Airtel and Facebook partner to offer free online service

Airtel subscribers with smartphones will be able to access an online portal with a link to a selected websites free of charge. Internet.org, a Facebook project has a platform called Free Basics that allows users to access certain websites listed on the platform free of charge.

According to Airtel Rwanda, local users will be able to access a set of free services in categories of health, education, communication, sports, jobs, and local information.

However, it appears Internet users will wait for a while to access local content, since there are currently only two Rwandan websites listed on the platform.

The Facebook's platform requires certain technical standards for a website to be listed on the Free Basics data base.

"We invite tech developers and entrepreneurs to be part of Internet.org, the difficulties that a lot of developers may face is that a lot of them are building applications and websites with flash and java script (programming languages) and these are functions that we don't support on Internet.org," said Jennifer Forg, partnership manager at Facebook.

"We are optimising to bring as many websites and content to platform," Forg told Rwanda Today.

The partnership hopes to increase Internet access as Facebook has also launched a Kinyarwanda language version on the social media platform.

Among the websites to be accessed on Free Basics platform on Airtel network in Rwanda include Facebook, BBC Africa, Inyarwanda.com, Wikipedia, BabyCenter & MAMA, Dictionary.com, Super Sport and Bing search engine.

Experts and local ICT stakeholders, who attended the just concluded Transform Africa Summit, said more local content is needed on the continent to benefit from Internet connection.

"I think if we can get more local Rwandan content online we can begin to direct attention to sites," noted Forg.

Only two made the cut

According to Chrysante Dusabimana of Airtel Rwanda's marketing department, Facebook contacted local content providers to list their websites on the platform, but only two met the standards.

Other companies are reviewing their websites to be accommodated on free basics platform. If local business community manage to list their websites on the platform, they could increase their revenues by reaching out to wider audience.

"We invite everyone to make their portals compatible and comply with our technical requirements," Forg added.

There has been concern over inappropriate content such as pornography and hate speech. Facebook said it does not block any website but in future it could review the content in partnership with Airtel to crackdown on inappropriate content.

"Just like the way Internet works, now if you were to go online you can search anything and you can find it, so the way internet.org works, we are not deleting any types of content," she added.