1,800 children attend Our Lady of Nazareth primary school in Nairobi. Great news, indeed, but what’s special is that all have the chance to use a computer. In fact, the teacher explains the computer lab is the only room the school never finds empty. All of the computers may be recycled (from Europe), but the students don’t seem to mind.

One girl especially likes Microsoft, the Internet, Twitter, Google, and Facebook. No surprise there!

Computers also help nurses earn full qualifications (including those at the Kibera Health Clinic, as shown in the video). 7,000 Kenyans have received a nursing diploma through e-learning in the last six years. E-learning is flexible and accessible even in remote locations and during any time of the day.

The take-away: Knowledge teaches problem solving skills which then lead to new chances. The Commissioner was overly impressed with how Kenyans are embracing technology. Her visits to the primary school, health clinic, and iHub painted a hopeful picture for what’s in store for Kenya. In fact, every primary student the Commissioner met in the computer lab imagined a career using a computer. You’d be hard-pressed to find a similar collective vision anywhere else in the world.

• infrastructure (network and specialized rooms)
• digital educational content
• human capacity and training
• community involvement

The video – in French language – shows classrooms with students using computers. Nkoma (Network of Knowledge and Online Mentoring for Africa), a Gabonese online education platform used in many classrooms, is shown prominently. Great to see, especially out of Gabon.

Technology has yet to effectively reduce the number of illegal wildlife killings in areas like South Africa and Kenya. In fact, rhino poaching has increased in South Africa this year, with 324 white rhinos lost so far this year. By comparison, poachers killed at least 333 rhinos last year, and only 13 officially in 2007. Prior years saw 15-100 rhino deaths in South Africa – not nearly as severe as the past couple of years. One possibility is that official statistics don’t accurately reflect the actual number of taken animals. However, the demand for rhino horns, for example, has increased due to a variety of sources.

The white rhino - more valuable to the tourism industry than to the black market.

As domestic pressure to illegally kill these animals diminishes, however, the void is rapidly filling with Asian demand for rhinoceros horns. For one, the supply chain has shortened with the growing number of economic collaborations between China and nations like Kenya. Even if African governments no longer condone poaching, foreign crime channels will find a way through the backdoor. In 2009, Yolan Friedmann, CEO of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, commented on how poaching is becoming more hi-tech. Along those lines, why can’t poaching prevention counter the advances in poachers’ organization, weaponry, and transportation?

At this stage, the Internet serves to raise global awareness of wildlife issues. WildlifeDirect, a non-profit registered in both the United States and in Kenya, hosts dozens of wildlife conservation blogs which are updated regularly by specialists who are on the ground in Africa. Best yet, the blogs are grouped by region (with most hailing from Eastern Africa).

Blogging is a great start to raising awareness. The next logical step would be to add crowd-sourcing efforts to spot poaching (Ushahidi is a potential platform). However, monitoring the vast open spaces of Africa is not as simple as monitoring election violence. Very few people live in proximity to rhinos or elephants. Plus, mobile Internet is not ready available in remote areas, meaning that mobile apps are currently out of the question.

Another solution would be to install remote cameras to monitor clandestine activity. Presumably, real-time video could be transmitted via WiMAX to a fibre node which then would relay the signal to a monitoring station. Again, such a task is made difficult by tens of thousands of acres of open land (and the ability of helicopters to circumvent roads).

We’ve created a Twitter list (@oafrica/african-animal-activism) to follow the online efforts to encourage animal conservation, prevent the slaughter of endangered species, and protect their habitats. Fifteen of the twenty accounts on the list have Klout scores of 40 or greater.

In support of open & accountable democratic institutions around the globe {NDI}

Question:  What’s your take on how mobile or social media can facilitate trust & communication in the upcoming #Guinea elections?
Answer:  NDI’s Technology team, drawing upon its regional and global experience in this realm, has the following response:
Social media provides a way for election officials to share information about what’s going on, communicate it to an engaged audience, and build public trust in the electoral process. For example, in the 2011 Nigerian elections, Nigeria’s Independent National Election Commission (INEC) did a wonderful job of communicating over twitter and other social media channels.  However, it’s important to note that this type of dialogue requires proactive engagement and interest from such organizations. It provides a way to directly engage with those organizations publicly – if people see incidents or violations, they can communicate them to the authorities who can (theoretically) themselves respond.  Using a collective hashtag on Twitter (if there is enough of an internal user base to make it viable) is a way for citizens to self-aggregate and share information. Eg, if the tag is #guinea11 then people can use it in their tweets to connect to all the folks communicating on the topic.

