Digital Educational Empowerment

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT 

The project seeks to address the challenges of Internet connectivity, access to online resources for schools and communities, and utilization of ICTs in the provinces of Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South in Zimbabwe. The project goal is to provide Internet connectivity and train and empower teachers and communities through Internet technologies for education.  Software that works with Internet-in-a-Box will be deployed in the host provinces, which will allow local institutions to connect to free P2P bandwidth to access educational resources as though they were on the Internet. A platform, including its APIs, back-end and front end, will be developed during this activity, and all resources will be made available in local languages. 

WHY IS THIS PROJECT IMPORTANT? 

The education sector in Zimbabwe is one of the least connected sectors; the use of online technologies to enhance teaching, learning and administrative outcomes is not optimal. Matabeleland provinces are lagging in access to technology and Internet connectivity due to poor connectivity infrastructure and generally low economic activity that is insufficient to warrant the availability of high-speed Internet and attendant accessibility. Schools in these provinces have not embraced resource sharing and other open educational resources that are available and key to development and education. 

The project aims to bridge the digital divide in those remote and unconnected communities through the use of Internet technologies in the education sector. The participant communities benefit from free access to the ad-hoc network [Local Area Network] that provides access to educational materials, videos and other open educational resources. 

MEDIA AND PUBLICATIONS 

See below for publications and other articles related to the project. 

https://isoc.org.zw/wp/digital-educational-empowerment-project/

https://www.sundaynews.co.zw/free-internet-for-matabeleland-schools/