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Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems
The One Laptop Per Child project has announced
that Rwanda will be rolling out OLPC systems. "In recognition of
children being Rwanda's most precious natural resource, the government of
Rwanda has committed to provide one laptop per child to all primary school
children within five years."
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Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 3, 2007 23:42 UTC (Wed) by hazelsct (guest, #3659) [Link] Rwanda!! My goodness, before this announcement, it was easy to dismiss those saying, "Don't they need food/medicine before fancy educational technology?" by pointing out the relative wealth of Thailand, Brazil, etc. vs., say, Rwanda.
And now this! Don't they at least need, maybe, ethnic reconciliation first? Or is this part of the plan -- something like: get the kids talking on the mesh network, and their parents will follow??
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 4, 2007 3:22 UTC (Thu) by xoddam (subscriber, #2322) [Link] You're quite right that an end to conflict ought to be a top priority,but there is no good reason for education to take a back seat until ethnic differences are resolved. The Deep South states of the US had schools and universities for each major ethnic group long before the repeal of the "Jim Crow" laws; and the schools were indeed one focus of the struggle for integration. Rwanda is not currently a theatre of war.
No-one seemed surprised when the Palestinian Authority signed on to OLPC,
Rwanda is the world's 30-somethingth-poorest country with a GDP of $1500
I'm sympathetic with the Indian government's assessment that the laptop
Whether Rwanda or Palestine have enough income to pay for the laptops
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 4, 2007 18:56 UTC (Thu) by iabervon (subscriber, #722) [Link] I don't know too much about Rwanda in particular, but I've heard that a common source of ethnic conflict is children and young adults with nothing better to do than fight each other. My impression of the situation in Africa (more informed by the northern west coast) is that there isn't really major ethnic tension; there's a lot of people whose skill set primarily involves killing people and training people to kill people, and they kill people of different ethnicities as an excuse. So the OLPC project makes sense as a way of giving kids a career that isn't killing people.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 5, 2007 9:56 UTC (Fri) by MKesper (subscriber, #38539) [Link] Let's hope they don't use the OLPC to train killing people more effectively.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 5, 2007 17:44 UTC (Fri) by robert_s (subscriber, #42402) [Link] "I've heard that a common source of ethnic conflict is children and young adults with nothing better to do than fight each other."
I don't think that's quite it. I think it happens when you have groups of people who don't intercomminicate or intermix very much their whole lives and hence never get the chance to see things from the other viewpoint. Hopefully the OLPC should help to expand their horizons.
After all, when another user pops up on your OLPC workspace, you have no way of knowing anything about their ethnicity.
Depends who pays Posted Jan 4, 2007 19:04 UTC (Thu) by ncm (subscriber, #165) [Link] It may be that getting foreign grants to buy OLPCs is easier than getting grants for medical etc. help, and, more importantly, doesn't actually compete with them. It may even be that being seen to participate in OLPC will loosen the strings on other aid.
p.s. I find myself reading "OLPC" as "one linux per child".
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 8, 2007 9:48 UTC (Mon) by landley (guest, #6789) [Link] You mean the way we never should have gone to the moon while there stillwasn't peace on earth?
I think they're trying to make it so the next generation isn't as screwed
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Mar 25, 2007 2:23 UTC (Sun) by GoRawanda (guest, #44299) [Link] Posted Mar 25, 2007 2:22 UTC (Sun) by guest GoRawanda [Link]
GO RAWANDA!!! March 2007
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 4, 2007 7:35 UTC (Thu) by error27 (subscriber, #8346) [Link] What Rwanda and other African countries really need is cheap broadband.
In 2007 the eassy undersea cable is supposed to be built on the east coast of Africa so hopefully there will be a fiber line through Kenya. Another possibility is that Kenya will build it's own undersea cable instead of joining the eassy project.
Eventually Rwanda will get connected to the sat3 cable on the west coast as well, but it's going to take time to connect fiber across the DRC.
It sucks to be a land locked country because you have to pull fiber through your neighbors who may have political instability, or repressive government supported telecom monopolies. For example, the sat3 cable is so badly managed that it actually costs more than satelite access and only 5% of the bandwidth is being used. It's insane...
