Computer Delivery (2007-2008)

In November 2007, two containers with 250 complete computers and other items were sent to Bolivia. The distribution of the computers was planned before the shipment was sent. 150 of these computers were sent to the district of Potosi. 10 computer labs were set up in public schools, and another 5 labs were established in Catholic schools. Potosi is a district that receives very little financial support and where many families are living in poverty.

The contracts for the delivery of computers were made with school representatives and the local government division for education. They agreed to provide an adequate space (secure and dust-free) for the computers; allow access for current students, former students (if possible) and teaching staff; and to expand/maintain these facilities in the future.

An education organization in the district of Santa Cruz received 10 computers, which they set up in a location for schools in the local area. An additional 10 computers were sent to a community centre in La Paz to be used by five schools as well as elderly people in the local area. The union for rural teachers in Cochabamba also received 10 computers to use for teacher training. The Fundación Cumbre received 15 computers in order to establish virtual libraries in ten locations in the district of Benin. The last ten computers went to La Paz or to the region of Toratora in Cochabamba. The virtual libraries are offered to all schools set up a computer lab. Each of these locations, of course, had to meet requirements in order to receive the computers. SNKP also reserves the right to take the computers back if they are not used for these purposes.

Due to the enthusiasm with which the students follow their computer lessons, we were very satisfied with the result of this project. For the future, our focus is on the maintenance of these computer labs and integrating their use for other school subjects. In the meantime, all the computers for the public schools (10) and Catholic schools in Potosi, the school in Santa Cruz and the two educational centres in La Paz have been picked up and installed in these respective locations.



Computer Delivery (2005-2006)

Click here for a presentation of SNKP including a slide show of the 2005-2006 computer delivery.

In 2005, SNKP-Bolivia sent a second shipment of used computers to Bolivia (214 in total). A team of Bolivian and Dutch volunteers cleaned the computers and installed the correct spftware, before setting them up in computer labs at a total of 16 different primary and high schools.

This project involved a lot of helping hands just to get the computers into Bolivia. With the help of the dioceses of Cochabamba and La Paz, and a lot of perseverance, it was possible to receive the computers with a delay of around a one month. After the customs were cleared, the next step concerned the reality of Bolivian schools: the average classroom is not equipped to accommodate 10 to 20 computers; most school budgets couldn’t cover the investment for necessary material and furniture; there are not yet specialised computer teachers or a curriculum from the Ministry of Education.; and most teachers lack the familiarity or confidence to use computers in their teaching.

With sufficient patience, creativity, and cooperation there is always a solution to be found. The local councils financed the building of computer classrooms as well as the required furniture and materials (stabilizers, electricity cables, multiple adaptors etc.). The regional telecommunications company Comteco supplied the schools with a free internet connection. The school parents also pay a small monthly contribution for the wage of an information technology instructor, who is selected from graduated IT students. These instructors also develop a teaching program for the pupils. All of the teachers from the schools involved are also given instructions about the possible applications of computers for their lessons by UNESCO’s representative in Bolivia (Fundación CUMBRE).

Thanks to the efforts of all the above-mentioned parties and SNKP – Bolivia, sixteen different schools in the district of Cochabamba are now providing computer education to most than 4000 students.

In addition to the computer labs, some of the donated computers were given to Fundación CUMBRE in order to establish a number of virtual libraries across Bolivia. Both the women’s and men’s sections of the San Sebastian prison in Cochabamba have received four computers. These computers are used to provide computer lessons to detainees and their resident children. Another portion of computers have been assigned to the ministerial department of education SEDUCA in order to put the schools on a network. A parish in the diocese of La Paz has also received computers for education purposes. The remaining computers were sent to several ongoing projects of SNKP – Bolivia, such as the study group Ñaupaqman.

Follow-up

In September 2007, a group of SNKP volunteers visited the schools that received donated computers in 2002 and 2005 for computer labs. In all-but-one school, the computer labs were still being used optimally (9 computer labs with an average of 15 computers and between 1000-1500 pupils).

One school has been able to establish an ADSL internet connection. The expenses for this connection were covered by the parents. In all schools, the teachers pay for teaching staff.
In the school that was not using the computers, it appeared that the two school directors were unable to work together, let alone establish a positive cooperation with parents or attract teaching staff. These 10 computer were picked up and redistributed by Noe Piaco and Hernán Ayala to two other schools. These two schools already each had 10 computers for classes of 35-40 students. Both schools were very glad with the extra donation and have at least 15 computers for the students and 1 computer for the instructor. All the computers now belong to a network.