BNDES clears R$32mn for connectivity in public schools, rural areas in Rio Grande do Sul

This is a machine translation of BNDES' press release

The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) approved financing of R$32 million for a project that will bring quality broadband internet connection to 24 public schools and two thousand homes in rural areas of Rio Grande do Sul.

The resources approved by the Bank come from the Telecommunications Services Universalization Fund (FUST), of which BNDES is the financial agent, and will be used for the construction of 410 km of fiber optic network for school connections and 82 km of network high-capacity connection between the network core (backbone) and peripheral subnets.

The Coprel Telecom project also foresees the implementation of internal internet infrastructure in the 24 schools with new connections and in another 34 teaching units, impacting a total of 4,726 students in 58 schools in 33 municipalities in the state.

The operation follows the support conditions of the BNDES Fust Program, with a financial cost in Reference Rate (TR), plus the Bank's remuneration, which is lower in financing projects from providers that include teaching units in their expansion routes.

“With resources from FUST, BNDES support for Coprel Telecom will promote the expansion of high-speed internet services for rural producers and bring connectivity to more than 4,700 students, boosting economic and social development in the central region of the State of Rio Grande of the South”, highlights the director of Productive Development, Innovation and Foreign Trade at BNDES, José Luis Gordon.

“A topic considered a priority by President Lula's government, connectivity in schools allows access to online educational resources, playing a fundamental role in promoting equal opportunities and preparing young people for the digital world”, adds the director.

The municipalities where schools are expected to be available are Alto Alegre, Boa Vista do Cadeado, Boa Vista do Incra, Colorado, Condor, Ernestina, Fortaleza dos Valos, Ibirubá, Jacuizinho, Jari, Joia, Lagoa dos Três Cantos, Marau, Mato Castelhano , Mormaço, Muliterno, Não-Me-Toque, Passo Fundo, Pontão, Quinze de Novembro, Ronda Alta, Salto do Jacuí, Santa Cecília do Sul, São José do Herval, Sarandi, Selbach, Soledade, Tapejara, Tapera, Tio Hugo, Tunas, Tupanciretã and Victor Graeff. In addition to these locations, the Coprel service should reach homes in Espinilho Grande and Santo Antônio do Planalto.

About FUST – The Telecommunications Services Universalization Fund (FUST) was created by Law 9,998/2000, after the privatization of the Telebrás System. Its objectives are to stimulate expansion, improve the quality of telecommunications networks and services, reduce regional inequalities and encourage the use and development of new connectivity technologies to promote economic and social development. Currently, BNDES is the only financial agent authorized to invest Fund resources.

About Coprel Telecom – The company currently serves more than 47 thousand customers in the central, north and northwest regions of Rio Grande do Sul and is part of Coprel, a cooperative created in 1968 for rural electrification in the Alto Jacuí region, in Rio Grande do Sul. The group today operates in the areas of generation, distribution, energy sales and telecommunications.