South Africa (or Ubuntu Linux country) has shocking bad internet policy. People sometimes go over border to Mozambique to sign up for satelite internet because ISPs don't want to deal with crap in South Africa. Botswana has fiber to all the major cities but it borders South Africa so it's screwed so far as connecting to the undersea cables.
I believe I read an estimate that Africa spends 4 billion annually on satelite access. Even traffic to other African countries goes through satellite so Africa spends half a billion on satellite bandwidth just to talk to other African countries.
It will be interesting to see how it all works out.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 5, 2007 9:15 UTC (Fri) by lazamazu (guest, #14719) [Link] IMHO the civilized way to resolve this kind of situations is the UnitedNations Organization. And in this way, a more relevant role to this org would be better for all.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 5, 2007 21:25 UTC (Fri) by error27 (subscriber, #8346) [Link] I don't think the UN can help. The problem is we need laws that encourage competition.
In Zambia there is a law that ISPs have to allow their customers to resell internet access. That's a brilliant law.
On the other hand, in South Africa the telecom companies, their unions, and the goverment have colluded to make reselling internet illegal. You can't set up a wifi network that crosses a road. You can't put up poles and run your own cables across a road even on a non profit basis. Some countries that have enormous one time license fees if you want to start an ISP (as high as $40k).
This article on eassy is kind of old, I think the situation has improved recently.
The key is the cable should be funded by Africans so the money stays in Africa. It should be organized so that anyone can buy bandwidth and not on the old school 20 year lease system.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 7, 2007 8:58 UTC (Sun) by slamb (guest, #1070) [Link] I don't think a fiber connection would help Kenya right now. From what I've seen (admittedly a smallarea), they have virtually no wired communications infrastructure internally. There are lots of Internet cafés with satellite links. There are lots and lots of people with cell phones. But they can't even get dialup Internet access to many homes, much less broadband. Even in the affluent Karen, phones were via radio so modems didn't work.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Jan 7, 2007 9:24 UTC (Sun) by slamb (guest, #1070) [Link] To add to my last post...what I think Kenya needs is AIDS awareness (no one talks about it!) and clean water. I would love to see towns like Narok get good clean water distribution, a sewer system, and trash collection. The public health benefits would be huge.I'll be hoping for the day they're an OLPC country and their worst problem is the lack of broadband availability. I'm surprised Rwanda was the first. I'd thought maybe Botswana.
Rwanda to deploy OLPC systems Posted Mar 25, 2007 2:22 UTC (Sun) by GoRawanda (guest, #44299) [Link] GO RAWANDA!!! March 2007In some ways it is hard when you have a certain view that; some people do something and others do other things as the reason why almost a million Tusti's got executed can be explained right here. In a place like the USA what I have just achieved is called free will. I found a site that now links to this page at OLPC. I said Go Rwanda. But this was changed and your link was replaced. You people have been used, I am probably the last person that is going to post this so when some one goes to this link they will press back click history and wonder why. If they are from Rwanda and a Tusti how do they feel? Is this really fair? To take money from them and now act like a racist? Remember Hintus are supposed to be not so smart and not into books so a Tusti Victim will read this. I say go Rwanda because see in the USA they fought and killed to become the USA. Your fight is much different but it seems that the world is not getting it. Who paid for the Guns and Knives? Other people. One mans choice out of obvious stupidity is another mans death wish. So the war has stopped and as one person to another that has removed the issue of a mans length and packed it up to go(so no fight right) I think you deserve all the chance for your children and the future in 50 years or so when things grow right. You agree now. But I am oh so happy and protected by the police in my country. If it was true that an out cast from the mother land was shrown here 1000 years ago to be followed she sure built up one heck of a place for her self. So good luck as you know who I am and what I mean and keep growing bigger and wider as I have made you lie. One Lap Top One dream and I am it! Peace and ONE. I mean One life right? Cool I'm happy and its all true . STOP IT if you can! Now ain''t that the truth!
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