Page Updated: 02-May-2007
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Fourth Stage Internet Communication System for Turkmenistan’s NREN

Networking Infrastructure Grant - NIG 982532

Period 2006-2008 Co-Directors Prof. Hanno Schaumburg Hamburg, Germany h.schaumburg@tu- hamburg.de Prof. Chariyar Amansakhatov Ashgabat, Turkmenistan amansakhatov@ yandex.ru Related NIG: Master Level Distant Teaching in ICT in Turkmenistan (Module 1) Key links Virtual Silk Highway

The launch of the Virtual Silk Highway project in 2003 gave a major boost to the internet communication infrastructure in Turkmenistan . Since then, three Networking Infrastructure Grants (NIGs) have enabled connection to the Virtual Silk Highway to a large amount of scientific and educational institutions of Ashgabat, all members of TuRENA (Research and Education Network of Turkmenistan). This has provided people from a wide array of professions with free internet access.

Through this fourth NIG, the Science for Peace and Security Programme assists Turkmenistan to further develop and improve its existing network. At this stage, the objectives are as follows:

- Increase the science and education network of Turkmenistan by connecting more institutions to the Silk. This time, however, the focus is on institutions situated outside the capital, which previously was not the case.
- Assist TuRENA in adopting Ipv6, i.e. modernise the protocol used in the Turkmen NREN. This includes training to enable the members of the academic community to use the service provided.

The institutions outside Ashgabat which are connected to the VSH by this NIG are:

• Faculty of Oil Processing of the Turkmen Polytechnic Institute (Balkanabat)
• Science-research Institute “Balkannebit” (Balkanabat)
• Medical school named after Gurbansoltan Eje of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan (Dashoguz)

The institutions inside Ashgabat which are connected to the VSH by this NIG are:

• Ministry of Culture and Television-radio broadcasting of Turkmenistan, Turkmen National Conservatoire
• Ministry of Culture and Television-radio broadcasting of Turkmenistan, State Academy of Arts of Turkmenistan
• National Institute of Sports and Tourism of Turkmenistan
• Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan Hospital with Scientific-Clinical Centre of Physiology
• State Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Peoples of Turkmenistan, Central Asia and the orient under the President of Turkmenistan
  

The terminal equipment is provided by the NATO NIG, while the computer equipment is acquired by the institutions themselves.

TuRENA also receives support from the European Commission, with the TEMPUS - 2 year project “Internet-oriented Education at TME Universities” and TEMPUS - 3 year project “Distant Training of Trainers in new curricula in TME”. These projects are layers which are built on the Virtual Silk Highway network. The combination of these projects thus creates an indirect collaboration between NATO and the European Commission.

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