A nonprofit organization aimed at providing better Internet and communication services for Cubans who live on the island began a "Hackathon for Cuba" event on Friday to come up with ideas on how to provide better access to information and technology, according to the Associated Press.
Roots of Hope Chief Innovation and Technology Officer Natalia Martinez said the purpose of the event is to aide one of the least connected countries in the Western Hemisphere in overcoming the censorship, limited Internet access and expensive phone and Web service, the AP reported.
"The primary purpose is to design solutions that help Cubans break down or circumvent barriers they face in communication with each other or with the outside world," Martinez, told the AP. "The secondary purpose is to create an inclusive and action-oriented conversation around the impact of technology in Cuba, one that involves Cubans from different waves of immigration, different industries."
The Cuban government currently controls which websites can be accessed, and usually block websites containing any opposing views other than that held by government officials, the AP reported.
Last year, the United Nation's International Telecommunications Union said only about 26 percent of Cuban used the internet in 2012, a big jump from the 4 percent it was 10 years ago, according to the AP.
"One main challenge is that the Cuban government seems deeply ambivalent about the Internet. Authorities know Web access is necessary for economic 'modernization,' but also recognize that the spread of the Internet would threaten their control over the population," Emily Parker, former State Department policy adviser and author told the AP.
The government claims the newly opened Internet cafes which popped up last June are an attempt at allowing Cubans greater access to the Internet, but the $4.50 an hour fee to search the web expensive for locals who make about $20 a month, the AP reported.
"It will be of the utmost importance to be able to design technological solutions that keep in mind a context that has a set of different obstacles and limitations than the ones we face when thinking about technology and innovation," Martinez told the AP, in regards to providing solutions that are attainable to the Cuban people.
