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James Mayfield, RTI Local Governance Program ICT team leader, with a satellite Internet protocol (IP) modem deployed on an old table base at temporary quarters in Al Hillah.
[PHOTO: Gordon Cressman] |
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In April 2003, RTI began work on the Local Governance Program (LGP) in Iraq. By September 2003, operating in a volatile environment that lacked basic communications and transportation, RTI had implemented information and communication technology (ICT) systems to support RTI’s LGP headquarters in Baghdad and 22 facilities in 17 of Iraq’s 18 provinces.
RTI’s LGP work, supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), helped establish local government councils and improve municipal service delivery throughout Iraq. RTI’s ICT team rapidly designed and installed a secure, multifunctional network to ensure that project staff could safely and effectively accomplish the project’s goals.
Creating a Project-Based Lifeline
“In Iraq, our mission was to build a network that supported reliable project-related communication and also provided a lifeline for a mobile staff,” said Roy Schonberg, director of RTI’s IT Security and Global Infrastructure. “In six months, we developed and deployed systems that allowed 362 staff from 33 countries to communicate with one another, their families, and the home office,” he said.
The RTI ICT team faced challenging technical and environmental conditions. The electrical grid was unstable. Cellular telephone communications and Internet connections did not exist. Limited transportation infrastructure and security requirements affected the team’s mobility and ability to deliver gear.
To address environmental requirements, each RTI staff member was provided equipment including a rugged laptop computer with English and Arabic language capabilities, a complete set of computer accessories, and a satellite telephone. The computers, built to military specifications, had anti-reflective LCDs and were highly resistant to water, dust, shock, and vibration. Optional equipment included global positioning system (GPS) units, digital cameras, digital voice recorders, and portable printers.
A regional laptop server supported backups, software downloads, and virus updates throughout the system. Standardization, including network addressing schemes, allowed staff to print from multiple facilities.
“We recruited and deployed ICT staff as rapidly as possible,” Schonberg said, “and we provided training on the equipment and systems before project staff went to their locations in Iraq.”
Using Multiple Technologies to Mobilize Offices
“RTI’s staff needed immediate communication to achieve the project’s goals, maintain their personal safety, and stay in touch with family and friends,” said Gordon Cressman, program director for ICT in RTI’s International Development Group. “We blended multiple technologies and methods to provide a secure, resilient network that met these needs.”
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A VSAT satellite dish deployed early in the Local Governance Program provided data and voice communication for RTI’s Baghdad headquarters.
[PHOTO: Gordon Cressman] |
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At RTI’s LGP-Iraq sites, voice, data, and video connections were enabled through VSAT (very small aperture terminal) satellite installations using TDMA (time division multiple access) and SCPC (single channel per carrier) systems. SCPC, the primary systems in use, enabled multiple RTI sites to share a fixed amount of bandwidth, which provided consistent performance and cost savings. Also, staff were able to participate in video conferences and to access streaming files, such as training and presentations, through SCPC support of VoIP (voice over Internet protocol). TDMA systems were used at smaller sites that had fewer needs for VoIP.
RTI provided emergency backup mechanisms for the fixed VSAT systems. Small, portable RBGAN (regional broadband global area network) satellite modems could work up to an hour on internal batteries at peak transmission rate. In addition, a mobile VSAT unit mounted to a vehicle’s roof provided backup or access to meetings at non-RTI facilities.
Radio communication was a vital element of RTI’s ICT strategy in Iraq. VHF (very high frequency) and HF (high frequency) equipment installed in regional centers and vehicles provided encrypted transmissions for short- and long-distance coverage. RTI used wireless local area networks (WLANs) to quickly establish data networks and Internet connectivity in new facilities.
The project’s information systems included an extranet Web site, LGPWeb—an important communication tool for RTI’s staff. LGPWeb gave staff access to project news, security information, training materials, file-sharing and bulletin board capabilities, project reporting forms, a photo gallery, and an extensive map collection based on dynamic Web-based GIS applications.
Key information systems, including e-mail and LGPWeb, were hosted at RTI’s main location in Research Triangle Park, NC. “This arrangement allowed the LGP systems to benefit from levels of redundancy, security, and technical support not readily available in Iraq,” said Cressman. “Changes in project staff and facilities did not affect the availability of these systems.”
Leveraging the ICT Investment
The ICT systems created in 2003 are providing the communications foundation for USAID and RTI’s follow-on program for local governance support in Iraq, which started in June. In addition, the systems support RTI staff in the Training Model Primary Providers project in Iraq, a task order under the Population, Health, and Nutrition Technical Assistance and Support Contract (TASC 2) that began in April.
RTI’s investment in ICT training continues to yield benefits. During LGP, the ICT team hired and trained more than 75 Iraqis, who then staffed five computer centers. These Iraqi ICT professionals—many of whom achieved network certification—in turn trained about 20,000 local government staff and council members in basic computer use and application software. They also provided training in more advanced software, including GIS, computer-assisted design (CAD), and financial management systems. The Iraqi ICT specialists continue to provide training under the follow-on project.
“Many of our successes resulted from combining carefully developed standards with the flexibility to adapt to rapidly changing requirements,” Cressman said. “We will take advantage of the lessons learned in deploying and maintaining these systems in our current projects.”
More information: Gordon Cressman,
e-mail gmc@rti.org
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International
Development
