School and office closures across Kosovo have forced thousands of students and workers to move back to their homes and to continue their daily lives online. Distance learning, working from home highlights the need for rural broadband. For residents of remote areas of Kosovo, broadband access has become a lifeline during this public health crisis.
The importance of broadband is also shown in rural healthcare institutions, which must be connected to broadband to get the guidance, especially when cases of COVID-19 arise in their area. Also, the residents should be informed about the situation and have accessibility to connect with specialist about their concerns.
What is the role of the KODE project to alleviate this situation? The Project during 2019, has financed the deployment of fixed high-speed broadband network in 85 villages of Kosovo and it is worth noting that 65 public institutions, including healthcare institutions located in these areas are already connected. KODE project is providing free internet access for at least 5 years for these public institutions in project areas.
In the year 2020, Project is continuing with the activities regarding to rural broadband deployment and already has initiated procedures to cover the remaining villages.