very poorly covered by internet access. The Observatory databasewas created to gather information about all digital inclusion initiatives inBrazil through the spontaneous registration conducted by the projectsthemselves. So, it does not include all initiatives, but can help to highlightrural versus urban distribution. Input data for registration consists onlyof project identification, contact information and address. There is no classificationinto rural and urban projects, but by a careful analysis of projectidentification and location we arrived at an approximate distribution, as presentedin Table 1. Table 1 Telecenters in Onid x Population (2008) Telecenters (%) Population* (%) Rural 4,8 16,7 Urban 95,2 83,3 Total 100,0 100,0 *(MDA/DIEESE, 2008)The situation changed in 2008, when, aftersupporting different experiments for some years, and observing different initiativesthat were identified through Onid, and by networking with rural communities, theFederal Government launched its national policy for digital inclusion in ruralareas: the Digital Territories Project (ProjetoTerritorios digitais).2 The dawn of Digital Territories2.1 What is it part of?As Digital Territoriesis part of the Federal Governments Citizenship Territories Program, first we needto introduce the latter.How can the Brazilian Government deal with ruralareas in such a huge country? How can it choose a place to build a new schoolor hospital? How to deal with places with a population density so low that itbecomes impossible to have enough government representation. The first step wasto organize the rural areas into Rural Territories. Rural territories are sets of locations sharingthe same economic and environmental characteristics, a common identity, andsharing social, cultural and geographic cohesion. Each of them has no more than50 thousand dwellers; and a population density of less than 80 inhabitants/km2.They are bigger than a city and smaller than a state, and show more clearly thaneither of these the reality of their social groups, economic activity andinstitutions. That makes it easier for government actions to develop theseregions. Sixty territories have been created so far. The second step was to promote Territorial Councils,working as an interface between citizens and all government levels, and interestedinstitutions, mainly NGOs. Councils are composed of representatives of socialmovements, communities, and all institutions interested in the development ofthe territory, as well as municipal, state and federal governments.As it was quite impossible to start working in allterritories simultaneously, the Brazilian government decided to focus on thethirty poorest, as measured by the Human Development Indicator, and progressivelyadd another thirty every year. By 2008 there were sixty territories, as shownin Figure 1. They are called Citizenship Territories (Territorios da Cidadania), to distinguish them from the other ruralterritories. Figure 1 Citizenship TerritoriesThe selection of a territory as a CitizenshipTerritory is conducted by the Federal Government together with the establishmentof an investment plan for all governmental areas of action. The plan is notdetailed, because is does not say where, when, and how any action will beexecuted. It is mainly a budget. It is up to the local Territory Council to layout a detailed plan, aided by a federal government consultant. Once the plan iscompleted, the Citizenship Territory starts to receive government funds. Allcitizens can monitor the projects actions through the program website (BRASIL,2008). At the end of 2008 a new