One Laptop Per Child program launched in Afghanistan

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, Jan 31, 2009 - On February 10, 2009, the first deployment of 500 laptop computers will be handed over by the Afghan Ministry of Education (MoE) to the Estiqlal High School in Jalalabad, marking the launch of the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) program. These computers will be integrated into public schools’ teaching curricula, providing students with a vast educational resource, access to word processing, database, email, and internet browser software. They will also be used by families to access business training, e-learning, job and agricultural information, and for small and medium enterprise (SME) creation and development.

The OLPC program is a U.S. non-profit organization that aims to improve education in the developing world through the provision of low cost laptop computers as a way of stimulating economic growth and eradicating poverty. OLPC has committed to supplying 5,000 laptops to the MoE for deployment across the country in order to empower tomorrow’s generation to tackle such problems as underdevelopment, malnutrition, and disease. After years of war, instability, and times where such technology was banned, the entrance of this powerful tool will improve Afghanistan’s educational system, develop human capacity, and create opportunities for much needed income generating activities.

Inexpensive, yet powerful, energy efficient, and durable, the computers to be distributed are the product of years of collaboration between academia and the business community in the U.S. Each machine is equipped with a wireless router that allows for connections to all other nearby computers and connection to the internet from any one network machine; even in the remotest regions of Afghanistan yearning students and entrepreneurs will be connected to one another and to the world. Especially crucial for rural areas with power constraints, this model only uses 6.5W of electricity, about 25% of the power usage of a regular laptop, and has the ability to be solar or foot powered. OLPC’s model also features a 7.5” high-resolution display screen, and a protective outer case with Dari or Pashtu keyboard. PAIWASTOON Networking Services Ltd., an Afghan IT firm, has developed Dari and Pashtu translations of the software, training materials, provided open source software expertise and is undertaking research into economic development applications for this hardware. It is hoped that the educational and economic development successes experienced in other OLPC countries, like Peru and Uruguay, can be replicated in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan’s Ministries of Education, and Communication and Information Technology will implement the incorporation of these computers into the public school system. Roshan Social Programs, a department of one of Afghanistan’s leading telecommunications firms, supports this endeavor through the provision of network utilities and internet connectivity. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through its small and medium enterprise project, provided organizational support in connecting these partners to OLPC as well as financial and logistical support for the creation of online Dari training, a localized business creation toolkit, and a marketing campaign to promote and expand the program’s implementation as a tool for economic development. This innovative partnership, a USAID Global Development Alliance, brings together expertise and other diverse resources from the public, private, and NGO sectors, linking international organizations to local implementers.