Johnson Weru, ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg, supports technology that offers rural students educational and economic opportunities they never imagined.
When Microsoft introduced the Microsoft 4Afrika initiative
to African leaders tied to the European Union at an event in Brussels
in June, it was only natural for Johnson Weru, the Kenyan ambassador to
Belgium and Luxembourg, to attend. He wanted to show his support for
4Afrika, and for the technology projects that were equipping schools and
villages in rural Kenya with touch-screen tablets and broadband
Internet. But as the attendees watched a video, Weru was transported
back to his childhood, to the rural village where he grew up — just a
few miles from where the students on the screen were getting their first
glimpse of computers and the Internet.
He eagerly raised his hand.
“That’s where I’m from,” Weru said. He was deeply
moved at the sight of the students opening the tablets, swiping the
icons on the screens, and discovering the vast world of information that
had previously been out of their reach. And he wanted to speak with
them as soon as possible. Before long, the ambassador was in a
conference room talking with the students over a Skype connection, and
telling them how much he had in common with them. The students laughed
in recognition when he told them where he grew up, and soon were
volunteering their thoughts about what their schools needed to ensure
opportunity for everyone. Weru reminded them that through education and
technology, they can pursue opportunities they had never dreamed of.
“It is possible that you can come from such humble
beginnings and enjoy this historic moment to speak to you,” Weru told
the students.
Microsoft 4Afrika and the Mawingu project
Africa is home to more than 1 billion people — 15
percent of the world’s population — including some of the world’s
poorest citizens. The continent’s vast savannas, deserts and jungles
present enormous challenges to the installation of technological
infrastructure that can connect African citizens to the rest of the
world. Even in countries with advanced technology and education systems,
the rural villages are located far from the electrical grids and
fiber-optic networks that make Internet access easily available to city
dwellers.
“The adoption of technology in Kenya has peaked at
a very, very fast rate. Most Kenyan citizens can access simple IT
gadgets like cell phones and televisions,” Weru says. “What is critical
about the Mawingu project is its ability to reach areas that are beyond
the existing coverage of fiber-optic cable.”
Through “Mawingu,”
which means "cloud" in Kiswahili, villagers in these isolated areas are
now able to use Windows tablets and services to browse the Internet.
Mawingu is a collaboration between Kenya’s Ministry of Information and
Communications, Indigo Telecom Ltd.,
and Microsoft that takes advantage of TV white spaces — unused portions
of the broadcast spectrum on which signals can travel much greater
distances than via radio frequencies. Solar panels provide power for the
TV signal relays and the computing devices.
The result is reliable broadband Internet access
that offers Kenyans a world of new knowledge and opportunities in
education, healthcare, commerce and delivery of government services. The
Mawingu project is not philanthropy designed to improve resources for
the underprivileged; it is an economic development project helping
Kenyan citizens start or build small businesses and create prosperity
for local communities and wider regions.
“The adaptation of occupational workforce
technology to the daily lives of Kenyans is phenomenal,” Weru says.
Using handheld devices and broadband Internet, Kenyans can safely send
money to business associates or customers, or communicate with friends
and relatives elsewhere in the country or in the world. They can secure
buyers for their goods and services before traveling to meet them — a
key advantage in a region where the nearest settled area might be a full
day’s travel away. With easier access to new customers and markets,
local entrepreneurs can build businesses and enrich their communities.
Microsoft is implementing similar pilots in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and the Limpopo province of South Africa.
In Tanzania, Microsoft is working with the Tanzania Commission for
Science and Technology (COSTECH) and UhuruOne to bring broadband
connectivity and services to university students and faculty. In South
Africa, Microsoft is working with the Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research, the University of Limpopo, and local network
builder Multisource to bring broadband connectivity and computing
equipment to five secondary schools in remote areas. Both projects
enable students to access the wealth of information available on the
Internet in order to drive educational advancement and economic
development.
The Kenyan government has set a goal of bringing
80 percent of the country’s population online within the next few years.
Microsoft is committed to helping achieve that goal, and white spaces
technology will be a key enabler. The International Telecommunications
Union reports that more than 2.7 billion people use the Internet — just
over a third of the world’s population. Projects like Mawingu, which use
innovative approaches to solve the problems posed by geographic
isolation and limited resources, promise to bring the next 4-plus
billion users online.
The ambassador’s journey
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