IkamvaYouth invites everyone who is appalled by Telkom's lack of service delivery to join our toyi toyi on 19 October. We will meet at Keizergracht (opposite CPUT, in the parking lot at the old new street mosque) at 1:30pm and march at 2:30pm to the Telkom office in St George's Mall.

Please also sign our online petition, and invite your friends to join in. There is also an open event on facebook.

In 2004, IkamvaYouth (a by-youth, for-youth non-profit organisation that enables disadvantaged youth to access tertiary education and training) launched Operation Fikelela (Operation Access) – a project that sought to bring information and communications technology (ICT) to the community of Makhaza in Khayelitsha.

Over the past three years, the entirely volunteer-led, managed and run organisation has managed to establish a computer lab in the Nazeema Isaacs library, with donated equipment and open source software. With the help of volunteers in Singapore at the end of 2006, the organisation raised sufficient funds for installation and connectivity fees for broadband Internet access, and the hiring of its first employees: a lab manager and assistant. In March 2007, IkamvaYouth was told by the Khanya project that there is finally an ADSL exchange in Khayelitsha. Telkom agreed to install ADSL in the lab, and IkamvaYouth paid the deposit for this service in May. Jam Warehouse programmers have volunteered in developing a voucher management system, which will enable us to charge per MB rates to members of the community during school hours, so that we can provide cheap access to the community while ensuring the lab's sustainability and subsidised access for our learners.

Since May 2007, IkamvaYouth has been informed each month by Telkom that the installation will occur during the following month. Then, in September, a letter was received informing the organisation that Telkom does "not have the infrastructure" to provide the lab with Internet access.

This is unacceptable. The lab is widely used by IkamvaYouth's learners and volunteers, other learners from surrounding schools, and community members (including small business owners, students from tertiary institutions, job applicants, community-based organisations and writers) – all of whom have been patiently waiting to be connected to the world wide web.

And now this patience has worn out. IkamvaYouth believes that it is the right of the Makhaza community to have access to cheap, reliable and fast Internet access. Some of the organisation's plans following connectivity include the lab's sustainability through services provided to the community, and online tutoring and mentoring for IkamvaYouth learners.

IkamvaYouth's work with ICT for education has been internationally recognised -- achievements include:

• Two-time finalists in the Global Junior Challenge (two ikamvanites are currently in Rome for this event)
• WSIS Youth and ICT award in 2005
• Development Gateway Top 30 Youth award
• Invited to speak at numerous conferences on ICT and development, including the GKP's "Cultivating Young Social Entrepreneurs" (2006), the Young Social Enterprise Initiative's Capacity Building workshop (2006), 7th consultative expert meeting of CTA's Observatory on ICT in the Netherlands (2004), and the CIRN conference (2005).
  
• Sponsored participation in Santa Clara's Global Social Benefit Incubator in 2005

It is ironic that while our innovative work has been recognised and applauded by these international bodies, our local monopoly telecomms provider cannot even install the Internet access we so despearately need in order to fully realise our projects and plans for education and youth development in Khayelitsha. As neither 3G nor wireless access can reach our library, we have no option but to rally as much support as we can and take to the streets to demand that Telkom fulfills its mandate to provide us with the Internet access we are willing to pay for!