SaharaWi-Fi Project

The SaharaWi-Fi connectivity project demonstrates that access to communications, in Saharawi refugee camps, can be carried out in an affordable and sustainable way even in a difficult desert environment such as the Sahara. Access to information is very important for social and economic growth and can allow social empowerment for the Saharawi society. The idea is to guarantee wide band access by means of an innovative concept of full wireless telecommunication infrastructure, avoiding the use of expensive and inefficient satellite links. The described full-scale infrastructure works at three different levels: a wide-band transfer over very long distances, a backbone networks between interested locations and a last mile access network. The proposed solution is particularly suitable for countries with similar conditions, combining new appropriate technologies with proper technology transfer.