The  CISCAI has dramatically  lowered its long distance communications costs, as well as,  air travel-related expenses  to and from key partner agencies based in Thailand, Vietnam and Laos PDR. Thanks to the use  Voice-Over - Internet Protocol or VoIP and IP-based videoconferencing technologies

With the adoption of VoIP in  the operations of CISCAI, there have  been  marked lowering  in  international  call charges,  says  Dr. Jose Edgardo L. Aban, CISCAI Project Coordinator. Conversely, there  have been marked increase in the frequency of calls to and from CISCAI  Project Coordination Unit (PCU) which Is based in Jakarta, Indonesia with its remote partners.

Since its inception in November 2008, to date the CISCAI-PCU has conducted  three videoconferencing sessions with partners from the Information Technology Research Institute (ITRI) of Laos PDR , the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC)  of Thailand, and the  NetNam Corporation of Vietnam.  These IP-based videoconferences  are being held every third Thursday of  the month which is the  convention among partners.  The sessions provide  the opportunity  for all CISCAI stakeholders to check on the status of the projects implementation, exchange views, and   troubleshoot  problems  germane to the project as they happen, without having to travel and meet with the partners physically and face to face.

True to its core mission of using  information and communications technology (ICT) as enabling tools  to control and manage Avian Influenza (AI) outbreaks, the CISCAI-PCU, has continually exploited  novel  and upcoming ICT   to lower the cost of its  operations, as well as, enhance  the flow of information from and coordination among distant agency partners based in Laos PDR, Thailand,  and Vietnam.

Schedules of upcoming CISCAI videocon sessions  can be gleaned from the CISCAI website through this link:   http://www.ciscai.org/index.php/activities/dj-night.html.

 (CISCAI-PCU, February 2009)