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Egyptian Government Signs NEPAD e-Schools MOU | 8 June 2008 |
Cairo, Egypt, 23 February 2006. The Arab Republic of Egypt, NEPAD e-Africa Commission, Oracle and HP Consortia signed, 23 February 2006, the NEPAD e-Schools Demonstration Project Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in Cairo. The NEPAD e-Schools Project, managed by the NEPAD e-Africa Commission, is aimed at equipping young Africans with skills and knowledge to enable them compete favorably in the information society and global economy.
Egypt became the tenth African country to sign the NEPAD MOU after Senegal, Uganda, Ghana, Lesotho, Kenya, South Africa, Rwanda, Mozambique and Mauritius. The signing paves way for the launch and implementation of NEPAD e-school in Egypt. Countries where NEPAD e-schools have already been launched include Uganda, Ghana, Lesotho and Kenya.
Signing on behalf of Government of Egypt was Dr Salah Alewa, Director, Technological Development Decision Support Centre, Ministry of Education; and for NEPAD e-Africa Commission was Prof. Peter Kinyanjui. The Managing Director HP Egypt, Mr Ahmed Samy and Mr Atef Helmy Managing Director, Oracle Egypt, signed on behalf of their companies.
Mr Salah Alewa assured partners of of Egypt's commitment and support to the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative. He expressed the desire of the government to have the official launch as soon as possible.
The six schools selected by the Egyptian Government to participate in the NEPAD e-schools Demonstration Project include: Rafah Secondary School, Arafaat Ahmed Mostafa, Iben Senai Secondary School, Al Sadat, Alkhrga Secondary School, and Moubarak Secondary School.
Implementation plans ready
Prof. Kinyanjui said that the NEPAD e-Africa Commission put together an innovative public-private partnership to ensure the most effective and expedient implementation of the Demo Project.
Said Kinyanjui, "HP and Oracle Consortia will provide, deploy and operate appropriate end-to-end technology solutions to the schools allocated to them. The partners will expedite the deployment of equipment in the schools, train the teachers and provide technical support in preparation for the official launch in Mozambique in the near future". He also said that the project monitoring and evaluation mechanisms were already in place.
Partnerships key to Development
Mr Atef Helmy of Oracle said that .partnerships between governments and corporates are becoming key to Africa's development. "Our commitment to the NEPAD e-schools initiative in Egypt and across Africa is an extension of our drive to promote skills development, which is the foundation for any sustainable economic growth", Atef Helmy said.
Meantime, Oracle and HP consortia have already started deploying equipment to Egypt prior to the launch, scheduled to take place soon.
About the NEPAD e-schools Project
First announced in 2003 at the Africa Summit of the World Economic Forum in Durban, the NEPAD e-Schools Project focuses on providing end-to-end ICT solutions that will connect schools across Africa to the NEPAD e-Schools network and the Internet. Solutions also include the provision of content and learning material and the establishment of health points at schools.
In each country, the programme aims to transform all African secondary schools into NEPAD e-Schools within five years of implementation start date and all African primary schools within ten years of 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.
The HP, Oracle consortia and a number of other private companies are sponsoring the demonstration project, consisting of six schools in each of the 16 participating countries, for a period of 12 months. Participating countries are: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda.
Notes for Editors
- More about Government of Egypt: http://www.sis.gov.eg/En/EgyptOnline
- More about NEPAD: http://www.nepad.org/
- More about NEPAD e-Africa Commission: http://www.eafricacommission.org/
- More about Oracle: http://www.oracle.com/
- More about HP: http://www.hp.com/
For more information about the event, please contact:
Samuel Mikenga
Manager, Public Communications
NEPAD e-Africa Commission
Email: SMikenga@eafricacommission.org
Tel: +27 12 841 4523 (office)
Tel: +27 725 296 769 (mobile)
Fax: +27 12 841 4094
Pretoria; South Africa
Website: http://www.eafricacommission.org/
