underserved populations. The affiliation program requires LAN Houses adopt a code of conduct and offers mentoring, training, business development and other services.
Name of Primary Contact Person: Christine Clauser
Title of Primary Contact Person: Executive Director, CDI USA
City: New York City, USA
File: INSEAD_CDI_A_FINAL.pdf