LinkNet operates a rural internet network in Macha, Zambia, Africa. Macha is a small and resource-limited rural village. LinkNet is based upon a holistic and respectful vision aimed at developing the potential of the local community, which plays a leading role in the progression of the local internet network. The communications network is established within the setting of a co-operative not-for-profit institute.
Setting up internet access and connecting rural communities in Africa is an involved and complex endeavor. Not only are basic communications and energy technologies lacking, but also a diverse array of constraints have to be conquered. The integration of academic research findings is a challenge. This article addresses various aspects of these challenges. Most specifically it deals with an array of academic resource issues, like the availability of guiding literature in the fields of context, culture, orality, information and communication technologies (ICT) and its engineering, the digital divide and digital exclusion, applications, costs, and management practices. Lastly the article introduces local perspectives on the value of academic interventions and concludes with the need for conceptual frameworks incorporating all of these complex aspects in a culturally adaptive way.