The GSMA Connected Society Innovation Fund for Rural Connectivity aims to support innovative mobile internet connectivity solutions for unconnected rural communities.

The project grants funds for mobile network equipment vendors to deploy their rural connectivity solutions for the first time globally, with partnering mobile operators in Uganda and Ghana.

Rural coverage innovators iSAT Africa and NuRAN Wireless have been awarded up to £330,000 each for implementing turnkey solutions to suit challenging rural environments with low population density, difficult terrain, and/or limited infrastructure. The solutions are now being developed in rural sites across Ghana and Uganda, with the support of Vodafone Ghana, MTN Uganda and government agencies in each country.

To showcase this collaborative initiative, Connected Society has commissioned a short video giving an overview of the project’s main purposes and participants. In this video you’ll hear interviews with stakeholders from the relevant operators, the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronics and Communications (GIFEC), and the Chief of Abodom, a community in rural Ghana connected by previous collaboration between GIFEC and the mobile industry.

Click below to learn more about the winning innovations: