British Council Bridging Digital Gap Through Computer Aid

By Edith Wirdze

A charitable UK-based organisation, Computer Aid International, CAI, in partnership with the British Council, Yaounde, are working hard to narrow the digital gap between the north and the south.

Students learning computer skills 

This was the purpose of a conference organised recently at the British Council to inform the public on the objectives and activities of CAI.UN statistics indicate that the population of Africa is 884 million. Out of this population, ICT users (radio, TV, computer, telephone users) constitute only 4 million and just 9.2 per 1000 own a computer.

In Cameroon, only 0.15 percent of the population own a computer.It is from this background that CAI aims to narrow the gap between the developed and developing countries, by helping to provide high quality refurbished PCs to fight against poverty and illiteracy in developing countries especially in the Sub-Saharan Africa.

Opening the ceremony, the Director of the British Council, Jenny Scott, said it is four years now since the British Council went into partnership with CAI.She spoke of CAI's role of in international development by providing computers to schools, health centres and community organisations.

The Central Africa Programme Officer of CAI, Kathleen Ndongmo, in a presentation of her organisation, said CAI has shipped over 90,000 PCs in more than 100 countries. She said CAI works in partnership with organisations both in the UK and overseas.

UK organisations support CAI by donating their computers and peripheral equipment. CAI then proceeds to testing, refurbishing and securely packaging the products to destinations where they are needed.

She said CAI could only provide PCs to not-for-profit organisations.Details of how CAI works and how one can apply can be got from www.computeraid.org or by mail using 4th Floor International House, PO Box 1491-00100, Nairobi, Kenya. In Cameroon, one can also contact the British Council in Yaounde.

Comments

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