Cisco supports NEPAD E-Schools demonstration project
Cisco is a key participant in the New Partnership for Africa’s Development of e-Schools by contributing with both people and financial resources to implement information and communication technology in educational institutions across the continent.
Under the NEPAD e-Schools Demonstration Project, Cisco and four other companies introduced students in Africa’s secondary schools to computers, self-directed learning applications, the Internet, and other transformative technologies. Additionally, a dedicated Cisco Fellow relocated to Africa to lead a consortium of partners that trained teachers and administrators so that each participating school could make full use of these new capabilities and create a self-sustaining model. By 2008, Cisco’s NEPAD participation benefited 58 schools and approximately 30,000 students. Cisco installed networking equipment for Internet access and satellite connectivity in several schools.
In each country, the project aims to transform all African secondary schools into NEPAD e-Schools within five years from the implementation start date and all African primary schools within ten years from the implementation start date. In total, more than 600 000 schools across the continent will enjoy the benefits of ICT and connectivity to the NEPAD e-Schools Satellite Network upon completion of the project. Cisco’s vision is that their broad experience and focus in creating next generation teaching and learning solutions can be leveraged effectively to make the NEPAD effort a real success.