Page 84 - Reimagining Higher Education : Case Studies On Designing For Inclusion, Equity, And Access In The Buka Project

A. Susilo et al. · UTAKSES case study: Advancing digital access for students living in remote

areas without reliable internet - Universitas Terbuka, Indonesia

Figure 9
User Satisfaction Analysis

Sustainability & Transferability

Most Indonesians live in rural areas, and increasing the country's internet

penetration will require a greater focus on rural villages. However, building
expensive infrastructure for small populations in isolated areas is not economically

feasible from a commercial operator's point of view. Especially in rural areas, a lack

of internet a ordability, skills, awareness, and cultural acceptance, combined with
a lack of content and services in local languages, constitutes a considerable hurdle

to digital literacy (Daryono et al., 2022).
As the Internet grows, UTAKSES has been examining ways to build greater

sustainability and transferability. UTAKSES strategies, focusing on learning
management systems and material infrastructure, are insu cient. The

sustainability of rural digital networks also relies on technical education, building

infrastructure in response to local demand, keeping costs down, and exploring the
economic opportunities that can arise from the use of digital technology. For

o ine internet purposes in rural areas with 100 students, a computer or mini pc
process i7 with 8GB RAM can be used. The estimated budget is around Rp. 15-25

million for a mini pc with a maximum capability of 8GB SSD memory, and RAM

hard drive. For small schools, a Moodlebox in Raspberry Pi 3 or 4 with a budget of
around Rp. 700,000 can be used, so it is very a ordable for most schools and

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