All the primary schools of Bangladesh will be given Internet connections free of cost in the next 10 years under a deal between the government and a US-based company.
Presently, there are about 78,000 registered, non-registered, community and government primary schools across the country, while the number of secondary schools stands at around 16,000. Always On Network (AON), a US-based communication services provider, will invest US$ 60 million for ICT training, setting internet exchange, tower and countrywide network, cooperating to set high-tech zone and start e-commerce, as per the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) inked between the two parties. Under the project, the company plans to build Middle Mile, Last Mile and backbone networks using wireless transmission equipments to expand high bandwidth Internet services in the rural areas.
The project will first initiate radio-link wave and progressively introduce the fiber-optic link. It will have several base stations at 87 points across the country, which will include 19 in Dhaka. The American internet service provider AON received licence from Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission in March this year as a joint venture company – Always On Network Bangladesh Limited.
