[Wylug-discuss] One Laptop per Child becomes One Tablet per Child

[Richard Ibbotson]

On Saturday 22 Feb 2014 20:11:36 you wrote:

> An interesting piece. I have worked on ICT projects in developing
> countries for some years. The biggest problem with projects like
> OLPC is ensuring that the units really get to the children.

That's right.  I can't argue with that.  But, try approaching Bill 
Clinton and some of the others about this.  I have done.  A few times.  
I've had some long conversations with them.  I used to work with the 
Clinton Foundation in various countries as well as California.  

> One of Uhuru Kenyatta's election pledges in Kenya was to ensure that
> every school child had access to a laptop. However the project has
> got mired in corruption and malpractice and I really doubt that any
> child will ever really get the benefits of this as everybody creams
> off their own bit of the budget.

I've run and walked and cycled around most parts of Africa.  I always 
try to tell people who run charities that if you are working abroad 
you should do it yourself and not trust someone else.  One of the 
problems you get is that if you hire in a security team or ask for 
help from the Marines you are creating a "Foreign incursion".  To 
quote the local crimininals and terrorists.  So, f***** if you do and 
f***** if you don't 

Anyway, for that particular purpose I was asked to do a conference 
report in Boston.  Which just happened to be running an OLPC press 
release.  I thought I might as well write about it. Good for 
diplomatic relations.  I would have liked to have seen some children 
helped out but what can you do ?  I nearly got 12 snipers rounds in 
the head and chest in Syria for helping women and children in the 
local Homs community.  The BBC were supposed to be paying me for that.  
They never did.

-- 
Richard