In Chile, three different public programs have been implemented in the past 10 years. Biblioredes, supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is perhaps the most successful of the three, having established more than 370 Internet access points in municipal libraries and having provided computer literacy training to more than 200,000 people. In addition, a network of 70–80 youth telecenters was established. Finally, Infocentros run by microentrepreneurs were established throughout the country. Those that are still running often belong to civil society networks such as the Asociacíon de Telecentros Activos de Chile (ATACH), demonstrating the importance of networking among telecenter operators.(20) The latest government project, “200 Barrios,” is also going to be implemented through ATACH.

Visions do not have to be developed by governments and handed down to stakeholders and implementing partners; they can and should be your individual visions as well. We expect the telecenter movement of 2020 to be an aggregation of carefully planned and coordinated initiatives, driven by government policies and multisectoral stakeholder engagement on the one hand, and the result of organic growth on the other. If you are looking to find a scaling-up “how to” manual or a scale-up “recipe,” you will not find it in this book. What you will find in this book, however, are essential ingredients and critical insights into the processes leading to a successful scale-up. It remains up to you to create your own recipe.

1.8. Take-Aways

From the early telecenters of Europe, Canada, and the United States of the 1980s, to the initial telecenter pilots of Africa, Latin America, and Asia, a movement has emerged. This book will inspire you to shape the future of the telecenter movement, whether in your community, in your country, or at the global level.

• Today’s telecenters are being deployed in more auspicious circumstances than were the telecenters of the 1990s. The regulatory and policy environments, support systems, technologies, and human resources needed for successful telecenter operations have improved enormously.

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