Success for the Connectem Barcelona digital inclusion pilot project
Connectem Barcelona, the pilot project for digital inclusion in the Trinitat Nova neighbourhood, has concluded successfully. The project was conducted for over a year and provided devices, connectivity and support for digital skills-acquisition for 348 people, helping to reduce the digital divide in an area with special support needs.
The main goal of the project was to assess the impact of beneficiaries having laptops and internet connections, and to determine if their use improves with digital training and skills acquisition.
The success of the project highlighted an increase in the systematic use of electronic devices for online work and education tasks. The use of tools associated with email rose by 30%, and the use of electronic devices and internet for online training rose by 20%. Another good indicator is the percentage of users weren’t keeping up with their children’s tasks and homework, which dropped from 43% to 24%.
The report highlights the interest shown by beneficiaries not just in having access to unlimited data, but also in the chance to improve their knowledge and autonomy and make the most of all the possibilities offered by the digital environment.
This support was offered by ICT agents, skills instructors who helped resolve doubts linked to the digital environment or who redirected users to courses and specific basic training paths from Barcelona Activa.
The qualitative assessment by Connectem Barcelona will help define the most suitable digital policies which can be rolled out in the near future to eliminate the digital divide all around the city and favour a fair digital transition.
Reducing the digital and gender divide
The pilot project had 348 participants, 72% of them women. It provided cover for people of more than thirty different nationalities, with 50% of participants unemployed. While most already had an internet connection at home before the project started, 84% of beneficiaries did not have a computer before taking part in the project.
In addition, thirty organisations and companies were involved. These included telecommunications operators, manufacturers of digital devices and software and third sector organisations from the district of Nou Barris and the neighbourhood of Trinitat Nova, plus representatives from the tech ecosystem in Catalonia which made the project possible.
You can consult the final report for the pilot stage of the Connectem Barcelona digital inclusion project for the neighbourhoods here.