Citizen reporting can provide an avenue for people to share stories of legal violations, as mentioned above, but can also be a way to name-and-shame electoral code of conduct violations if that has been established. If there are CSOs who are attempting to collect and manage citizen reports it can be a good way to hold officials accountable for violations. There are significant challenges with such a “crowdsourcing” program, but in the right place can be a powerful methodology.

In the Guinean context, establishing public trust in the electoral process is indeed a challenge.  Beyond the advantages of using social media and new technology to connect citizens to government, it’s also important to recognize the flipside of this: Social media can be the perfect way to spread pure rumor and hearsay – or worse, malicious, inflammatory information. It can prove an opportunity for the online community to work together to try to verify reports and quash misinformation.  To enhance the transparency and credibility of Guinea’s upcoming legislative elections, NDI will be working with its local partner Consortium for Domestic Election Observation (CODE) to deploy citizen observers to polling sites around the country on election day to independently and systematically collect, analyze, and report information about election-day proceedings.  As part of this effort, CODE and NDI, drawing on regional and international best practices, will explore ways to use social media, or to partner with organizations that are doing so, in order to better achieve its goals.

CODE used cell phone technology in its last observation effort (the country’s presidential elections of 2010) for improved reporting speed. CODE’s 2000+ citizen observers covered 20% of Guinea’s polling stations, and the coalition’s calculated election results were within 1 percent of those announced by the CENI.

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Learn more about upcoming African elections and how you can support government accountability: Connect with NDI on Facebook | Follow NDI on Twitter | Give to NDI

{globalgiving.org}

Generally, projects revolve around health care, education, entrepreneurial, female education, and water supply needs. However, a few relate directly to bringing computer technology to Africa.

Below is a list of the 18 directly technological projects available in 11 African nations. They involve anything from solar technology to computer skills to alternatives to cyber-crime. Have a look at what even just $10 can buy:

Cameroon:

• Provide Solar Technology & Basic Computer Training ($10-$100)

Egypt:

• Use technology to improve education in Egypt ($10-$50)

Ethiopia:

• Establish eLibrary for Ethiopian Students ($10-$50)

Gabon:

• Libraries Across Africa ($10-$50)

Kenya:

• Computer Labs for the Blind and Visually Impaired ($25-$100)
• Help Sustain The Kabissa Network ($20-$75)
• Computer Skills for 50 Needy Youths in Kenya ($10-$60)
• Break the Digital Divide in Rural Western Kenya ($10-$50)
• Reaching Out to the Maasai with ICTs ($15-$40)

Morocco:

• Library for 10,000 Moroccan Berbers ($15-$400)

Nigeria:

• INTERNET CONNECTIVITY in our remote rural Garram ($10-$20)
• Alternative to Cybercrime for Nigerian Youths ($10-$1800)

Sierra Leone:

• Empower Youths Through Computer Skills Training ($15-$50)
• Enhance Education of Girls through Technology ($10-$50)

Tanzania:

• Solar Electricity for African Schools ($10-$50)
• Build Computer Labs for Students in Tanzania ($10-$75)

Togo:

• Bringing computing skills to children in Africa ($10-$100)

Uganda:

• Internet Cafe in Lyantonde, Uganda ($10-$50)
  

muallim: A knowledgeable professional who can guide the pilgrim during Hajj. – ummah.net

As of early May, the company is still interviewing and training tutors. In time, it will be interesting to see how many clients (or tutors, for that matter) reside in North Africa. Although students in Sudan, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco are all welcome to use the platform, the limited availability of broadband service may limit activity from Africa. Interestingly, pricing may actually not be a limiting factor. For now, the first month of unlimited tutoring is free. Pricing for the second month tends to start at US$99 per month. Will students in Sudan therefore use emuallim for a month and then quit? And, will students without a private Internet access point will be motivated to use the service as those with a home computer? Lastly, how numerous will tutors from North Africa be on the site? Stay tuned!

{emuallim.com}

We connect schools with their district education office through a computer with 3G internet connection powered by solar panels. Teachers and headteachers can complete their administration without leaving school. That means they can spend more time teaching, and children spend more time learning.

When resources are scarce and schools are miles apart the most cost- and energy-efficient solution is solar power. Not only can the sun power a computer or two for the classroom, but it can also charge batteries and phones for the community. And, the presence of solar panels can lead to discussion on the need for sustainable energy sources for Africa. Students can also have the pleasure of teaching new friends outside the country what they are doing.

For more information, read the short PowerPoint presentation (3.7mb). Solar Connect is part funded by the European Union through the project Partners in Development.

Impressively, however, Namibia had the strength to recognize the weakness of its educational system. The government (along with partners) created the Education and Training Sector Improvement Programme (ETSIP) to contribute to the creation of a knowledge-based economy. TECH/NA! represents the Ministry of Education’s ICT component of the larger plan.

