Commonwealth ICT training van rolls into Pakistan

Computer literacy, internet access and interactive games will be taken to the doorsteps of Pakistani villages, courtesy of the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) Asia Centre.

CYP’s mobile information and communication technology (ICT) learning centre -- a van that travels from village to village delivering computer training to young and disadvantaged people -- was launched in Islamabad, Pakistan, on 16 November 2006.

“Computer training at doorsteps will add a new dimension to the empowerment of rural children,” said Dr G Abbas, Chairman of the Evergreen Organisation -- an NGO working to provide quality education in rural Pakistan.

“This will be one of the most exciting things that the village would have seen,” computer trainer Waqar-ul-Hassan added.

The van, equipped with state-of-the-art computer systems, mobile internet facilities and training aids like liquid crystal display multimedia projectors, screens and audio systems, is the third such vehicle to roll out from the CYP Asia Centre under its Technology Empowerment Centre on Wheels project.

The US$25,000 mobile centre was handed over to Pakistan through its High Commission in New Delhi, India, by Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Florence Mugasha on 1 October 2006.

The van aims to provide computer education to 48 young people every month. A website is being developed to monitor the progress of the project online.

Key Links:

• Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) Asia Centre