Computer Aid International: Difference between revisions
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==Strategy== |
==Strategy== |
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Revision as of 04:40, 14 June 2010
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| Founded | 1998 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Tony Roberts |
| Type | International Organisation |
| Registration no. | 1069256 |
| Location |
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Area served | Worldwide |
| Website | http://www.computeraid.org/ |
Computer Aid International is a not-for-profit organisation active in the field of Information and Communication Technologies for Development. A registered charity, Computer Aid was founded in 1998 to bridge the digital divide by providing professionally refurbished PCs from the UK to educational and non-profit organisations in developing countries.
Computer Aid has provided over 160,000 high-quality, professionally refurbished, computers to educational institutions and not-for-profit organisations in more than 100 different countries to date.
Computer Aid shipped its 100,000th computer in February 2008[1], sending PCs to more than 100 countries from its workshop and offices in North London.
Organisation
Computer Aid International is an non-governmental organisation registered with the Charity Commission of England & Wales (registration number: 1069256) and is a not-for-profit social business with the registration number 3442679 Companies House.
Computer Aid has offices in London and Nairobi,Kenya with a dedicated team of 25 staff and 50 volunteers composed of techies, development professionals, geeks, fundraisers and linguists. At the Africa HQ in Nairobi Computer Aid has a number of experienced Programme Officers who work with educational institutions and local non-profit organisations throughout Africa supporting the application of ICT for Development.
Computer Aid has a Board of Trustees that meet bi-monthly to provide strategic direction and fiduciary oversight.
Professor Denis Goldberg is Computer Aid's Honary Patron.
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Strategy
Computer Aid offers a decommissioning service to UK companies, government departments and universities that are upgrading their computer systems - donated PCs are data-wiped, refurbished and tested[2]. Non profit organisations in the developing world can apply for refurbished computers and are charged a handling fee of £42 plus shipping[3].
UK IT Donors
Computer Aid offers a complete service to UK companies and organisations replacing their hardware. They are experts in end-of life IT asset management which includes data destruction, computer refurbishment, reuse, and recycling. Donating IT equipment to Computer Aid guarantees compliance with all UK legislation, including the WEEE Directive, Data Protection Act and Environment Act. Computer Aid donors include Dfid, Sainsbury's, Coca-Cola, Diageo, Orange, Virgin, Betfair, Pepsico, Investec, WWF, Christian Aid, BBC Worldwide and Ofcom.
Projects
Computer Aid supports a telemedicine project in partnership with African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF). This project has equipped over 40 rural hospitals in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda with digital cameras, computers, printers and scanners and provides training and technical support. The project enables doctors and nurses in remote rural areas to access specialist clinical support diagnosis improving healthcare in rural communities.
Computer Aid, in partnership with Sightsavers International, has provided PCs installed with [adaptive technologies] for the blind and partially sighted in more than 20 different countries.
In Cameroon, Computer Aid is working with several not-for-profit organisations to provide PCs in secondary schools and community based organizations. These include organizations like the British Council and Education Information Services International (EISERVI).
In Rwanda, Computer Aid has worked with the Kigali Institute of Education, The Ministry of Health and the Rwanda Information Technology Authority (RITA) in providing PCs to schools, health centers and tele centers country wide.
In Burundi, Computer Aid is working with La Fondation Buntu to provide PCs to widows and orphans who were victims of the war. Computer Aid PCs are currently being used in various secondary schools in Burundi, both in Bujumbura and in the provinces.
In Zambia, Computer Aid has sent PCs to secondary schools through national distribution programmes supported by the national government and local NGOs.
In Zimbabwe, Computer Aid has sent PCs to universities, tertiary institutions and the national consortium of libraries. Computer Aid is also working to establish relationships with Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working to promote development in Zimbabwe.
In Malawi, Computer Aid enjoys a strong partnership with the Council for Non Governmental Organizations in Malawi (CONGOMA) and has partnered with CONGOMA to send over 5,000 PCs to various NGOs, schools and universities in Malawi.
Computer Aid has also sent PCs to Swaziland, South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, and Botswana.
In Eritrea Computer Aid is working with the British Council to provide PCs in public and school libraries.
Ethiopia as a land-locked country has also not been left behind. Computer Aid works with not for profit organization such as [Information Technology Development Association (ITDA)], Ethiopia Knowledge and Technology Transfer Society (EKTTS), Christian Relief Development Association (CRDA). Over 6,000 PCs have been provided to Ethiopian in schools, tertiary institutions and other not for profit organization. New relationships have also been established with diaspora organisations such as Prospect Ethiopa, who are work directly with various government capacity building bureaus to ensure that they receive our PCs
In Liberia, Computer Aid is working with Stella Maris Polytechnic to provide computers to institutions of higher learning and NGOs.
Computer Aid not only provide computers to organisations in Africa but also in Asia, in Eastern Europe in the Middle East and in Latin America. To give a few examples; in Colombia Computer Aid works with the International Organisation of Migration (IOM) to ensure that internally displaced children received the education they deserve to be better prepared for a brighter future. In Ecuador several hundred computers were donated to a Fair Trade Banana Producers to improve the day to day running of the fair trade banana enterprise and its trade unions. In Venezuela Computer Aid provided PCs to an indigenous solar powered school in the middle of the Amazonian jungle. Power supply problems in rural areas of developing countries make it sensible to use the most power-efficient options. Computer Aid has asked ZDNET to survey the available choices for low-power computing. The initial survey has been completed and field testing will now be carried out in three countries in Africa.
This year, the UK alone is expected to decommission over two million Pentium 4 PCs as individuals, companies and the public sector upgrade their computers.
By donating their PCs to Computer Aid companies are able to fulfil their data protection and environmental compliance requirement under the Data Protection act and WEEE Directive at the same time as providing tools for development in parts of the world where the cost of a new computer can be higher than the average annual income per person.
References
Further reading
- Report on Low-Power PC Research Project (PDF). Computer Aid International. 2009. p. 9.