The logo. Click to visit. {tech.na}

Created by the Namibian Ministry of Education in 2007, Tech/NA! is an ICTs in Education Initiative designed to equip institutions, educate teachers and learners, and empower whole communities. The name itself is great for a couple of reasons:

• resembles “techno”
• uses an exclamation mark
• the two parts represent the bridging of the digital divide amongst institutions and communities

Plus, the logo perfectly embodies the power of togetherness. The site itself provides a bevy of Namibian ICT information including the steps needed to bolster education for all Namibians. The first steps of establishing leadership and defining components of the initiative took place from 2006-2009. During this time, ICTs were deployed in teacher education institutions, secondary schools, and community skills development centers. In 2009, the program extended Tech/NA! concepts to libraries, adult education schools, and primary schools.

Tech/NA! is still in the early stages and the lasting benefits of ICTs in education may not show in other sectors for a few years. Namibia, like most African nations, faces a rapidly growing population. In fact, as Namibia’s population has grown from 2 million in 2005 to nearly 2.5 million in 2009, the primary school completion rate has dropped from 86% to 80% (World Bank Development Indicators). Has the quality of education increased at a rate greater than the decrease in primary school completion? Most likely, and Namibia is fortunate to have such a sound ICTs in education plan.

-Read Namibia’s Vision 2030 plan (5mb with 25kb/s download speed from server).

-Browse PDF manuals on such topics as “Use Internet and email applications” and “Perform basic word processing”.

The contract {Flickr via Epic Change. (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)}

In October 2009, a group of Class 5 students from Shepherds Junior School in Arusha, Tanzania took the Internet by storm when they signed on to Twitter. They are affectionately known as the TwitterKids. My initial reaction was unequivocally positive, noting how:

1. it’s amazing how a school can be realized, built, and connected to the Internet within 1 year
2. non-traditional thinking will be needed to effectively harness the power of technology in African schools
3. raising capital through story-telling/sharing efforts could be the next big thing

Fortunately for both the children and the rest of the world, the energetic Tweets continue nearly one-and-a-half years later. The twenty or so students, who are currently in grade 7, intermittently sign on and share their excitement with the world. Since December, six students – about one-fourth of the original class – have actively used Twitter. Although the children promised at least one Tweet per day (along with two weekly Tumblr updates) upon entering the program.

Epic Change, the nonprofit behind the TwitterKids, is still going strong with a number of endeavors. The Epic Change submission for the 2011 PitchIt! Challenge sums up the successes of this “ethical capital” program:

In three short years, with countless hearts and nearly $160,000 invested, our prototype project in Tanzania has become one of the top three primary schools of over 120 in Arusha, Tanzania, and has grown to serve nearly 450 children. Financial capital is enough to build buildings; only ethical capital is enough to imbue cold stone walls with purpose, meaning & real possibility.

To interact with the TwitterKids, monitor the @EpicChange/TwitterKids list (75 followers), or follow @EpicChange (2000+ followers) or @MamaLucy (700+ followers).

{mtotowajirana.com}

The Kuyu Project is a digital literacy initiative aimed at teaching African High school students how to use technology. The ultimate goal is that these students will one day make a difference in their communities. Kuyu was launched in June 2010, and my write-up praised the simplicity of the site, the reliance on a wiki for discussion, and reasonable “long term goals of forming meaningful partnerships, using crowdsourcing for content, and interacting with mobile devices.” So, where is Kuyu today?

As expected, the project continues to expand and re-shape its focus. Not only does the Kuyu Project have an established wiki, but they also conduct digital literacy camps across Africa and are developing a mobile framework to facilitate discussion. The wiki, although still somewhat sparse, contains numerous social media “how-to” guides. Over 600 people are Facebook fans of the project and @TheKuyuProject is extremely active on Twitter. Recently, the directors provided an exciting update on what is expected for 2011. They write:

In reviewing it’s effectiveness, the team and I felt the wiki was lacking something. Our aim was to crowdsource experiential knowledge rather than just ‘How To’ manuals (many of these already exist across the Internet). In reflecting on this challenge we came up with an idea that could help solve this problem…and that’s how StorySpaces was born.

StorySpaces, still in its early stages, is a web and mobile application designed to crowdsource experience and ultimately translate global conversations into local actions. The key ideas here are that people learn better through stories rather than didactic methods. Simply put, people thrive on relevant content and are more receptive to stories than straight instruction. The further beauty of StorySpaces is that a user need not have top-notch writing ability. Anyone can submit a story in hopes of positively influencing others. Additionally, anyone can contribute to a story already in progress. After all, it is a core idea – not eloquence – that spurs the early stages of innovation.

There’s plenty to look forward to from the folks behind The Kuyu Project, so be sure to stay tuned as they explore online social interaction.