MTN and DBE Turn to Good Samaritans for Tech Help for School-Age Children

MTN, the Departments of Basic Education and Digital Communications have launched a donation programme to enable 12 million students to connect to the internet.
The Connecting Every Child program is currently accepting donations of mobile devices. The goal is to eventually provide 30,000.
MTN has already donated 2,000 mobile devices to the programme.

The Departments of Basic Education and Digital Communications have joined MTN in launching an online pledge system in the hope of securing 30,000 mobile devices that will support the education of millions of young, underprivileged learners in South Africa.

The campaign is called the Connecting Every Child Programme, and its goal is to donate devices to schools across the country as part of an effort to provide internet access to 12 million children, the company said in a press release sent to Hypertext.

“Without access to connectivity and e-learning devices, our children, grandchildren and future generations will be left behind. We call on all corners of society to join us – device manufacturers, technology companies, individuals and companies in both the public and private sectors,” said MTN SA CEO Charles Molapisi.

Molapisi has long been an advocate for developing ICT skills in South African children, believing it is a catalyst for economic achievement. He coined the MTN slogan “One Household, One Developer” to reflect this aspiration.

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, Molapisi and Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube and Communications Minister Solly Malatsi were present at MTN’s headquarters in Fairland, Johannesburg to launch the programme. They were joined by students from local schools.

Lesufi said the Gauteng Department of Education will use its share of mobile devices to improve the quality of teaching, provide wider access to teaching materials, engage learners and improve school administration through teacher training and the introduction of smart software into classrooms.

Donation service and charity Forgood will support the online donation and pledge system that MTN and the departments have launched. “The devices will be distributed to deserving schools across the country, mainly in rural and remote areas. Additionally, those who prefer to drop off physical smart devices will be able to do so at MTN’s regional offices,” the company explains.

MTN started the program by donating 2,000 devices, the agency reports.

“Access to connectivity, devices and educational content is crucial to the development of education in our country. Initiatives such as the Connecting Every Child Programme will certainly help the department achieve its ambition of ensuring that every child has access to a device,” said Minister Gwarube.

“We will also work more intensively to raise the level of digital competences in both our primary and secondary schools.”

Want to donate devices to students at schools in South Africa? Click here.

(Graphics – DBE on X)