Ait Izdeg’s 8,400 residents live deep in the Atlas Mountains in central Morocco. Their town’s remote location has made it challenging to access reliable Internet. Until now.

In 2022, USAID WomenConnect Challenge (WCC) recipient AFCHIX installed the hardware needed to connect the town to satellite internet, extending access to four schools and approximately 700 residents.

AFCHIX is a network of African women in technology who believe that gender diversity is crucial to building a thriving and innovative ICT sector in Africa. Through the WomenConnect Challenge, the organization was awarded two grants to expand women’s access to the Internet and provide digital training to over 370 women in Kenya, Morocco, Namibia, and Senegal. In Ait Izdeg, AFCHIX built community networks that use new, low-cost electronic networking equipment to provide small-scale community-based network services and affordable internet access at a fraction of standard commercial prices.