Rationalisation of Heterogeneous Rural Internet Protocol Networks to Achieve Sustainability

Rural Internet Protocol networks are physically and logically like any other Internet Protocol network in urban areas. However, they face challenges regarding unreliable power, limited bandwidth and unqualified network support. Each factor results in lowering network availability. Related work indicates the importance of addressing these challenges as the key to the sustainability of such networks. In the rural Eastern Cape, the authors have an example of such a network run by a local non-governmental organisation. The network has two satellites that supply Internet connectivity, wired and wireless local area networks and long range wireless links connecting five rural villages.